Just how short the age of the automobile really is only really becomes clear when you look at it in relation to the history of the world. The Iranian monarchy dates back over 2500 years, but only in the last 122 of those years was it accompanied by a motor vehicle. Nevertheless, this comparatively short period provides enough material for 564 pages of paper, which the Iranian automotive journalist and historian Borzou Sepasi has filled well.
Chronicle of a century
His English-language book "Fit for a King - The Royal Garage of the Shahs of Iran" is the result of over 20 years of research and describes the development of the royal vehicle fleet from the beginning of the 20th century until Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's exile in 1979.
Today, the last Shah is the first person you think of when you hear the Persian ruler's title in connection with automobiles. In fact, Shah Pahlavi - partly due to his long reign of 38 years - contributed the most to the vehicle fleet. Sepasi's book, however, begins in 1900 with Shah Mozaffar al-Din, whose steam-powered Gardner-Serpollet 10 HP was the first car in Persia. The country's first oil well was not discovered until 1908.
What follows is not only the chronicle of an increasingly crowded garage, but also the history of the royal family and, above all, of Pahlavi rule. Sepasi not only lists model names in the order in which they were ordered, but also explains the political circumstances in the year the car was purchased - which, of course, only very rarely had anything to do with the new acquisition. Some of the cars, such as the Maserati 5000 GT with touring bodywork, are quite well-known today.
Other cars, unspectacular from today's perspective, such as the 1963 Buick Riviera, are seen here for the first time deliberately associated with the king. A tiny remark from a pedant: the "Carrozzeria Touring Superleggera" was actually just called "Touring" and named its patented lightweight construction "Superleggera". In addition to the Shah's vehicles, the fleet of the heirs to the throne is also described, ranging from the Fiat 1300 Spider pedal car to the electric "baby Ferrari" Bimbo-Racer V12 and the small Aston-Martin with James Bond equipment.
Mostly historical photos
The photos, some of which are surprisingly private (the Shah goes water-skiing), are of course mainly black and white, but nevertheless interesting documents of the time. The few color photos from the early years, such as the tour of southern Europe in 1964 in the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster or the skiing vacation in St. Moritz in the red Lamborghini Miura in 1968, are particularly atmospheric. The fleet album is accompanied by small fragments of the Arab automobile culture of the time: advertisements from the 1930s or petrol stations with oriental architecture. Sepasi even dug out the royal Lamborghini invoices and delivery bills from the 1970s from state archives.
When Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi went into exile on January 16, 1979, the era of the Iranian monarchy came to an end. But the book goes even further: Borzou Sepasi has taken the trouble to find out what has become of the Shah's cars and where they are today. Many of them have survived, even the bimbo racer.
Conclusion
"Fit for a King - The Royal Garage of the Shahs of Iran" is one of those wonderful books that you don't really need, but enjoy having anyway. For the simple reason that it tells a story that has never been told before in such detail and with such persistence, it should be worth considering. Consideration because 150 dollars (184 francs) is quite a lot of money for a book. If you just want to browse a little, it might be too expensive for you. But if you're interested in automotive history outside the West, it's definitely money well spent. The book will go on sale in Switzerland on May 20, 2022.
Bibliographical details
- Title: Fit for a King - The Royal Garage of the Shahs of Iran
- Authors: Borzou Sepasi
- Language: English
- Publisher: Dalton Watson Fine Books, 1st edition 2022
- Format: 230 mm x 280 mm, hardcover with dust jacket
- Size: 564 pages, 1046 photos
- ISBN: 978-1-86443-292-6
- Price: $150.00, 184.00 SFr.
- Buy/order: from the publisher Dalton Watson Fine Books, at amazon.de or in relevant bookstores
