Jafar Shafaghat
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Jafar Shafaghat | |
|---|---|
جعفر شفقت | |
 | |
| Minister of War | |
| In office 5 January 1979 – 11 February 1979 | |
| Monarch | Mohammad Reza Pahlavi |
| Prime Minister | Shapour Bakhtiar |
| Preceded by | General Reza Azimi |
| Succeeded by | Ahmad Madani (as Minister of National Defence) |
| Governors of East Azerbaijan Province | |
| In office 6 March 1978 – 30 December 1978 | |
| Monarch | Mohammad Reza Pahlavi |
| Preceded by | Eskandar Azmoudeh |
| Succeeded by | Rahmatollah Moghaddam Maraghei |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1915 |
| Died | 4 February 2001 (aged 85–86) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Imperial State of Iran |
| Branch/service | Imperial Army of Iran |
| Years of service | 1933–1979 |
| Rank |  General officer |
| Commands |
|
Arteshbod Jafar Shafaghat (Persian: جعفر شفقت; c.1915 – February 4, 2001) was an Iranian General officer during the Pahlavi-era and was the last Minister of Defense in Shapour Bakhtiar's government (1978 — 1979).[1] Shafaghat was the last Pahlavi era governor of East Azerbaijan province. He died in exile in Nice, France.
Jafar Shafaghat was born in Nakhchivan in 1915, to an aristocratic Azerbaijani family. His father was an officer in the Imperial Russian Cavalry and later served as Colonel in the Army of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. When he was a child, the family fled to Persia (Iran) as refugees in 1921 after the Bolshevik Soviet takeover of Azerbaijan[2] After graduating from primary and secondary school, with the help of his uncle Mohammad-Hossein Damavandi, he entered the Iranian College of Officers in 1933 (1312 Shamsi). After a two-year course, in the year 1935 (1314 Shamsi), he received the rank of officer.
He later served in the Imperial guard, and ultimately was appointed commander of the shah's guard with the rank of captain. He served as the commander of the 1st Division of the Imperial Guard until 1950 with the rank of Colonel.
He attended the École d'application de l'infanterie, the Infantry School, for officers and under-officiers, located with l'ecole nationale des sous-officiers d'active (ENSOA), appelée communément Saint-Maixent in France and graduated 1953 (1332 Shamsi). He came back from France during the Mossadegh uprising and then went back a second time and graduated from École supérieure de guerre as part of the 70th group of graduates.
Military career
One of his most important posts at that time was the command of the 4th Rezaiyeh Division and the command of the Tabriz division. He was also the chief of staff of the army and deputy chief of staff until he was appointed commander of the 2nd Army. Later he became the Adjutant General of the Shah, until he was elected Deputy Chief of Staff of the General Staff of the Armed Forces. Jafar Shafaghat took several courses of command in France and the United States, and also received a doctorate in international law from the Sorbonne, and was also a military judge.[3]
General Shafaghat took an active part in the reconstruction of the Iranian Imperial Guard in 1942, the strength of which was 700 volunteers.[4][5] In 1946, he became commander of the "Immortal Guard", the elite imperial guard of the Shah. General Shafaghat attended the coronation of Mohammad Reza Shah on 26 October 1967 and personally handed over the Pahlavi Crown to the Shah.
Among his relatives in the army were: Brigadier General Khalil Shafaghat (sibling), Brigadier General Sattar Salimian, Major General Mahsud Hamapayi (division commander and last governor of the province of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad in 1978), Brigadier General Aziz Damavandi from the commanders of the Imperial Air Force) and Air Force Colonel Buick Damavandi.[6]
