1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:06,160 Speaker 1: Hey, and welcome to the short Stuff. I'm Josh and 2 00:00:06,200 --> 00:00:08,959 Speaker 1: there's Chuck and Jerry sitting in for Dave and appropriately 3 00:00:09,320 --> 00:00:11,200 Speaker 1: in this short Stuff we're going to talk about the 4 00:00:11,240 --> 00:00:12,799 Speaker 1: world's shortest war. 5 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:17,319 Speaker 2: That's right, another day rue special for the Shorty. So 6 00:00:17,440 --> 00:00:18,200 Speaker 2: thanks Dave for this. 7 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:19,040 Speaker 1: Yeah. Thanks. 8 00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:24,280 Speaker 2: This is about the Anglos Azibar War, which is generous 9 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:26,760 Speaker 2: to call this a war, but technically it's listed as such. 10 00:00:26,800 --> 00:00:31,080 Speaker 2: It was really a very quick one sided conflict, so 11 00:00:31,200 --> 00:00:34,440 Speaker 2: quick it is known as the shortest war. Numbers vary, 12 00:00:34,479 --> 00:00:38,479 Speaker 2: but you probably see thirty eight minutes online when you 13 00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:40,560 Speaker 2: look this thing up, maybe as high as forty five. 14 00:00:41,159 --> 00:00:43,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, but everyone agrees it was less than an hour 15 00:00:43,880 --> 00:00:49,080 Speaker 1: this war, that's right. So Anglo'sanzibar means that it was 16 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:54,160 Speaker 1: between England and Zanzibar. Appropriately enough, it happened, did you 17 00:00:54,160 --> 00:00:55,360 Speaker 1: say in eighteen ninety six? 18 00:00:55,840 --> 00:00:56,920 Speaker 2: I didn't mention the date. 19 00:00:57,120 --> 00:00:59,320 Speaker 1: It happened in eighteen ninety six, and it was between 20 00:00:59,360 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 1: the British Royal Navy and the Sultan of Zanzibar. And 21 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:06,360 Speaker 1: you might say, like's the what's the deal here Zanzibar, 22 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:10,840 Speaker 1: it's off the coast of Tanzania today, Why would the 23 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:14,200 Speaker 1: British Navy care about this? Well, back in the eighteen 24 00:01:14,280 --> 00:01:17,600 Speaker 1: nineties and before that, Zanzibar was a very important and 25 00:01:17,760 --> 00:01:23,479 Speaker 1: very wealthy trading port. Was that exchanged goods between the 26 00:01:23,480 --> 00:01:26,479 Speaker 1: interior of Africa and the rest of the world, Middle East, Europe, 27 00:01:26,760 --> 00:01:31,280 Speaker 1: so forth. So Zanzibar was a very important place at 28 00:01:31,280 --> 00:01:31,680 Speaker 1: the time. 29 00:01:32,560 --> 00:01:34,559 Speaker 2: I thought it was important because of the great Billy 30 00:01:34,640 --> 00:01:37,559 Speaker 2: Joel song Zanzibar for real. 31 00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:39,600 Speaker 1: Billy joelded a record on that. 32 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:42,679 Speaker 2: Hey, there's a song called Zanzibar. Good song, but I 33 00:01:42,680 --> 00:01:44,560 Speaker 2: think it's it's about a bar named Zanzibar. 34 00:01:44,840 --> 00:01:47,480 Speaker 1: Oh, Okay, that's a good name for a bar. Yeah, 35 00:01:47,600 --> 00:01:48,040 Speaker 1: I like it. 36 00:01:49,520 --> 00:01:50,920 Speaker 2: I just figured out to try and work in Billy 37 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:53,040 Speaker 2: Joel as much as possible, since you didn't know I 38 00:01:53,080 --> 00:01:57,360 Speaker 2: was a fan Zanzibar. Yeah, you want to know the lyrics. 39 00:01:57,400 --> 00:01:59,080 Speaker 2: I'm not going to sing it. I got the old 40 00:01:59,120 --> 00:02:02,040 Speaker 2: Man's cart a jazz guitar. I got a tab at 41 00:02:02,120 --> 00:02:04,520 Speaker 2: Zanzibar tonight. That's where I'll be. 42 00:02:04,720 --> 00:02:07,160 Speaker 1: I'll be what's the next line? 43 00:02:08,480 --> 00:02:10,399 Speaker 2: Then that's the course. Then it goes into the next verse. 