Daily TWiP Archives
Something interesting has happened on (just about) every day of the year, and Daily TWiP provides the proof. An offshoot of my local events column The Week in Preview (affectionately known as TWiP), Daily TWiP was published April 2008-Aug. 2011 and is still giving readers reasons to celebrate.More in "Daily TWiP"
- Daily TWiP - Oct. 23: National Mole Day
- Daily TWiP - June 18: International Picnic Day
- Daily TWiP - June 30, 1859: The Great Blondin crosses Niagara Falls on a tightrope
- Daily TWiP - Dec. 1, 1761: Famed wax sculptor Madame Tussaud born
- Daily TWiP - Dec. 4: National Cookie Day
- Daily TWiP - Oct. 8: National Fluffernutter Day
- Daily TWiP - Sept. 7, 1936: "Benjamin," the last thylacine, dies
- Daily TWiP - Nov. 12, 1933: First photograph of the Loch Ness Monster taken
- Daily TWiP - April 1, 1957: The BBC pulls off its infamous spaghetti tree hoax
- Daily TWiP - April 11, 1954: The most boring day of the 20th century
- Daily TWiP - May 3, 1978: The first spam email is sent
- Daily TWiP - Feb. 28, 1939: The non-word “dord” is discovered in Webster’s New International Dictionary
- Daily TWiP - March 3, 1931: "The Star-Spangled Banner," set to the tune of an English drinking song, becomes the U.S. national anthem
- Daily TWiP - May 16, 1777: The American with the most valuable autograph is fatally wounded in a duel
- Daily TWiP - May 25: Towel Day and Geek Pride Day
- Daily TWiP - June 30: National Ice Cream Soda Day
- Daily TWiP - July 22: Spoonerism Day
- Daily TWiP - Aug. 13: International Left-Handers' Day
- Daily TWiP - Aug. 23, 1784: The short-lived state of Franklin declares its independence from North Carolina
- Daily TWiP - Feb. 5, 1897: The Indiana General Assembly unanimously votes to change the value of pi
- Daily TWiP - March 10: International Day of Awesomeness and Chuck Norris' birthday
- Daily TWiP - Jan. 25: National Irish Coffee Day
- Daily TWiP - Nov. 30, 1954: Ann Hodges becomes the first person hit by a meteorite
- Daily TWiP - Oct. 6, 1582 does not happen in certain countries
- Daily TWiP - Sept. 17, 1859: Joshua A. Norton declares himself Emperor of the United States
- Daily TWiP - Sept. 30, 2004: First images of a live giant squid in its natural habitat are taken
- Daily TWiP - Aug. 27, 1896: The shortest war in recorded history is fought
- Daily TWiP - July 30, 1419: Czechs chuck politicians (literally) during the First Defenestration of Prague
- Daily TWiP - July 21, 356 B.C.: Herostratus destroys one of the Seven Wonders of the World to ensure his own fame
- Daily TWiP - May 14: National Dance Like A Chicken Day
- Daily TWiP - Jan. 26, 2004: Dead whale unexpectedly explodes in Tainan, Taiwan
- Daily TWiP - Jan. 8, 1835: U.S. national debt hits zero for the first and only time
Daily TWiP – Aug. 27, 1896: The shortest war in recorded history is fought
On Aug. 27, 1896, the Anglo-Zanzibar War, a conflict that might otherwise have faded away with the passage of time, made history (and likely the Guinness Book of World Records) when it clocked in as the shortest war in recorded history. From the first shot fired to the end of the fighting, it lasted all of 38 minutes.
At the time, Zanzibar (now part of Tanzania) was a protectorate of the British Empire, enjoying favorable trade relations with Britain and British military protection in exchange for certain concessions. One such concession was that the Sultan of Zanzibar had to be approved by the British government.
On Aug. 25, 1896, Sultan Hamad bin Thuwaini died unexpectedly. His nephew, Khalid bin Bargash (whom some suspected had poisoned the Sultan), laid claim to the throne and moved into the palace.
The British government intended to appoint Hamud bin Muhammed as Sultan, as he was more supportive of their goals in Zanzibar. Khalid was warned that unless he vacated the palace, there would be serious consequences.
He ignored the warnings, believing the British military wouldn’t really fire upon the palace, and began assembling troops. So did the British.
That same day, a half-hour after his uncle’s burial, Khalid proclaimed himself Sultan, fully knowing this constituted an open act of rebellion against the British. The British government authorized the military to use force if a peaceful resolution could not be reached.
After further negotiations proved futile, Khalid was issued an ultimatum: take down your flag and be out of the palace by 9 a.m. Aug. 27, or face the consequences. Khalid refused to back down, and the British Royal Navy opened fire on the palace at 9:02 a.m.
A surrender was soon received and the bombardment ceased at 9:40 a.m. Khalid fled the palace during the fighting, claiming asylum at the German consulate, and was ultimately exiled. Five hundred of his supporters perished or were injured in the war, mostly due to fires that had broken out in the palace due to the bombardment. The British military sustained only a single casualty.
– Teresa Santoski
Originally published Aug. 27, 2009.
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