Born in 1902 the son and grandson of mullahs, he had been a theologian, philosopher and poet. Khomeini rose to prominence by opposing first the shah’s father and then the shah himself for bringing a modern, Western approach to ruling Iran. Specifically, he spoke out against the shah's "White Revolution" in 1963, getting arrested then and again in 1964, after which he was exiled.
He settled in Najaf, Iraq and stayed there for another 14 years until October 1978 when he was forced out by Saddam Hussein, who was then nine months away from his own ascent to power. Khomeini then spent the next several weeks in a Paris suburb, sending taped messages to his supporters during the final months of the shah’s reign.
Wildly popular, his return was greeted by some five million people, over 10% of Iran’s population at the time. He would solidify control by the end of February with the help of sympathetic military defectors, and by April the monarchy was abolished in favor of an Islamic Republic.
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