38 Minute War

"The 38 Minute War – The history of the shortest conflict of all time" details the Anglo-Zanzibar War of August 27, 1896. When a new Sultan took power in Zanzibar without British permission, the Royal Navy issued an ultimatum. At 9:00 AM, the ultimatum expired. Historian Edward Stone chronicles the "war." Three British cruisers opened fire on the wooden palace. Within minutes, the Sultan's artillery was destroyed, his yacht sunk, and 500 of his defenders killed or wounded. By 9:38 AM, the flag was lowered. This book is a tragicomedy of imperial power. It illustrates the overwhelming technological gap of the era and serves as a bizarre footnote in military history where a war started and finished before lunch.