Imagine being held hostage for four hundred and forty four days. The thought alone is scary but this was reality for Fifty-three Americans when they was held hostage at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran. This was a tough situation because America and Iran had bigger problems to deal with. Insurgency broke out and former King Reza Shah Pahlavi was forced into exile by the people of Iran. The United States backed the former King and when Pahlavi came to America looking for refuge this caused a serious situation. The United States learned that Pahlavi had cancer and made a choice to let him in for treatment. This angered the people of Iran and forced Iranian students to protest outside of the American embassy. On November 4th, 1979 the students decided to storm the Embassy creating the four hundred and forty-four day suffering. Pahlavi was forced into exile and the people of Iran welcomed Ayatollah Khomeini, a revolutionist who had been in exile. Although Khomeini did not take part in the overthrow, he indirectly supported the Iran Hostage Crisis with no intent to prevent or stop the crisis. One of the major reasons of the Iran Hostage Crisis was the fact that we were interest in oil.
The United States ' interest in oil many years before the crisis slowly developed into a volatile relationship between the United States and Iran. In 1908, the discovery of oil in Iran attracted western nations. Oil, also known as "black gold," was becoming the fuel for many ships and was a large commodity. The strongest navy belonged to Britain, and Britain capitalized on the great opportunity of oil. Britain lost control in Iran after World War II when Mohammed Reza Pahlavi rose to power. After the exile of Reza Shah Pahlavi, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Reza Shah Pahlavi 's son, united Iran although foreign nations, the United States, Britain, and Soviet Union, were still stationed in Iran. Mohammed Reza Pahlavi was named the Shah of Iran. The Shah asked for support