The Heartbreaking Story Of Queen Soraya

After her infamous divorce from the Shah of Iran, Queen Soraya was nicknamed “the Sad-Eyed Princess.”
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Royal Facts About Queen Soraya, Iran’s Lost Empress
Nov 14
PEOPLE
Dancy Mason
The Heartbreaking Story Of Iran’s Lost Empress
In certain corners of the world, someone only has to whisper the name “Queen Soraya” to conjure up a story of sweeping beauty, royal betrayal, and lasting tragedy. From a teenage marriage to her mysterious end in a Paris penthouse, Soraya Esfandiary-Bakhtiary’s heartbreaking life is worthy of a twisted fairy tale. There’s a reason they called her “the sad-eyed princess”.
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1. She Was A Spoiled Heiress
Soraya was groomed for a royal destiny from the very start. The only daughter of Iranian nobleman Khalil Esfandiary and his wife, the German heiress Eva Karl, Soraya grew up in luxury and spent her adolescence shuttling between Berlin and Isfahan while attending the best finishing schools. But even these refined places couldn't hide her worst quality.
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2. She Had A Bad Temper
Soraya was famous for her half-Iranian, half-German good looks even as a gangly teen—but underneath she wasn't so pretty. She had a notoriously Teutonic, brusque manner coupled with a bad temper, and could snap in an instant when someone annoyed her. All the same, though, she still had that face...and fate was coming for her.
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3. A Single Photo Made Her Queen
Soraya’s legendary beauty preceded her, quite literally. Around 1948, the Queen Mother of Iran, Tadj ol-Molouk, was on the lookout to get her son Shah Mohammad Reza a new wife. She landed on Soraya in an incredible way. Tadj happened to see just a single photo of the girl and decided that she looked like queen material for her son.
What a fairy tale, right? Well, no. There were some disturbing signs from the start.
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4. She Was Too Young
The Queen Mother was so gung-ho about Soraya, she sent over one of her daughters to see what the girl was made of. There was just one creepy fly in this ointment: At the time, Soraya was only just finishing up school and was still a painfully young teenager. Not that this stopped the family: The princess, too,  became convinced that Soraya was perfect for her brother.
She quickly informed her family that they had found Iran’s new queen. Then she gave Soraya a shocking proposition.
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5. She Attended A Royal Try-Out
The Iranian royal family didn’t mess around. Soraya might have barely graduated from long division, but the clan immediately invited her for a visit to their palace in Tehran all the same. On the surface, it was a little casual meet-and-greet to see how everyone got along with each other. The reality, however, was much more harrowing.
They were formally auditioning Soraya as queen—and this time, her obvious beauty wouldn't be enough. But in one moment, her world changed forever.
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6. She Fell In Love At First Sight
When Soraya went to the royal palace, she was beyond swept away by her promised fairy tale. And it all happened in just one instant: The second, that is, that Shah Mohammad Reza walked into the room. That day, he wore his crisp, pressed military uniform, and the sight turned Soraya love-struck. She described him as “magnificent”.
Aflutter with young love, Soraya wasn't at all ready for what came next.
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7. She Was A Child Bride
If Soraya was googly-eyed over Mohammad Reza, the feeling was more than mutual: The Shah was completely obsessed. But his red flags were there from the beginning. For one, Mohammad was firmly in his 30s and over a decade older than the object of his affections. But this was royal matchmaking, so it still moved fast—much too fast.
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8. She Was Betrothed Overnight
The very next day after this auspicious meeting, Soraya's father—who had accompanied her on the trip—got momentous news. Mohammad Reza and his family thought she was perfect, and he was ready to propose to her right then and there. If Soraya didn't feel any trepidation about this, her father sure did. After telling his daughter the news, he asked. "Are you ready to marry him?"
Young and in love, she said yes. But there were some VERY big things she may not have realized about her husband.
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9. Her Husband’s Family Was A Nightmare
Though Soraya was much too naïve to question her groom, she…should have. For one, her new in-laws were notoriously dysfunctional. The Shah’s father had literally withheld his love in order to make his son more “manly,” and liked to punish people with riding whips. Meanwhile, the Queen Mother was smothering and jealous with her own affection.
Not the best environment for producing good husbands. But that wasn’t even the worst part.
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10. Her New Beau Had Major Baggage
Mohammad Reza wasn't just quite a bit older than the teenage Soraya, he had  also been married before. His first wife was the equally beautiful Princess Fawzia of Egypt —and their union ended in horror and infamy. Fawzia had been unsurprisingly miserable in the toxic family dynamic, and they only had one daughter, not a hoped-for son, before they split.
This is a bad enough glimpse into Soraya's future as Queen of Iran...only, Mohammad's biggest skeleton hasn't even come out yet.
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11. Her Suitor Was A Cheater
As it happened, Mohammad Reza's worst qualities had nothing to do with his parents, and everything to do with himself. During his first marriage, he was an absolutely rampant cheater, and his private life was littered with heaps of glamorous mistresses and clandestine rides in luxury cars. Oh yeah, this is going to work out well for Soraya.
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12. She May Have Lied About Her Age
Bad idea or not, Soraya had said yes to the Shah, and it would be awfully difficult to back out of such a public engagement. Still, disturbing rumors accompanied their betrothal. To this day, there is some confusion about just how old Soraya was as the big day approached; some people believed the palace lied and said she was 18 when she was really 16.
Whatever the truth, the road to the wedding did NOT go smoothly.
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13. Her Wedding Had A Bad Omen
Soraya's wedding was set for the fast-approaching date of December 27, 1950—until a horrific event occurred. As if the entire universe were saying “don’t do it, girl,” Soraya fell violently ill with typhoid on the very eve of her wedding. As a result, the palace had no choice but to delay the nuptials. Yet when he heard about his fiancée's illness, the Shah responded with a surprising gesture.
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14. Her Fiancé Made A Grand Gesture
Though the Shah was disappointed to delay the royal ceremony, he actually pulled out all the stops for his delirious, bedridden bride. According to lore, Mohammad came to Soraya’s bed every day for the entirety of her sickness just to place a jewel on her pillow. Ok, I might keep this guy around too. Except  after th…

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