The sultans of Zanzibar ( ar, سلاطين زنجبار) were the rulers of the

Sultanate of Zanzibar The Sultanate of Zanzibar ( sw, Usultani wa Zanzibar, ar, سلطنة زنجبار , translit=Sulṭanat Zanjībār), also known as the Zanzibar Sultanate, was a state controlled by the Sultan of Zanzibar, in place between 1856 and 1964. The Su ...

, which was created on 19 October 1856 after the death of Said bin Sultan, who had ruled

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...

and

Zanzibar Zanzibar (; ; ) is an insular semi-autonomous province which united with Tanganyika in 1964 to form the United Republic of Tanzania. It is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the mainland, and consists of many small islan ...

as the sultan of Oman since 1804. The sultans of Zanzibar were of a

cadet branch In history and heraldry, a cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets— realm, t ...

of the Al Said Dynasty of Oman. In 1698, Zanzibar became part of the overseas holdings of

, falling under the control of the sultan of Oman. In 1832, or 1840 (the date varies among sources), Said bin Sultan moved his capital from Muscat in Oman to Stone Town. He established a ruling Arab elite and encouraged the development of

clove Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands (or Moluccas) in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring or fragrance in consumer products, ...

plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Th ...

s, using the island's

slave labour Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to per ...

. Zanzibar's commerce fell increasingly into the hands of traders from the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...

, whom Said encouraged to settle on the island. After his death in 1856, two of his sons,

Majid bin Said Sayyid Majid bin Saïd al-Busaidi ( ar, ماجد بن سعيد البوسعيد) ( – ) was the first Sultan of Zanzibar. He ruled Zanzibar from 19 October 1856 to 7 October 1870. He succeeded his father Said bin Sultan as ruler of Zanzibar and ...

and

Thuwaini bin Said Thuwaini bin Said al-Busaidi ( ar, ثويني بن سعيد ال سعيد, ) (1821–1866) also called (19 October 1856 – 11 February 1866), was the third son of Said bin Sultan, Sultan of Muscat and Oman. Thuwaini was born in Oman, and never v ...

, struggled over the

succession Succession is the act or process of following in order or sequence. Governance and politics *Order of succession, in politics, the ascension to power by one ruler, official, or monarch after the death, resignation, or removal from office of ...

, so Zanzibar and Oman were divided into two separate principalities; Thuwaini became the sultan of Oman while Majid became the first sultan of Zanzibar. During his 14-year reign as sultan, Majid consolidated his power around the

East African slave trade The Indian Ocean slave trade, sometimes known as the East African slave trade or Arab slave trade, was multi-directional slave trade and has changed over time. Africans were sent as slaves to the Middle East, to Indian Ocean islands (including ...

. His successor,

Barghash bin Said Sayyid Barghash bin Said al-Busaidi,(1836 – 26 March 1888) ( ar, برغش بن سعيد البوسعيد), was an Omani Sultan and the son of Said bin Sultan, was the second Sultan of Zanzibar. Barghash ruled Zanzibar from 7 October 1870 to ...

, helped abolish the slave trade in Zanzibar and largely developed the country's infrastructure. The third sultan, Khalifa bin Said, also furthered the country's progress toward abolishing slavery. Until 1886, the sultan of Zanzibar controlled a substantial portion of the east African coast, known as

Zanj Zanj ( ar, زَنْج, adj. , ''Zanjī''; fa, زنگی, Zangi) was a name used by medieval Muslim geographers to refer to both a certain portion of Southeast Africa (primarily the Swahili Coast) and to its Bantu inhabitants. This word is als ...

, and trading routes extending further into the continent, as far as Kindu on the

Congo River The Congo River ( kg, Nzâdi Kôngo, french: Fleuve Congo, pt, Rio Congo), formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the second largest river in the world by discharg ...

. That year, the British and Germans secretly met and re-established the area under the sultan's rule. Over the next few years, most of the mainland possessions of the Sultanate were taken by European imperial powers. With the signing of the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty in 1890 during

Ali bin Said Sayyid Ali bin Said al-Busaidi, GCSI, (1854 – March 5, 1893) ( ar, علي بن سعيد البوسعيد) was the fourth Sultan of Zanzibar. He ruled Zanzibar from February 13, 1890, to March 5, 1893. In June 1890 he was forced to accep ...

's reign, Zanzibar became a British

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its in ...

. In August 1896, Britain and Zanzibar fought a 38-minute war, the shortest in

recorded history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world his ...

, after Khalid bin Barghash had taken power after Hamid bin Thuwaini's death. The British had wanted Hamoud bin Mohammed to become sultan, believing that he would be much easier to work with. The British gave Khalid an hour to vacate the sultan's palace in Stone Town. Khalid failed to do so, and instead assembled an army of 2,800 men to fight the British. The British launched an attack on the palace and other locations around the city. Khalid retreated and later went into exile. Hamoud was then installed as sultan. In December 1963, Zanzibar was granted independence by the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

and became a

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

within the Commonwealth under the sultan. Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah was overthrown a month later during the Zanzibar Revolution. Jamshid fled into exile, and the Sultanate was replaced by the

People's Republic of Zanzibar and Pemba The People's Republic of Zanzibar () was an African state founded in 1964, consisting of the islands of the Zanzibar Archipelago. It existed for less than a year before it merged with Tanganyika to create the United Republic of Tanganyika and Za ...

