Zanzibar's 1859 Bombardment by HMS Lynx

In 1859, a single British warship, HMS Lynx, bombarded Zanzibar's Stone Town for two hours, killing dozens and shattering the island's complacency. This episode unpacks the forgotten 1859 bombardment — not the better-known 1888 or 1896 events — and reveals how it stemmed from Majid bin Said's refusal to accept British demands over the slave trade and his rivalry with brother Barghash. We explore the gunboat diplomacy of the Royal Navy's anti-slavery squadron, the shelling of the Omani fort, the panicked flight of Khoja and Bhatia merchants, and how Sultan Majid was forced to sign a new treaty that tightened the blockade. Drawing on accounts from Jairam Sewji's diaries and British naval logs, we uncover a turning point that tightened Britain's grip on Zanzibar a decade before the Frere Treaty. #HMSLynx #Zanzibar1859 #MajidbinSaid #BarghashbinSaid #GunboatDiplomacy #RoyalNavy #SlaveTrade #JairamSewji #BritishEmpire #ZanzibarHistory #StoneTown #OmaniSultanate #Bombardment #EastAfrica #IndianOcean #History #FexingoHistory #19thCentury Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo