Fighting lasted 38 minutes: how to win a small victorious war

The Anglo-Zanzibar War of 1896 is considered the shortest in history. It lasted less than an hour, and only one person was killed by the victors. Let's try to understand how the British managed to achieve such a feat in the art of war in this article.

The center of trade and slavery in the Indian Ocean

A war as long as a school lesson

The consequences of the war

Conclusions

The center of trade and slavery in the Indian Ocean

Zanzibar is an archipelago of 75 islands located off the coast of East Africa and belonging to Tanzania. The archipelago is made up of three significant islands, the largest of which is Unguja, often called Zanzibar. The largest city of the archipelago on the island of Unguja is also called Zanzibar.

Unguja Island off the east coast of Africa. Map: britannica.com

At the end of the 17th century, the island of Unguja came under the control of the Sultanate of Oman after the expulsion of Portuguese settlers. Unguja prospered because it was on the way to important trade routes. The island's prosperity was based on the trade in slaves, spices, and ivory. In the mid-nineteenth century, with British support, the island separated from the Sultanate of Oman to form the Sultanate of Zanzibar. Since then, Britain's influence on the newly created state has been steadily growing. The Zanzibar Sultanate during this period includes the Zanzibar archipelago and a fairly long strip on the east coast of Africa. The sultanate also controls trade routes that go inland.

The territory of the Zanzibar Sultanate before the 1880s. Map: Wikipedia

After the opening of the Suez Canal, the trade importance of the sultanate only increased. In the early 70s, the United Kingdom forced the Zanzibar Sultanate to sign an agreement to abolish the slave trade. At the same time, the slave trade continued in a hidden form.

In the 1980s, Britain faced a powerful competitor in East Africa, Germany. Both European countries put pressure on the leaders of the continental part of the sultanate, persuading them to cooperate. The Sultan tries to protest, but his attempts are in vain. In the mid-1980s, Britain and Germany agree on the division of spheres of influence. According to the agreement, British influence extended to the territory of modern Kenya, and German influence to the continental part of modern Tanzania. Both powers leased the coastal continental lands of the Zanzibar Sultanate. Obviously, Zanzibar should not have agreed to the strengthening of two powerful empires in the region, but Africans at that time could hardly refuse. Within a few years, all of Zanzibar's mainland possessions were bought by Britain and Germany. In the acquired territories, Europeans abolished slavery, which led to uprisings among the local population, which were brutally suppressed.

The next stage of limiting the sovereignty of the Zanzibar Sultanate took place in 1890: the new sultan proclaimed a British protectorate over the state. According to the agreement, no sultan could come to power without the approval of Foggy Albion. Germany was also interested in the archipelago's territories, but had to act covertly.

A war as long as a school lesson

In 1896, Sultan Hamad ibn Tuwaini died. Two people began to claim the vacant position-Hamud ibn Muhammad, whose candidacy was supported by the British, and Khalid ibn Bargash, whose side was Germany. The latter decided to act decisively and on August 25, he and his supporters seized the capital's palace. It is interesting that after the death of the next sultan in 1893, Khalid ibn Bargash had already seized the palace, but that time the British convinced him to give up. British Consul Basil Cave and Brigadier General Lloyd Matthews, a Briton in the service of the sultanate, tried to persuade Khalid ibn Bargash to change his mind again, but this time the African decided to take his chance.

The palace of the Sultan of Zanzibar. Photo: thecollector.com

On August 25, Khalid ibn Bargash gathered troops. Khalid's supporters managed to gather 2,800 soldiers, of whom only 700 were professionals. The army was armed with several easel machine guns, two 12-pounder cannons, and a 17th-century bronze cannon donated by German Emperor Wilhelm II. All of them were displayed in front of the palace and aimed at the British ships in the harbor. The fleet was represented by the wooden yacht Glasgow, which belonged to the former sultan. There were 900 Zanzibari soldiers on the side of the British. Also, 150 British soldiers were landed on the shore from the ships that were on duty in the harbor. Initially, there were two ships in the harbor - the cruiser Philomel and the gunboat Thrush. On the same day, they were joined by the gunboat Gorobets.

On August 26, Khalid ibn Bargash officially proclaimed himself sultan. The British continued to build up their forces - the gunboat Raccoon and the cruiser St. George entered the capital's harbor. Finally, the British issued an ultimatum: to lay down their arms by 9 a.m. on August 27.

On the morning of August 27, the new sultan offered the British to negotiate, but the Europeans replied that they were ready to meet only to accept the surrender. Shortly before the outbreak of war, Khalid ibn Bargash managed to send a message to the British in which he doubted that they would dare to open fire.

The ratio of naval forces on the eve of the war. Infographic: Wikipedia

At around 9 a.m., British warships opened fire on the palace, which was built mostly of wood and was in no way suitable for defense. "The Driz destroyed one of the 12-pounder cannons near the palace with its first shot. At 9:05 a.m., the Glasgow opened fire on the St. George with 9-pounder guns and a machine gun, which could not damage the armored cruiser. The cruiser returned fire, instantly sinking the yacht. The Zanzibari sailors managed to signal their surrender and were rescued by the British. "The Blackbird also sank two steam boats whose crews tried to attack the British fleet with guns.

The British cruiser St. George fires on the Sultan's Palace. Illustration: Donald Fetherstone

At this time, pro-British troops on land began to take control of the area around the palace. They were fired upon by troops loyal to the sultan, but the Zanzibari resistance proved ineffective. The palace and the adjacent harem quickly began to burn. Sources differ on how quickly the sultan and other defenders left the palace. The Zanzibari artillery did not respond, but the British continued to shell the palace as the Zanzibari flag flew overhead. Finally, another shot brought the flag down, which ended the war. Various sources indicate that the war lasted from 38 to 45 minutes. The Anglo-Zanzibar War is considered the shortest in history, so authors often call it the "38-minute war" for comic effect.

The consequences of the war

About 500 men and women from Zanzibar were killed or wounded during the war. It is difficult to say how many of them were killed by the military and how many simply died in the palace during a fire. Sources speak of the destruction of artillery teams near the guns. On the part of the British, one officer was wounded, who later recovered.

Part of the sultan's palace complex after the war. Photo: Wikipedia

Khalid ibn Bargash and his family managed to find refuge in the German embassy. British soldiers were on duty around the embassy every day, but the sultan was still able to be taken out of Zanzibar. One day, the German cruiser Orlan arrived at the capital's port. A dinghy was taken off the cruiser and carried by German sailors on their shoulders to the door of the embassy, where the former sultan was placed in it. The sailors also carried the boat back to the cruiser on their shoulders. According to the law of the day, the boat was considered part of the ship, meaning that Khalid ibn Bargash had not left German territory for a second. The former sultan lived in Dar es Salaam in the German-controlled African territory until 1916, when the Germans lost all their colonies on the black continent during World War I. Khalid ibn Bargash was exiled to the Seychelles, then to St. Helena. After serving his exile, he lived out the rest of his life in Mombasa.

After the British victory, the Zanzibar Sultanate turned into an obedient pocket state. Britain could have simply annexed the country after such a glorious battle, but politicians decided that control would be more economically beneficial. The exploitation of Zanzibar continued. The country's liberation from slavery can be considered a positive historical step. The struggle for Zanzibar's independence began only after World War II and ended successfully at the end of 1963. At the beginning of the following year, the country overthrew the sultanate and established a republic. In November 1964, the Republic of Tanzania was created by the unification of Zanzibar and Tanganyika.

Conclusions.

Anglo-Zanzibar relations are a typical example of the enslavement of a"third world" country by a developed country. Entering the domestic economic market, organizing a scheme to suck up resources, buying up land, exploiting the population and bringing it to poverty, provoking uprisings with subsequent brutal suppression and, as a result, tightening the political noose - all this has been repeatedly demonstrated throughout history. When trying to gain independence with the help of a powerful state, a weak country should first consider whether it is becoming even more dependent. Something similar happened in the history of Ukraine during the time of Bohdan Khmelnytsky.

There are many factors that can be used by a strong state to control or enslave a weak one. One of the most important is the remoteness of the interests of the ruling elites from the interests of ordinary citizens. In this case, it is enough for an external force to materially stimulate the elite, which in return will gradually merge the interests of the country. And a sultanate-like dictatorship is one of the most convenient options, since the elite does not feel any connection with the citizens. It should be emphasized that this can also happen in a democratic country, where the power of the people is only a bright false sign.

Can we say that Khalid bin Bargash did his country a disservice? Of course, Khalid is a typical political adventurer from the Third World who cares only about his own interests. And it is hard to sympathize with his defeat. On the other hand, Zanzibar has long been in the process of enslavement. Khalid ibn Bargash's demarche only accelerated this process.

During the period of colonization, European empires often positioned their actions as progress that they were bringing to enslaved lands. Interestingly, in the case of Zanzibar, Britain actually had a powerful trump card to play: there is no doubt that the slave trade is a terrible violation of human rights. So if we look at human history as a movement forward, we can say that Britain fulfilled its mission at a certain stage by curing Zanzibar of a serious disease. If we look at history from the angle of geopolitics, Britain simply took advantage of Zanzibar. And even after the end of the Second World War, for almost 20 years, it was in no hurry to give it the opportunity to develop on its own.

Олег Пархітько