POLITICS & SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

IRAN BECOMES ISLAMIC REPUBLIC

1 April 1979, Tehran, Iran

Following the successful overthrow of the US-backed monarch, a referendum approved (by 99%) the formation of an Islamic Republic and Iran was set on an entirely new path under its leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. His success was an inspiration to Muslims around the world and sent ripples throughout the Middle East, helping to reshape the political landscape of the region and setting up much of the political divide that exists to this day.

CLEISTHENES INTRODUCES DEMOCRATIC REFORMS

c.508 BCE, Athens, Greece

Having organised the 140 villages, or demes, of Attica into ten new tribes based on location rather than heritage, Athenian statesman Cleisthenes invited each to select 50 representatives to sit in a council in Athens so even the most remote village would have a say in the decision making in the city. Thanks to his reforms, Cleisthenes is considered the father of democracy in Athens.

DEATH OF EMILY WILDING DAVISON

8 June 1913, Epsom, England

At the Epsom Derby suffragette Emily Wilding Davison ran out onto the race track, where she