. In April 1964, the republic was united with

Tanganyika Tanganyika may refer to: Places * Tanganyika Territory (1916–1961), a former British territory which preceded the sovereign state * Tanganyika (1961–1964), a sovereign state, comprising the mainland part of present-day Tanzania * Tanzania Main ...

to form the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar, which became known as

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

six months later.

Sultans of Zanzibar

Family tree

*Sayyid Said, Sultan of Muscat, Oman and Zanzibar (1797–1856) **Sayyid Thuwaini, Sultan of Muscat and Oman (1821–1866) *** Sayyid Harub (1849–1907) **** IX. Sayyid Khalifa II (26 August 1879 – 9 October 1960; r. 9 December 1911 – 9 October 1960) 9 Al-Said ***** X. Sayyid Abdullah (12 February 1910 – 1 July 1963; r. 9 October 1960 – 1 July 1963) 10 Al-Said ****** XI. Sayyid Jamshid (b. 16 September 1929; r. 1 July 1963 – 17 January 1964; Head of the Zanzibari royal house: 17 January 1964 – present) 11 Al-Said *** V. Sayyid Hamad (1857 – 25 August 1896; r. 5 March 1893 – 25 August 1896) 5 Al-Busaid ** Sayyid Muhammad (1826–1863) *** VII. Sayyid Hamud (1853 – 18 July 1902; r. 27 August 1896 – 18 July 1902) 7 Al-Said **** VIII. Sayyid Ali II (7 June 1884 – 20 December 1918; r. 18 July 1902 – 9 December 1911) 8 Al-Busaid ** I. Sayyid Majid (1834 – 7 October 1870; r. 19 October 1856 – 7 October 1870) 1 Al-Busaid ** II. Sayyid Barghash (1837 – 26 March 1888; r. 7 October 1870 – 26 March 1888) 2 Al-Busaid *** VI. Sayyid Khalid (15 December 1874 – 19 March 1927; r. 25–27 August 1896) 6 Al-Busaid ** III. Sayyid Khalifa I (1852 – 13 February 1890; r. 26 March 1888 – 13 February 1890) 3 Al-Busaid ** IV. Sayyid Ali I (September 1854 – 5 March 1893; r. 13 February 1890 – 5 March 1893) 4 Al-Busaid

Footnotes

* Majid bin Said, the youngest son of Said bin Sultan, became the Sultan of Oman after his father's death on 19 October 1856. However, Majid's elder brother,

, contested the accession to power. Following a struggle over the position, it was decided that Zanzibar and Oman would be divided into two separate principalities. Majid would rule as the Sultan of Zanzibar while Thuwaini would rule as the Sultan of Oman. * From 1886, the United Kingdom and Germany had plotted to obtain parts of the Zanzibar Sultanate for their own empires. In October 1886, a German-British border commission established the

as a 10 nautical mile (19 km) wide strip along most of the coast of East Africa, stretching from

Cape Delgado Cape Delgado ( pt, Cabo Delgado) is a coastal promontory south of Mozambique's border with Tanzania. It is the arc-shaped delta of the Rovuma River and was created from sediment deposited by the Rovuma as it empties into the Indian Ocean. It is so ...

(now in

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

) to Kipini (now in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

), including

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town ...

and

Dar es Salaam Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over s ...

. Over the next few years, almost all of these mainland possessions were lost to European imperial powers. * Hamoud bin Mohammed, the son-in-law of Majid bin Said, was supposed to become the Sultan of Zanzibar after Hamid bin Thuwayni's death. However, Khalid bin Bhargash, son of Bargash bin Said, seized the Sultan's palace and declared himself the ruler of Zanzibar. The British, who had supported Hamoud, responded on 26 August by issuing an ultimatum to Khalid and his men to leave the palace within one hour. After he refused, the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

began firing at the palace and other locations in Stone Town. Khalid assembled an army of 2,800 and stationed them all around the town. Thirty-eight minutes later, Khalid retreated to the German

consulate A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of diplomatic mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth co ...

, where he was granted asylum. This conflict, known as the Anglo-Zanzibar War, was the shortest war in recorded history. Khalid later went into exile in

until being captured by the British in 1916. *After attending the coronation of

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

, Ali decided to abdicate from the throne to live in Europe. * Abdullah bin Khalifah died from complications of

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

. * Jamshid bin Abdullah overthrown on 12 January 1964 during the Zanzibar Revolution. Jamshid managed to flee to

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

with his family and ministers.

References

;Bibliography * * * * * * * *

External links

Omani Arab Rule In Zanzibar
{{featured list Zanzibar, Sultans

Sultans Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, i ...

Sultans of Zanzibar

Family tree

See also

Footnotes

References

External links