44 00:02:10,520 --> 00:02:13,480 Speaker 1: Okay. When I hear Zanzibar, I think of the gi 45 00:02:13,560 --> 00:02:17,160 Speaker 1: Jove dreadnoughts. They were in league with Cobra and they 46 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:20,000 Speaker 1: were either from Zanzibar or one of them was named Anzibar. 47 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:23,680 Speaker 2: See, I still never watch that stuff. I missed out. 48 00:02:23,919 --> 00:02:25,960 Speaker 1: They were great, man, I know you were stuck with 49 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:26,600 Speaker 1: the big ones. 50 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:29,280 Speaker 2: Yeah, So where do we leave. It was a busy 51 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:31,880 Speaker 2: trading port. Did you mention everything they were trading yet? 52 00:02:32,080 --> 00:02:32,240 Speaker 1: No? 53 00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,400 Speaker 2: Okay, he left that to me. So they were trading ivory, 54 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:39,160 Speaker 2: they were trading spices and things like that. They were 55 00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:44,440 Speaker 2: getting back weaponry and textiles. But very sadly, one of 56 00:02:44,600 --> 00:02:48,359 Speaker 2: the biggest exports was enslaved Africans. They estimate up to 57 00:02:48,400 --> 00:02:51,960 Speaker 2: thirty thousand and slaved people were shipped out through Zanzibar 58 00:02:52,080 --> 00:02:54,280 Speaker 2: all the way up through the eighteen eighties, by the way, 59 00:02:54,320 --> 00:02:59,160 Speaker 2: which is almost a couple of decades after the Emancipation Proclamation. 60 00:02:59,200 --> 00:03:01,679 Speaker 2: That was still going on there, and the Sultan of 61 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:05,440 Speaker 2: Zanzibar was selling his people out because he was getting 62 00:03:05,520 --> 00:03:06,920 Speaker 2: rich off of this slave trade. 63 00:03:07,360 --> 00:03:10,320 Speaker 1: Yeah, and the British really didn't like this. They all 64 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:13,639 Speaker 1: they wanted, you know, to have a a to control 65 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:16,680 Speaker 1: this really expensive port. But they were very much driven 66 00:03:16,720 --> 00:03:21,640 Speaker 1: by outlawing slavery in Africa as well. So those two 67 00:03:21,680 --> 00:03:26,519 Speaker 1: things were big drivers of Great Britain's interest in Zanzibar, 68 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:31,400 Speaker 1: and they in eighteen ninety came up with a treaty 69 00:03:31,520 --> 00:03:35,360 Speaker 1: between the British and the Germans as the Germans sorry, 70 00:03:36,440 --> 00:03:40,160 Speaker 1: that basically said here's a bunch of East Africa, this 71 00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:42,520 Speaker 1: is yours, this is mine, this is yours. It was 72 00:03:42,560 --> 00:03:45,400 Speaker 1: part of what became known as the Scramble for Africa, 73 00:03:45,800 --> 00:03:49,440 Speaker 1: and the European powers just basically carved the entire continent up. 74 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:56,120 Speaker 1: That led to decades of colonization, colonialism that didn't free 75 00:03:56,200 --> 00:03:58,480 Speaker 1: up until I guess about the sixties. I think the 76 00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:01,240 Speaker 1: Scramble for Africa deserves its own episode. 77 00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 2: So yeah, for sure, yeah, very shameful stuff. But they 78 00:04:06,120 --> 00:04:08,040 Speaker 2: carved out what they called zones of influence, and they 79 00:04:08,040 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 2: made Zanzibar a British protectorate, which I looked up the 80 00:04:12,480 --> 00:04:15,120 Speaker 2: difference between that and a colony. Apparently a protectorate there 81 00:04:15,240 --> 00:04:18,120 Speaker 2: you know, self ruling and stuff like that, so it's 82 00:04:18,120 --> 00:04:21,080 Speaker 2: not quite colony as colony light. They are still very 83 00:04:21,120 --> 00:04:23,720 Speaker 2: much under the control of the British government and military. 