The shortest war in history lasted 38-45 minutes: the Anglo-Zanzibar War of 1896, when British forces bombarded the Sultan's palace after he refused to step down.
Notes on verification
Well-documented in British military records and multiple historical sources including Guinness World Records [2026-08-28 re-verified orphan: promoted with 5 independent source(s)] [2026-08-29 audit re-verified: 4 independent source(s)]
Sources
- https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Zanzibar_War (reverify-primary)
- https://www.britannica.com/event/Anglo-Zanzibar-War (corroboration)
- https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/The-Shortest-War-in-History/ (corroboration)
- https://britishonlinearchives.com/posts/category/notable-days/814/anniversary-of-the-shortest-war-in-human-history-the-anglo-zanzibar-war (corroboration)
- https://www.ancient-origins.net/weird-facts/anglo-zanzibar-war-0016830 (corroboration)
- https://worldhistoryedu.com/anglo-zanzibar-war-causes-and-outcome-of-one-of-historys-shortest-wars/ (audit-corroboration)