Wikipedia:Today's featured list/October 22, 2012
The Sultans of Zanzibar were the rulers of the Sultanate of Zanzibar, which was created on 19 October 1856 after the death of Said bin Sultan, who had ruled Oman and Zanzibar as the Sultan of Oman since 1804. Two of Said bin Sultan's sons, Majid bin Said (pictured) and Thuwaini bin Said, struggled over the succession, so Zanzibar and Oman were divided into two separate principalities; Thuwaini became the Sultan of Oman while Majid became the first Sultan of Zanzibar. With the signing of the Heligoland–Zanzibar Treaty in 1890 during Ali bin Said's reign, Zanzibar became a British protectorate. In December 1963, Zanzibar was granted independence by the United Kingdom and became a constitutional monarchy under the Sultan. Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah was overthrown a month later during the Zanzibar Revolution. The Sultanate was replaced by the People's Republic of Zanzibar and Pemba which, in April 1964, united with Tanganyika to form what became known as Tanzania six months later. (Full list...)