The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Tehran, Iran.
Prior to 20th century
1553 – City wall built. 1576 – Golestan Palace completed. 1660 – Grand Bazaar reported to be open. 1723 – Afghans (Pashtuns) occupy the city. 1751 – Takht-e Marmar Iwan built. 1759 – Khalvat-e Karim Khani built (approximate date). 1785 – Town besieged by the forces of Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar. 1786 – Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar moves Iran's capital from Sari to Tehran. 1790 – Qajar Palace built (later became Qasr Prison). 1796 – Population: less than 15,000. Quoted in: Encyclopædia Britannica, 1911. 1807 – Negarestan Palace built 1810–25 – Construction of the Shah Mosque. 1829 – 11 February: Russian embassy attacked; Alexander Griboyedov and others killed. 1834 – Ali Mirza Zel as-Soltan in power. 1835 – Mohammad Shah Qajar in power. 1837 – Kaghaz-e Akhbar (newspaper) begins publication. 1850 – Sahebgharaniyeh Palace built. 1851 – Dar al-Fonun (school) founded. 1861 – 1 March: Unrest. 1865 – Golestan Palace rebuilt. 1867 Shams-ol-Emareh built Toopkhaneh Square built 1868 – Takyeh Dowlat built 1869 City expanded by Naser al-Din Shah Qajar. Population: 155,000. 1872 – Jolfa–Tabriz–Tehran telegraph begins operating (approximate date). 1873 City wall rebuilt. Laleh-Zar Street built Museum founded by Naser al-Din Shah. 1881 – Baharestan Palace built. 1883 Abyaze Palace built. Ruby Palace built 1888 – Tehran–Rey Railway begins operating. 1889 – Imperial Bank of Persia headquartered in Tehran. 1896 1 May: Assassination of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar; Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar in power. Tarbiyat newspaper begins publication. 1899 – Tehran School of Political Sciences established.
20th century
1900s–1940s 1906 "Bast of the constitutionalists at the British legation" occurs. 5 August: Mozaffar ad-Din Shah issues the firman proclaiming constitutional monarchy at Sahebgharaniyeh Palace Baharestan parliament building inaugurated. 1907 31 August: Assassination of Prime Minister Mirza Ali Asghar Khan Amin al-Soltan. German School established. 1908 becomes mayor. Bombardment of the Iranian parliament by Russian forces. 1909 13–15 July: City taken by nationalist forces of Ali-Qoli Khan Bakhtiari. 18 July: Ahmad Shah Qajar in power. 1910 – Mirza Abbaskhan Mohandes Bashi Hodud becomes mayor. 1911 – Population: approximately 280,000. 1914 – Ebrahim-Khan Yomn-Olsaltaneh Monaghah becomes mayor. 1915 _ The Battle of Robat Karim was fought by the Iranian people, near Tehran, during the First World War and Persian campaign under the command of Heydar Latifiyan against the occupation of Iran by Russian forces. 1918 School of Law established. Conservatory of Music founded. 1919 – Armaḡān literary journal begins publication.(fa) 1920 – Iran Club (football) founded. 1921 21 February: Persian Cossack forces occupy city during the 1921 Persian coup d'état. Zia ol Din Tabatabaee becomes mayor. 1923 – Karim Buzarjomehri becomes mayor. 1925 / 1304 SH – 31 March: Solar Hijri calendar legally adopted in Iran. 1926 25 April: Coronation of Reza Shah held at the Salam Hall of Golestan Palace Ettela'at newspaper begins publication. 1929 Governmental Technical Institute founded. Qasr prison, Iran's first modern prison, opens on the site of Qajar Palace 1931 – University of Tehran Botanical Garden founded. 1932 – The Second Eastern Women's Congress takes place in Tehran in Iran. 1943 – Valiasr Street construction finished 1934 University of Tehran inaugurated. Gholi Hooshmand becomes mayor. 1937 National Library of Iran inaugurated. Marble Palace completed. 1938 Trans-Iranian Railway (Bandar Shah-Tehran-Bandar Shahpur) in operation. Beginnings of Mehrabad International Airport as an airfield for aviation club planes Ghasem Soor-Esrafil becomes mayor. 1939 Rangsazi Iran was founded 1940 Ali Asghar Foruzan becomes mayor. Population: 400,000. 1941 – becomes mayor, succeeded by . 1942 Seyed Mehdi Emadolsaltaneh becomes mayor. Bread riot. 1943 Tehran Conference held. Fazlollah Bahrami becomes mayor, succeeded by . 1944 – Gholam-Hossein Ebtehaj becomes mayor. 1945 Fada'iyan-e Islam (political group) founded. becomes mayor, succeeded by Mehdi Mashayekhi. 1947 Institut français d'iranologie de Téhéran founded. Mohammad Khalatbari becomes mayor, succeeded by . 1949 Apadana art gallery opens. becomes mayor.
