Anglo-Zanzibar War: A succession crisis on the waterfront
The Anglo-Zanzibar War lasted between 38 and 45 minutes on 27 August 1896. Its fighting was brief, but the dispute that brought British warships into action had already unfolded through a contested succession, diplomatic warnings, and preparations around a waterfront palace. Britain wanted Khalid bin Barghash to leave the palace and abandon his claim to the sultanate. Khalid instead gathered defenders and held his position. The confrontation became a bombardment after the British deadline expired, with the palace complex, its artillery, and a royal yacht exposed to naval gunfire in the harbor of Zanzibar Town.
The succession dispute began when Sultan Hamad bin Thuwaini died suddenly on 25 August. Khalid moved into the palace without British approval. An agreement establishing a British protectorate required a candidate for the sultanate to obtain the British consul's permission, and Khalid had not done so. British authorities preferred Hamoud bin Mohammed, who was more favorable to their interests. Consul Basil Cave and General Lloyd Mathews warned Khalid about his actions. Cave also asked him to stand down his troops, leave the palace, and return home, but those messages failed to persuade him to withdraw his claim.
The setting of the Anglo-Zanzibar War mattered to the fighting. Zanzibar's palace complex stood along the sea front and contained the palace, an attached harem, and the ceremonial House of Wonders. The principal buildings stood beside one another and were connected by covered wooden bridges above street level. Much of the complex was built from local timber, and it had not been designed as a defensive structure. Khalid's forces aimed artillery toward the British ships from positions in front of the palace. The barricades around them included crates, bales, and rubber, while servants and enslaved people were also inside.
By the evening of Hamad's death, Khalid's forces numbered about 2,800. Most were civilians, although palace guards and soldiers were among them. Their weapons included rifles, muskets, machine guns, an old bronze cannon, and field guns. They also took possession of the royal yacht HHS Glasgow, a wooden vessel built for the sultan. Mathews and Cave assembled their own forces, including Zanzibari troops under Arthur Edward Harington Raikes. Sailors and marines came ashore from British vessels to help protect the consulate and respond to possible unrest. British citizens were asked to gather at the consulate for protection.
Diplomacy continued before the Anglo-Zanzibar War began. Cave needed authorization from London before opening hostilities, and Lord Salisbury's government allowed him and Rear-Admiral Harry Rawson to use the resources at their disposal to remove Khalid. Further negotiations failed. Rawson's ultimatum demanded that Khalid lower his flag and leave the palace by 09:00 on 27 August. Merchant vessels were cleared from the harbor, and British women and children were moved aboard ships. That morning, Khalid sent messengers, but he still refused the ultimatum. Shortly before the deadline, Rawson signaled his ships to prepare for action.
The bombardment in the Anglo-Zanzibar War began at 09:02 when Racoon, Thrush, and Sparrow opened fire together. Thrush's first shot knocked a defending cannon out of position. Explosive shells caused many casualties in the largely wooden palace, which caught fire along with the attached harem. The defending artillery was silenced and the palace flag cut down. The timing of Khalid's departure is disputed: a Reuters correspondent said he fled at the first shot, while other reports place him inside for longer. Several durations are reported, with 38 minutes the most frequently quoted; the variation reflects uncertainty about the beginning and end of the war.
A separate exchange took place on the water during the Anglo-Zanzibar War. Glasgow fired at St George, and British return fire sank the yacht. Because the harbor was shallow, its masts remained above the water. Its crew raised a British flag to indicate surrender, and British sailors rescued them in launches. Thrush also sank smaller vessels that fired on it. On land, Raikes' troops approached the palace and received some gunfire from the defenders. The sultan's side suffered roughly 500 casualties, including civilians, while one British sailor was wounded. The wounded petty officer later recovered.
Khalid escaped to the German consulate and received asylum there. British forces surrounded it, but the consul refused to surrender him. Germany arranged to take him away aboard Seeadler, whose boat carried him from the consulate grounds without requiring him to cross the streets watched by British troops. He reached German East Africa. Meanwhile, Hamoud was installed as sultan under a government closely tied to British power. Khalid's exile did not remain permanent freedom from British custody: British forces captured him during the East African campaign in 1917, and he was subsequently sent into exile in the Seychelles and Saint Helena.