 In later life, he was devastated by the Iranian Revolution (1979–1980), which saw the wrecking of all his endeavors and the seizure by the clergy of all his assets, including the Park Hotel (which had grown to a 5-star 500-room complex).He had spent sixty years of his life investing his knowledge and his fortune in Iran, only to be forced into exile.The shock was such that he spent the last two years of his life in hospital and died in Lausanne, Switzerland on 16 April 1982.