The Coronation of the Shah and the Shahbanou of Iran was the occasion for a week of celebrations in Teheran and local celebrations through the Empire, including the unveiling of several statues of the sovereign. The Shah and Empress Farah attended several events in Teheran, which must be remarked for their magnificence. On the same evening of the Coronation, after having rested in their Shebqaraniyeh Palace, in the Niavaran Palace complex, outside Teheran, the Imperial couple returned to the capital to attend a gala performance.

The Imperial Box in the Roudaki Opera House on the night of its opening, the evening of the Shah and the Shahbanou’s Coronation. From left, Prince Golam Reza, Princess Shahnaz, the Shah and the Shahbanou. Behind, far left, is the Aga Khan IV.

It was in fact the opening of the new Opera of Teheran, the Roudaki Opera House, named after the classical Persian poet. The gala performance was attended by most members of the Imperial Family, including the Shah, the Shahbanou and Princess Shahnaz, as well as the brothers and sisters of the Shah, Prince Golam Reza, Princess Shams, Princess Ashraf and Princess Fatemeh, among many other guests. The most prestigious foreign guests were, as in the ceremony in the Golestan Palace, HRH The Aga Khan IV (his title of HRH was, as remarked before, an Iranian title conferred upon him by the Shah) and The Begum Aga Khan III, widow of the Aga Khan III and step-grandmother of the Aga Khan IV.

See more pictures of the events on the evening of Coronation Day

After the gala performance there was a ball in the Marble Palace of Teheran, the first public event of the Coronation attended by the Queen Mother, who had offered the luncheon held after the Coronation. This party was also the celebration of the Shah of Iran’s 48th birthday, that very same day and during the glittering evening the guests had the opportunity of honouring the Shah, who blew the candles of a cake crowned with a replica of the Pahlavi Crown. Then the Shah and the Empress opened the ball, in what they were followed by their guests.

The Imperial Box in the Amjadieh Stadium, where the Coronation Parade took place.

During the following week, the events to mark the Coronation continued. The day that followed the Coronation, the Imperial Family attended a very grand parade in the Amjadieh Stadium, decorated with models of the Shah and the Shahbanou’s faces, as well as of the Pahlavi Crown. It was not only a military parade but also one with thousands of performers displaying various aspects of Iranian life, history and culture.

See more pictures of the Coronation Parade

Among the other celebrations that took place to mark the Coronation were daily fireworks during the whole week, the celebration of the Crown Prince’s 7th birthday with popular parties and, as the grand finale, a magnificently glittering gala evening at the Royal Teheran Hilton Hotel, hosted by the Minister of the Court, which ended with a magnificent firework display in the gardens. With this event the celebrations for the Coronation of the Shah and the Shahbanou came to an end, but the event would remain for decades in everyone’s minds, for its very special grandeur and dignity.

See pictures of the Hilton Fireworks

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