These Are The Shortest Wars That Were Over Before They Began

There’s a good chance that most of us want to avoid wars at all costs, but what about when they go down in history for something out of the ordinary? That’s right; we’re talking about the shortest wars that were over before they began.

While some wars earn names like The Hundred Years’ War - a war that actually raged for 116 years between England and France between the 14th and 15th centuries - others seem to come to an end before they even get going. Still, launching a war is nothing easy, and they still hold an important place in history.

The Turkish-Cypriot War lasted for one month and a day as Turkey and Greece fought over Cyprus

Cyprus is an island found in the Mediterranean, but it has long struggled under the dual wings of Turkey and Greece. When the locals revolted against British rules, which had been in place since the 1800s, one part of the island wanted to be ruled by Turkey, while another thought it should be divided between Turkey and Greece. By 1960, Cyprus decided to declare its sovereignty, but neither side thought this was fair. When 1974 rolled around, a Greek military junta decided to kick out Archbishop Makarios before Turkish sympathizers stepped in to try and create a union with Greece. Turkey eventually invaded the island and forced Greek residents to relocate in a war that lasted one month and one day. It was over quickly, but it led to the bifurcated government that still stands today.

The 6-Day War caused a huge amount of bloodshed

As the name might suggest, the 6-Day War lasted just that - six days. While most short wars avoid a lot of conflict, this was the complete opposite. It all happened in 1967 when Israel fought the combined forces of Jordan, Syria, and Egypt. Although this wasn’t the first time there had been clashes, this started when it was misreported that Israel was about to invade Syria. In response, the Egyptian president positioned troops ready to invade Israel in response. The aggression was met by the military in Israel, which bombarded a grounded aircraft before doing the same thing in Iraq, Syria, and Jordan. Even though Egypt continued to send in troops on foot, it took six days for the United Nations to cool things off. By the end, more than 20,000 people lost their lives, and Israel tripled the regions in its territory.

The 100-Hour War might have been fuelled by a soccer game

Believe it or not, but the 100-Hour War also has another name - The Football War. That’s because the war between Honduras and El Salvador all started after a soccer rivalry as teams from both countries were in a sports series that saw El Salvador walk away victorious with a final score of 3-2. At the time, the nations were also feuding over El Salvador citizens moving into Honduras to take advantage of their farmland, something that saw many forced back to El Salvador. Eventually, they tried to invade Honduras and saw around 3,000 casualties before international diplomacy stepped in, and El Salvador reluctantly withdrew its troops. In the end, it lasted about four days before the 100-Hour War was over.

The Invasion of Anjouan took less than one day from start to finish

Somehow, it took under one day for Comoros to invade and take over Anjouan in 2008. The islands are found in the Indian Ocean, and many accused Comoros of “picking on” the weaker nation. Still, they had help from the African Union to force the illegally elected Mohamed Bacar to run from the island, which had a population of around 300,000 at the time. Critics say that the African Union was looking to bolster its international profile, with the conflict being so one-sided that no casualties were reported.

The Anglo-Zanzibar War might be the shortest war ever, lasting between 38 and 45 minutes

When it comes to the shortest war of all time, that title might go to the Anglo-Zanzibar War, which lasted between 38 and 45 minutes. The moment came in 1896 when Zanzibar was attacked by the British Empire, which wanted to see it completely fall under its rule. The sultan had only just lost his life and it wasn’t long before Sayyid Khalid bin Barghash Al-Busaid self-declared himself as the new ruler, even though the British were meant to be consulted. When he refused to budge, the British went on the attack. The forces merely needed to launch boats to attack the helpless residents from the water, resulting in around 500 casualties. The irony? One of the first things to be destroyed was the clock tower, meaning we have no idea exactly how long the war lasted before it was quickly over.

The shortest wars that were over before they began started for all kinds of reasons, but they all have one thing in common: they barely got started before a truce was announced, and things calmed down once again.