1950s–1960s 1950 – Mehdi Namdar becomes mayor. 1951 Arsalan Khalatbari becomes mayor, succeeded by . Embassy of the United States, Tehran built. 1952 – Nostratollah Amini becomes mayor. 1953 August – Coup d'état. Mohsen Nasr becomes mayor. City Park created. 1954 – becomes mayor, succeeded by . 1955 becomes mayor. Alavi Institute founded. 1956 Allameh Tabataba'i University established. Population: 1,512,032. Mahmood Davaloo becomes mayor. 1957 – becomes mayor. 1958 Tehran Polytechnic and Tehran Zoo established. Tehran Biennial art exhibit begins. Mousa Maham becomes mayor. Ekbatan Town (Persian: شهرک اکباتان - Shahrak e Ekbātān). 1959 Nasser Zolfaghari becomes mayor. World Wrestling Championships held. 1960 Fathollah Forood becomes mayor. Central Bank of Iran established. 1961 Mohsen Nasr becomes mayor. German Speaking Evangelical Church, Tehran built. 1962 Ahmad Nafisi becomes mayor. Tehran War Cemetery built. 1963 Ali Akbar Tavana becomes mayor, succeeded by Ziaeddin Shademan. Persepolis Athletic and Cultural Club established. Population: 2,317,116 (estimate). 1964 Higher Educational Institute For Girls founded. International Regional Cooperation for Development headquartered in Tehran. 1965 becomes mayor. Aryamehr Technical University and Hosseiniyeh Ershad (institute) founded. 1966 Rey and Tajrish become part of Tehran. Malek National Museum and Library opens. Population: 2,719,730. 1967 becomes mayor, succeeded by . 26 October: Coronation of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi held at the Salam Hall of Golestan Palace 1968 April–May: International Conference on Human Rights held in city. Tehran Derby (football contest) begins. National Botanical Garden of Iran established. Niavaran Palace built. Javad Shahrestani becomes mayor. 1969 – Gholamreza Nikpey becomes mayor.
1970s–1990s 1970 – Saint Sarkis Cathedral built as the new cathedral of the Armenian Diocese of Tehran. 1971 February: International OPEC meeting held in city; "Tehran Agreement" signed. Azadi Tower and Azadi Stadium built. 1972 City Theater of Tehran and National Arts Museum inaugurated. Evin Prison built. Sister city relationship established with Los Angeles, USA. 1973 Apadana Stadium opens in Ekbatan. Population: 4,002,000 (approximate). 1974 – September: 7th Asian Games (sport contest) held in city. 1976 16 September: Alleged UFO sighting. Carpet Museum of Iran founded. 1977 – Reza Abbasi Museum, Jamshidieh Stone Garden, and Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art open. 1978 8 September: Protesters shot in Zhaleh Square. Javad Shahrestan becomes mayor again. 1979 1 February: Ayatollah Khomeini returns. 30–31 March: National Iranian Islamic Republic referendum held. 4 November: Students seize United States embassy and its occupants; Iran hostage crisis begins. Mohammad Tavasoli becomes mayor. Tehran Times newspaper begins publication. 1980 Reza Zavarehi becomes mayor, succeeded by Seyed amal ol-din Neek Ravesh. Iranian legislative election, 1980 (Tehran, Rey, Shemiranat and Eslamshahr) held. German Embassy School Tehran inaugurated. 1981 28 June: Haft-e Tir bombing. Apadana Residential Complex built. Gholam-Hossein Deljoo becomes mayor. 1982 becomes mayor. Population: 5,734,000 (estimate). 1983 Center for the Great Islamic Encyclopedia and Institut Français de Recherche en Iran established. Hossein Bonakdar becomes mayor, succeeded by Mohammad-Nabi Habibi. Musala of Tehran built. 1985 – Abrar newspaper begins publication. 1986 – Concept of "Greater Tehran" in use. 1987 – Morteza Tabatabaei becomes mayor. 1988 Tehran International Book Fair begins. Gholamhossein Karbaschi becomes mayor. 