Zanzibar's Indian Ocean Chess: The 1860s Omani Succession

In this episode, Lucas and Luna revisit the aftermath of Sultan Majid bin Said's death in 1870 and the contentious succession that followed, a moment that reshaped Zanzibar's place in the Indian Ocean world. They explore how Barghash bin Said, who had once been exiled to Bombay, returned to seize power, and how his reign marked a turning point in the island's history—from trade and diplomacy to the eventual end of the slave trade. The episode weaves in the roles of key figures like John Kirk, the British consul, and Tharia Topan, the influential Indian merchant, as well as the shifting alliances among the Busaid dynasty, the Khoja and Bhatia communities, and the Baluchi garrison. Along the way, they touch on the clove economy's fragility, the impact of the 1873 treaty, and the broader currents of Indian Ocean politics. It's a story of ambition, exile, and the delicate balance of power in a crucial corner of the nineteenth-century world. #Zanzibar #OmaniSuccession #BarghashbinSaid #MajidbinSaid #IndianOcean #BusaidDynasty #JohnKirk #ThariaTopan #CloveTrade #SlaveTrade #SwahiliCoast #Unguja #Pemba #KhojaCommunity #BhatiaMerchants #BaluchiGarrison #19thCenturyAfrica #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo