From a few weeks to a couple of minutes, heres the tragic history of the worlds shortest wars. The shortest war in history the anglo zanzibar war historic uk. Zanzibar and the shortest war in history by patience, k. Im giving the book four stars instead of five because of the authors odd bias against east. While countless wars were fought in the name of imperialism, the anglozanzibar war stands out thanks to one detail. A marshall and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. It still may be the shortest war in history, but it was probably a daylong thing. This is a collection of 24 essays, covering various aspects of the pre war period, the war itself, and the post war period. Read about war not just for the history lesson, but for the life lessons to be had as well. On august 25th 1896 hamad bin thuwaini, the sultan of zanzibar suddenly died and his cousin seyyid khalid bin barghash bin said albusaidi who for the remainder of this article will be referred to as khalid bin barghash seized the royal palace and crowned himself sultan.
With a duration of only 45 minutes, it holds the record of being the shortest war in recorded history. The anglozanzibar war was a military conflict fought between the united kingdom and the zanzibar sultanate on 27 august 1896. War of 1896 is generally considered to be the shortest war in history, lasting for a. The immediate cause of the war was the death of the probritish sultan hamad bin thuwaini on 25 august 1896 and the subsequent succession of sultan khalid bin barghash. Interesting historical facts they dont teach in schools. The shortest was in the history is anglozanzibar war. The anglozanzibar war that took place on the 27th of august 1896 is the worlds shortest war, lasting about 40 minutes. Fought in 1896 between england and the zanzibar sultanate, the war was set off by the sudden death of the leader sultan hamad.
Most history books i have read call the great britain versus zanzibar conflict a battle as it lacked the size of a war. By most accounts, this 40minute war is the shortest in human history. Sinai victory command decisions in history s shortest war, israels hundredhour conquest of egypt, apollo editions, a107 by s. Zanzibar and the shortest war in history book, 1994. If you know nothing about ww i, you wont get very much out of this book. The shortest war in american history is the spanishamerican war, it lasted five months. It lasted under thirtyeight minutes and centred on a british bombardment of zanzibar town.
One briton was seriously injured and about five hundred zanzibarians were killed. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle coronavirus. The central bank of somalia, the united nations, the us office of the secretary of defense, and necrometrics all assert that the conflict started in 1991. By the numbers some of the worlds longest and shortest wars by 7 march, 2014 0 comments the ground campaign of the 1991 gulf war is often referred to as the 100 hour war. But i have suspicion that that sort of advice has no place in a history book. When khalid bin barghash, the new sultan of zanzibar came to power in 1896, he wanted the country to be free from british control. Germany might have won the first world war, but it was not enough.
York times in 1985 on how laptop computers would never catch on. History is full of short wars, and theyre just as tragic as the big ones. Various start dates have been offered for when the civil war in somalia began. The shortest war in history the anglo zanzibar war. The arabisraeli six day way is considered a war in that it had several battles and was over more broad a. Fought between the united kingdom and the zanzibar sultanate, the military conflict lasted somewhere between 38 and 45 minutes. Indeed, to fully appreciate the analysis and opinions provided by the contributors, a firm grasp of modern european history eg, beginning at 1848.
In keeping with my theme of researching the justness of odd and absurd wars, the anglozanzibar war makes the list as it is regarded as the shortest war in history. Mostly over topics like history, geography, economics and science. Anglozanzibar war august 27, 1896, brief conflict between the british empire and the east. The path to security for america and the world, new york. On every measurable scale, no matter which side you are sympathetic toward, the shortest war in history adds to the long list of unjust wars plaguing history. The five shortest wars in military history shortest. David hanson is a good accessible but modern history of the battle. All content included on our site, such as text, images, digital downloads and other, is the property of its content suppliers and protected by us and international laws. The little known anglozanzibar war of 1896 is generally considered to be the shortest war in history, lasting for a. Sign up for brilliant for free at the first 200 to use that link will also get 20% off their annual premium subscription get a half.