1989 11 June: Funeral of Ayatollah Khomeini. Mausoleum of Khomeini built. Tehran International Puppet Theatre Festival begins. 1991 – Bahman Cultural Center opens. 1992 February: International Economic Cooperation Organisation summit held in Tehran. Hamshahri newspaper begins publication. Trolleybus begins operating. Iranian Crown Jewels on display at the Central Bank. 1996 – Population: 6,758,845. 1997 – November: 1st West Asian Games (sport contest) held in city. 1999 February: Local election held July: Student protest. Tehran Metro begins operations. City Council of Tehran begins. Morteza Alviri becomes mayor. Time Museum founded
21st century 2000s
2002 Mohammad-Hassan Malekmadani elected mayor, succeeded by acting mayor Mohmmad-Hossein Moghimi. Shahid Dastgerdi Stadium and Shahid Derakhshan Stadium built. Film Museum of Iran in Ferdows Garden and Iranian National Museum of Medical Sciences History open. 2003 February: Local election held. June: Protest against clerics. Al Alam television begins broadcasting. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad becomes mayor. 2004 February: Asian Indoor Athletics Championships held in city. Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport opens. 2005 6 December: Iranian Air Force C-130 crash occurs. Tehran International Tower and Bank Markazi Tower built. Ali Saeedlou becomes mayor, succeeded by Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. 2006 Population: 7.5 million (approximate). magazine headquartered in Tehran. 2007 Milad Tower built. Tehran Peace Museum opens. International Festival of Peace Poetry begins. 2008 Tehran Bus Rapid Transit begins operating. Safir Office Machines Museum and Mellat Cinema Complex open. 2009 Iranian presidential election protests.
2010s 2010 January: Assassination of scientist Masoud Alimohammadi in Gheytarieh. April: International Conference on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation held in city. May: International 14th G-15 summit held in city. Election protests. Disappeared statues. 2011 Protests. November: British Embassy attacked. Population: 8,154,051. 2012 August: International 16th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement held in city. 2013 Local election. 2014 June: Sandstorm. City becomes part of newly formed national administrative Region 1.
2020s 2021 Alireza Zakani becomes the mayor of Tehran. 2022 Mahsa Amini protests 2024 July: Assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas political leader 2025 June: Tehran is attacked in the Twelve-Day War December: Beginning of the 2025–2026 Iranian protests with Tehran's shopkeepers 2026 January: Iran massacres February–present: Tehran is attacked in the 2026 Iran war February–present: Assassinations of Iranian officials February: Assassination of Ali Khamenei March: Assassination of Ali Larijani March: Golestan Palace damaged from Israeli airstrike shockwaves
See also Tehran history List of mayors of Tehran List of members of City Council of Tehran List of religious centers in Tehran List of museums in Tehran Timeline of the Iranian Revolution Timelines of other cities in Iran: Bandar Abbas, Hamadan, Isfahan, Kerman, Mashhad, Qom, Shiraz, Tabriz, Yazd
References
This article incorporates information from the Persian Wikipedia, French Wikipedia, and German Wikipedia.
Bibliography
in English . (includes brief description of Tehran)
Mansoureh Ettehadieh Nezam-Mafi. "Patterns in Urban Development: the Growth of Tehran (1852–1903)", in Edmund Bosworth and Carole Hillenbrand, eds., Qajar Iran: Political, Social and Cultural Change 1800–1925 (Costa Mesa: Mazda, 1992), pp. 199–212. Ali Madanipour. Tehran: The Making of a Metropolis (New York: John Wiley, 1998).
in other languages