In 1951, Prime Minister
Mohammed Mosaddeq received the vote required from the parliament to
nationalize the British-owned oil industry, in a situation known as the
Abadan Crisis. Despite British pressure, including an economic blockade, nationalization continued. Mosaddeq was removed from power in 1952, but quickly re-appointed by the Shah, due to a popular uprising in support of the premier. He forced the Shah into a brief exile in August 1953 after a failed military coup by
Imperial Guard Colonel
Nematollah Nassiri.