What was the shortest war in the history of the world. He has produced a string of satires of modern britain. Shortest i can remember is the 6 day arabisraeli war in 1967. The little known anglozanzibar war of 1896 is generally considered to be the shortest war in history, lasting for a grand total of 38 minutes. The house on mango street by sandra cisnerosthis modern classic, about a latina girl growing up in chicago, has been translated and taught all over the world. The following list ranks wars and times of war by their duration, including both historical. Sure, there might be fewer explosions and fewer casualties, but theres still a whole lot of misery. The shortest battle in history was the battle of moores creek bridge, which occurred near wilmington, north carolina on february 27, 1776 between treacherous north carolina patriots and brave british loyalist heroes mainly scots during the american war of independence. What is the fastest war in american history answers. It lasted a mere 38 minutes but in this short period it proved to be very bloody indeed. It is a matter of historical fact that the conflict lasted for a mere 38 minutes, with british imperial forces defeating the sultan of zanzibar in record time.
Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading weird war. Bridge the best short story ever written and thats enough for me. Since biblical times and before, man has been constantly fighting. Throughout the 26th of august lines of communication between the two sides remained. The worlds shortest war ended less than an hour after it started. We believe that the world is a wonderfully fascinating place, and you can find wonder anywhere you look. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. It did not emerge as a modern nation until 1871yet today, germany is the worlds fourthlargest. The conflict lasted between 38 and 45 minutes, marking it as the shortest recorded war in history. The worlds shortest war ended less than an hour after it. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. By the numbers some of the worlds longest and shortest wars.
The war lasted no longer than 40 minutes, making it the shortest war in recorded history. Due to its large file size, this book may take longer to download. The shortest war ever recorded in history was the anglozanzibar war fought between the united kingdom and zanzibar on august 27, 1896. The shortest war in modern history was the anglozanzibar war of 1896. The shortest war in human history broke out on the 27th of august, only to end less than one hour later. Why the shortest war in history lasted 38 minutes youtube. The conflict was precipitated by the death of zanzibars probritish sultan and the coming to power of a successor who was less favourable to british interests. Curious military trivia kindle edition by axelrod, alan. James hawess brief yet rewarding history of germany examines its place in a continent in the throes of upheaval. But its not easy to say how long the anglozanzibar war actually was. The best short books youll ever read readers digest. The island of zanzibar, off the coast of modern tanzania, was to be the scene in 1896 of what has been described as the shortest war in history. The whole war was fought and ended in about 40 minutes.
From julius caesar to angela merkela retelling for our times. The anglozanzibar war was a colonial conflict fought by the british during the late 19 th century as part of the scramble for africa, the divvyingup of the continent carried out by european powers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In the end, britian placed hamoud bin muhammad in the throne, a position he would serve in until his death in 1902. Not everything that history, as an academic discipline, has discovered is to be found in history books. Grecoturkish war 1897 30 days this all started when the people of crete wanted to become part of an independent greek state, but they were currently part of the ottoman empire.
Over in 38 minutes britains brief battle with zanzibar. The anglozanzibar war is famous as the shortest war in history. Its known as the anglozanzibar war, and the war lasted roughly forty minutes, making it the shortest war in human history. Zanzibar 1896 the island of zanzibar, off the coast of modern tanzania, was to be the scene in 1896 of what has been described as the shortest war in history. What was, in your opinion, the best war in history. From julius caesar to angela merkela retelling for. With his new book on the second world war, british historian andrew roberts has not only written the single best history. The belief in the possibility of a short, decisive war appears to be one of. The war broke out after sultan hamad bin thuwaini, who had willingly cooperated with the british colonial administration, died on 25 august 1896, and his nephew, khalid bin bargash, seized power in what amounted to a coup detat. The following list ranks wars and times of war by their duration, including both historical and ongoing wars. Search the worlds most comprehensive index of fulltext books. It did not emerge as a modern nation until 1871yet today, germany is the. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
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