THE WAR THAT LASTED ONLY 38 MINUTES
THE WAR THAT LASTED ONLY 38 MINUTES š¤£
ZANZIBAR DECLARED WAR ā AND BRITAIN ENDED IT BEFORE BREAKFAST
On August 25, 1896, the Sultan of Zanzibar, Hamad bin Thuwaini, suddenly died, triggering a major succession crisis in the islands, which were already under heavy British influence.
Without waiting for British approval, his cousin Khalid bin Barghash declared himself the new Sultan and took control of the palace. The British considered this a direct violation of the agreement governing the Sultanate.
Britain gave him a simple ultimatum:
Lower your flag. Surrender your weapons. Leave the palace.
But Khalid refused.
Instead, he barricaded himself inside the palace with around 3,000 guards and soldiers, several old bronze cannons, and the royal warship HHS Glasgow.
He apparently believed the British were only making threats.
They weren’t. š³
On the morning of August 27, 1896, the British deadline arrived at 9:00 a.m.
Khalid still refused to surrender.
Then the British warships opened fire.
Five British warships bombarded the palace with overwhelming firepower. Zanzibar’s old guns were quickly destroyed, HHS Glasgow was sunk, and the palace was set ablaze and began collapsing.
The defenders were thrown into chaos.
And then came the most dramatic part.
Khalid fled.
He escaped through the back of the palace and secretly made his way to the German consulate, seeking protection from the British.
Meanwhile, the Sultan’s flag fell after the flagpole was hit.
At 9:38 a.m., the British ordered the bombardment to stop.
THE ENTIRE WAR HAD LASTED JUST 38 MINUTES.
Thirty-eight minutes.
The fighting left more than 500 Zanzibaris dead or wounded, while the British suffered only one wounded soldier, who later recovered.
After the bombardment, Britain installed Hamud bin Mohammed as Sultan.
And just like that, a succession dispute had become one of the most famous military confrontations in history.
38 MINUTES.
ONE PALACE DESTROYED.
ONE WARSHIP SUNK.
ONE SULTAN FLED.
THE SHORTEST WAR IN HISTORY. ā±ļøš„
