List of sultans of Zanzibar

Sultan of Zanzibar
Sultanate flag
Longest serving ruler: Khalifa bin Harub of Zanzibar 9 December 1911 – 9 October 1960
Details
First monarch	Majid bin Said
Last monarch	Jamshid bin Abdullah
Formation	1856
Abolition	1964
Residence	Sultan's Palace, Stone Town
Appointer	Hereditary
Pretender(s)	Jamshid bin Abdullah

The sultans of Zanzibar (Arabic: سلاطين زنجبار) were the rulers of the Sultanate of Zanzibar, which was created on 19 October 1856 after the death of Said bin Sultan. He had ruled Oman and Zanzibar as the sultan of Oman since 1804. The sultans of Zanzibar were of a cadet branch of the Al Said Dynasty of Oman.^[1]

In 1698, Zanzibar became part of the overseas holdings of Oman, falling under the control of the sultan of Oman. Omani and other Arab traders had already been prominent in trade with the island for hundreds of years. It was also visited by traders from Persia and India, who arrived with the seasonal musim (west wind). Months later they could return east with a change in the wind.

In 1832,^[2] or 1840^[3] (the date varies among sources), Said bin Sultan moved his capital from Muscat in Oman to Stone Town on Zanzibar. He established a ruling Arab elite and encouraged the development of clove plantations, using the island's enslaved Black Africans as labourers.^[4]

Zanzibar's commerce fell increasingly into the hands of traders from the Indian subcontinent, whom Said encouraged to settle on the island. Traders had been coming to the island from Persia, Arabia, and India for hundreds of years. After Said's death in 1856, two of his sons, Majid bin Said and Thuwaini bin Said, struggled over the succession. They divided Zanzibar and Oman into two separate principalities; Thuwaini became the sultan of Oman while Majid became the first sultan of Zanzibar.^[5]

During his 14-year reign as sultan, Majid consolidated his power around the East African slave trade. His successor, Barghash bin Said, helped abolish the slave trade in Zanzibar and is credited with developing the country's infrastructure.^[6] The third sultan, Khalifa bin Said, also furthered the country's progress toward abolishing slavery.^[7]

Until 1886, the sultan of Zanzibar also controlled a substantial portion of the east African coast, known as Zanj, and trading routes that extended further into the continent, as far as Kindu on the Congo River. That year, the British and Germans secretly met and re-established the area under the sultan's rule.

Over the next few years, European imperial powers took over most of the mainland possessions of the Sultanate. With the signing of the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty in 1890 during Ali bin Said's reign, Zanzibar became a British protectorate.^[8] In August 1896, Britain and Zanzibar fought a 38-minute war, the shortest in recorded history, after Khalid bin Barghash had taken power following 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. The British installed Hamoud as sultan.^[9]

Khalid bin Harub became Sultan of Zanzibar in late 1911; he served until his death in October 1960.

In December 1963, Zanzibar was granted independence by the United Kingdom and became a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth under the sultan.^[10] Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah was overthrown a month later during the Zanzibar Revolution.^[11] Jamshid fled into exile, and the Sultanate was replaced by the People's Republic of Zanzibar and Pemba, a government dominated by Africans.

In April 1964, the republic was united with Tanganyika to form the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. This was renamed as Tanzania six months later.^[3]