The Thought and Policy of Urban Planning of Reza Shah Period and its Effect on the Physical Developments of Tabriz

With the failure of constitutionalism, the Iranian modernist movement consented to Reza Shahi's quasi-modern powerful government. The roots of urban planning thinking in the era of Reza Shah were based on modern Western thought and disregard for the enduring culture and traditions of the Iranian city. Reza Shah, in the role of the developer "Faust", took a step towards modernization by comparing the unsettled situation of Iran and developed countries with imitative institutions. In fact, what satisfied the king was the development of the superstructure of cities in creating spaces such as streets, squares, as well as educational, health and industrial centers. The most prominent feature of urban planning during the Reza Shah period was the direct intervention of the government in the way of changing and developing the physical urban system. This was due to the construction of a powerful power in the political system of the Pahlavi government. The municipality law passed in 1309 was a weak law in terms of people's participation in the city administration compared to the previous law that was approved in the first constitutional parliament. Urban renovation projects were implemented with the directives of the Ministry of Interior and influenced by the way Tehran was renovated. Urban renewal plans were intertwined with concepts such as cruciform streets, nineteenth-century European pattern, zoning, and the depiction of ancient texture. The main claim of this research is based on the physical changes of Tabriz, according to which, the side streets of Mehranrood (Chaee square), Tarbiyat, Pahlavi, Ferdowsi, Shahbakhti, Khaghani and also Golestan garden, municipal building, Shahgoli development, squares, hotel and cinema were built. Relying on first-hand sources, historical publications and documents, and using a descriptive-explanatory method, this article examines the intellectual foundation of the urban planning program of Reza Shah's era and analyzes the physical developments of Tabriz.