84 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:27,640 Speaker 2: So they said Zanzibar is our protectorate, and we want 85 00:04:27,720 --> 00:04:31,320 Speaker 2: to get a friendly sultan in there at the Sultanate 86 00:04:31,360 --> 00:04:34,760 Speaker 2: of Zanzibar that's friendly to our needs and wants. And 87 00:04:35,120 --> 00:04:40,159 Speaker 2: so they picked a guy named Hamad ben Twany and 88 00:04:40,320 --> 00:04:42,320 Speaker 2: he was basically a puppet. He was the fifth Sultan 89 00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:44,960 Speaker 2: of Zanzibar, and this is an eighteen ninety three. But 90 00:04:45,120 --> 00:04:49,200 Speaker 2: he was not around long because Dave says Heroes, his 91 00:04:49,279 --> 00:04:54,760 Speaker 2: nephew also saw cousin, this guy, Khalid ben bar Goosh, 92 00:04:54,839 --> 00:04:58,800 Speaker 2: who had already had one failed run at the sultan ship. 93 00:04:58,839 --> 00:05:00,840 Speaker 2: I guess is that what it would be call sultany 94 00:05:02,440 --> 00:05:06,000 Speaker 2: and then try it again by almost certainly poisoning and 95 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:09,679 Speaker 2: killing either his uncle or Cousinyane. Yeah. 96 00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:13,120 Speaker 1: Yeah. And one reason that he's a suspect is right 97 00:05:13,200 --> 00:05:17,880 Speaker 1: when Thuaney died, Ben Bargos showed up in the palace 98 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:20,680 Speaker 1: and was like, I'm sultan now. Everybody wanting to let 99 00:05:20,720 --> 00:05:25,640 Speaker 1: you know. So if you you mentioned that Thuane's sultancy 100 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:31,960 Speaker 1: lasted only three years, Bargosh's sultancy lasted only three days 101 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:35,479 Speaker 1: because he installed himself as sultan and the British were like, 102 00:05:35,520 --> 00:05:37,680 Speaker 1: we don't like you. You're not going to do our bidding. 103 00:05:37,720 --> 00:05:39,320 Speaker 1: So we have a problem here. 104 00:05:39,839 --> 00:05:42,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, so they said, here's what we're gonna do. Actually, 105 00:05:43,080 --> 00:05:45,599 Speaker 2: let's take a break. Everyone's wondering what the heck's going 106 00:05:45,680 --> 00:05:48,120 Speaker 2: to happen next, right, Yes, all right, we'll be back 107 00:05:48,200 --> 00:06:11,320 Speaker 2: right after this. That's why sk to you should know. 108 00:06:09,880 --> 00:06:10,279 Speaker 1: All right. 109 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:12,479 Speaker 2: So I was Everyone's hanging on the edge of their seat. 110 00:06:12,480 --> 00:06:15,200 Speaker 2: What are the British going to do? They're gonna engage 111 00:06:15,279 --> 00:06:18,920 Speaker 2: in gunboat diplomacy, which is the very next day, they 112 00:06:19,200 --> 00:06:21,400 Speaker 2: pulled up a bunch of ships to the harbor there 113 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:25,719 Speaker 2: or whatever it is there and pointed the cannons at 114 00:06:25,760 --> 00:06:28,240 Speaker 2: the Royal Palace and said, you need to be out 115 00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:30,279 Speaker 2: of there by nine am and we'll just be waiting 116 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:31,600 Speaker 2: here to see what you do. 117 00:06:31,760 --> 00:06:34,640 Speaker 1: That's pretty nice at nine am, you can get up early. 