The Imperial State of Iran, the government of Iran during the Pahlavi
dynasty, lasted from 1925 to 1979. During that time two monarchs — Reza
Shah Pahlavi and his son Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi — employed secret
police, torture, and executions to stifle political dissent. The Pahlavi
dynasty has sometimes been described as a "royal dictatorship", or
"one-man rule". According to one history of the use of torture by the
state in Iran, abuse of prisoners varied at times during the Pahlavi reign.
Makes a nonsense of saying what a wonderful thing it would be to go back to the good old days in Iran.