The ENTIRE History of Iran in 10 Minutes

The history of Iran: a high plateau between three worlds, and every empire that came for it. This Iran history documentary covers ancient Persia and Cyrus the Great, the Islamic conquest, the 1953 oil coup, the 1979 revolution, and the 2026 war. Iran once ruled the largest empire the world had ever seen. It has been conquered by Alexander, the Arab caliphs and the Mongols — and outlasted every one of them. Today it sits beside the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow channel that roughly a fifth of the world's oil moves through, and in 2026 that strait became the center of a global crisis. This documentary follows the complete history of Iran: the Elamites, the Medes and Persians, Cyrus the Great and the conquest of Babylon, Darius and Persepolis, Alexander the Great, the Parthians and the Battle of Carrhae, the Sasanians and the capture of a Roman emperor, the Islamic conquest, Ferdowsi and the Shahnameh, the Mongol invasions, the Safavids and Shia Islam, the Qajar dynasty, the Constitutional Revolution, the D'Arcy oil concession and the birth of BP, Reza Shah, Mohammad Mosaddegh and the 1953 coup, the last Shah, Ayatollah Khomeini and the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the hostage crisis, the Iran-Iraq War, the nuclear deal, the Twelve-Day War, and the 2026 war and the fight over the Strait of Hormuz. Alexander burned its capital. The caliphs converted it. The Mongols emptied its cities. The British took its oil. Every one of them came for this land — and every one of them is gone. And in 2026, the oldest question in Iran is being asked again: who controls what's under the ground, and what moves through the water? Researched from historical scholarship, primary sources and current reporting. Subscribe for the whole story behind the headlines, and tell us in the comments what you want explained next — a country, a war, a company, anything in the news. CHAPTERS 0:00 - February 28, 2026 0:43 - How does this keep happening? 1:30 - Who Iranians are, and why everyone wanted Iran 2:05 - Cyrus the Great and the Persian Empire 2:35 - Alexander, Parthia and Rome 3:08 - The Arab conquest and the Mongols 3:47 - Shiite Islam and the empire shrinks 4:35 - The oil deal that changed everything 5:43 - Mosaddegh and the 1953 coup 6:48 - The last Shah 7:25 - The 1979 revolution and the hostage crisis 8:01 - War, missiles and the nuclear program 9:20 - Iran in 2026 9:56 - Follow the money SOURCES & FURTHER READING Axworthy, M. (2008), "A History of Iran: Empire of the Mind," Basic Books Abrahamian, E. (2008), "A History of Modern Iran," Cambridge University Press Kinzer, S. (2003), "All the Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror," Wiley National Security Archive (2013), "CIA Confirms Role in 1953 Iran Coup," George Washington University Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Iran: History" Encyclopaedia Iranica, "D'Arcy Concession" Al Jazeera, coverage of the US-Israel war on Iran (2026) #HistoryOfIran #IranHistory #Iran #Persia #PersianEmpire #History #Documentary #HistoryDocumentary #WorldHistory #MiddleEast #StraitOfHormuz #IranianRevolution #CyrusTheGreat