118 00:06:34,680 --> 00:06:38,000 Speaker 1: You could exercise the breakfast, have plenty of time. Yeah. 119 00:06:38,320 --> 00:06:40,600 Speaker 1: So Bargosh was like, I don't think you're going to 120 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:42,880 Speaker 1: do that. He decided he was going to call the 121 00:06:42,880 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 1: British's bluff that they would they wouldn't fire on their 122 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:51,719 Speaker 1: own protectorate. So he brought out his own heavy artillery guns. 123 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:54,920 Speaker 1: I think the previous Sultan had actually developed a bit 124 00:06:54,920 --> 00:06:57,880 Speaker 1: of a personal fighting force, so those people showed up. 125 00:06:58,560 --> 00:07:02,120 Speaker 1: There were thousands of defense I saw one thousand. I'm 126 00:07:02,120 --> 00:07:03,960 Speaker 1: not one hundred percent certain, but there were a bunch 127 00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:09,680 Speaker 1: of Zanzibari defenders around the palace by eight am on 128 00:07:09,800 --> 00:07:12,440 Speaker 1: the day that Bargosh was supposed to leave. 129 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:16,400 Speaker 2: That's right. And he told the British consul, Basil Cave, 130 00:07:17,280 --> 00:07:20,440 Speaker 2: I'm not leaving and Basil said, well, he said, we 131 00:07:20,520 --> 00:07:22,840 Speaker 2: have no intention of hauling down our flag and we 132 00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:27,120 Speaker 2: do not believe you will fire upon us. And Basil 133 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:30,240 Speaker 2: Cave and the British most British way possible, said hmm, 134 00:07:31,000 --> 00:07:33,040 Speaker 2: we'd prefer not to attack, but unless you do as 135 00:07:33,080 --> 00:07:34,760 Speaker 2: you're told, we shall certainly do. So. 136 00:07:36,880 --> 00:07:39,720 Speaker 1: You sound like again, every time you do a British accent, 137 00:07:39,800 --> 00:07:41,680 Speaker 1: you sound like tankas area and mystery man. 138 00:07:42,280 --> 00:07:42,920 Speaker 2: Oh I love it. 139 00:07:42,960 --> 00:07:46,600 Speaker 1: I'll take it every time the blue rajah. Yeah. So 140 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:50,880 Speaker 1: nine am happened and just very promptly the British started 141 00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:55,600 Speaker 1: pounding the Sultan's palace to dust. They made good on 142 00:07:55,640 --> 00:07:57,760 Speaker 1: their promise and they just started firing on it from 143 00:07:57,800 --> 00:07:59,560 Speaker 1: three warships. 144 00:07:59,400 --> 00:08:02,520 Speaker 2: And thirty eight minutes by most accounts is how long 145 00:08:02,560 --> 00:08:06,120 Speaker 2: that took to completely just I don't think it. They 146 00:08:06,160 --> 00:08:08,840 Speaker 2: destroyed the palace, but they put a herding on it. 147 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:13,640 Speaker 2: Two minutes into this, Bargosh literally went out the back 148 00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:16,440 Speaker 2: door and fled to the German consulate and was like, 149 00:08:16,520 --> 00:08:17,040 Speaker 2: please help. 150 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:20,960 Speaker 1: Yeah, he did, and the Germans were like, okay, well 151 00:08:20,960 --> 00:08:22,760 Speaker 1: we'll take care of you. And they smuggled him to 152 00:08:23,280 --> 00:08:28,040 Speaker 1: Tanzania or what's now Tanzania, and I guess he lived 153 00:08:28,040 --> 00:08:30,000 Speaker 1: out his days there. Did you see anything about him 154 00:08:30,040 --> 00:08:30,400 Speaker 1: after that? 155 00:08:31,560 --> 00:08:34,480 Speaker 2: I looked into it, but I don't remember it all. 156 00:08:34,520 --> 00:08:36,280 Speaker 2: And I was like, why am I bothering with all 157 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:39,640 Speaker 2: of this if we're not going to talk about it right? Sorry. 158 00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:42,400 Speaker 1: The thing is one of the other remarkable aspects of 159 00:08:42,440 --> 00:08:45,640 Speaker 1: this very very short, less than an hour war was 160 00:08:45,920 --> 00:08:48,240 Speaker 1: just how lopsided the casualties were. 161 00:08:48,480 --> 00:08:49,320 Speaker 2: Yeah. 162 00:08:49,679 --> 00:08:52,120 Speaker 1: So, I mean, it's it's interesting to talk about now, 163 00:08:52,160 --> 00:08:56,439 Speaker 1: but five hundred Zanzibari's lost their lives. Yeah, in less 164 00:08:56,480 --> 00:08:58,720 Speaker 1: than an hour. Yeah. 165 00:08:58,720 --> 00:09:00,839 Speaker 2: I think they just rained down our artillery on them, 166 00:09:01,040 --> 00:09:04,319 Speaker 2: and like five hundred people died very very quickly. Only 167 00:09:04,400 --> 00:09:08,040 Speaker 2: one British sailor was wounded. Even I think no one 168 00:09:08,040 --> 00:09:08,840 Speaker 2: died on their side. 169 00:09:08,880 --> 00:09:11,080 Speaker 1: He probably slipped on the deck of a warship and 170 00:09:11,240 --> 00:09:14,920 Speaker 1: like impaled his thigh on his sword. Yeah, that's what 171 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:17,960 Speaker 1: I'm guessing happened. Yeah, although I did see British marines 172 00:09:18,040 --> 00:09:20,560 Speaker 1: storm the island, so it probably actually happened there. 173 00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:25,800 Speaker 2: Yeah. After this though, they because Bargash was gone, they 174 00:09:25,840 --> 00:09:27,640 Speaker 2: said all right, well now we're going to install our 175 00:09:27,679 --> 00:09:30,000 Speaker 2: own new sultan that we wanted to do begin with, 176 00:09:30,040 --> 00:09:33,960 Speaker 2: that will be sympathetic to our needs and basically do 177 00:09:34,040 --> 00:09:34,520 Speaker 2: what we say. 178 00:09:35,240 --> 00:09:37,559 Speaker 1: Yes, So there was a this is a big deal, 179 00:09:37,920 --> 00:09:40,680 Speaker 1: especially at the time, because it basically showed the other 180 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:45,160 Speaker 1: nations of East Africa, like do these guys will mess 181 00:09:45,200 --> 00:09:47,880 Speaker 1: you up? They're they're not messing around, and they want 182 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:51,839 Speaker 1: our they want our land, they want our nations, and that, 183 00:09:51,920 --> 00:09:54,440 Speaker 1: like I said, really kind of was a flashpoint for 184 00:09:54,480 --> 00:09:58,760 Speaker 1: the scramble for Africa because I think also other European 185 00:09:58,800 --> 00:10:00,679 Speaker 1: powers were like, oh man, the Brits are going to 186 00:10:00,760 --> 00:10:02,680 Speaker 1: do that, They're going to take over the entire continent. 187 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:04,440 Speaker 1: We better get there as soon as possible. 188 00:10:05,000 --> 00:10:09,720 Speaker 2: Yeah, And then, like you mentioned, the nineteenth nineteen sixties 189 00:10:10,280 --> 00:10:12,160 Speaker 2: was when a lot of this started unwinding itself. And 190 00:10:12,240 --> 00:10:16,240 Speaker 2: Zanzibar was one of them under British control until ten 191 00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:19,560 Speaker 2: of December nineteen sixty three, and then they became a 192 00:10:19,559 --> 00:10:22,480 Speaker 2: fully sovereign state and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. 193 00:10:22,520 --> 00:10:23,520 Speaker 2: So good for them. 194 00:10:23,679 --> 00:10:26,320 Speaker 1: Yeah, and the sovereign state thing only lasted a short 195 00:10:26,320 --> 00:10:29,480 Speaker 1: time because very quickly they merged with we kept saying 196 00:10:30,040 --> 00:10:34,720 Speaker 1: what's now Tanzania At the time it was Tanganyika, and 197 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:41,280 Speaker 1: they merged with Zanzibar into Tanzania. Isn't that right? 198 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:42,679 Speaker 2: It's super neat. 199 00:10:42,679 --> 00:10:44,400 Speaker 1: It's a great amalgamation of names. 200 00:10:44,559 --> 00:10:47,480 Speaker 2: Yeah. I love it. And just learning more and more 201 00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:49,640 Speaker 2: about African history is something I did not learn much 202 00:10:49,679 --> 00:10:51,640 Speaker 2: growing up. It has been a cool part of the 203 00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:52,880 Speaker 2: show and I can't wait to learn more. 204 00:10:53,000 --> 00:10:58,280 Speaker 1: Agreed. I think short Stuff is out. 205 00:10:59,040 --> 00:11:02,160 Speaker 2: Stuff you should know is production of iHeartRadio. For more 206 00:11:02,200 --> 00:11:06,199 Speaker 2: podcasts my Heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 207 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:08,160 Speaker 2: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.