The shortest war in history is considered to be the Anglo-Zanzibar war of 1896 – lasting less than an hour, and certainly not long enough for blanket press coverage.
The war had colonial causes – Zanzibar had been under British protection, and the British disagreed with the succession of Khalid bin Barghash to the throne of the Zanzibar Sultanate. Khalid was the cousin of the previous ruler, who had died under suspicious circumstances. The British were unhappy about the succession, and applied pressure through their right to veto (or approve) any candidates for the Sultanate. This disregard for British power, and Khalid’s decision to refuse to abdicate at British request, caused a naval presence being scrambled to forcefully depose the new Sultan.
The new Sultan was issued an ultimatum – abdicate or have Britain declare war. As mentioned, Khalid refused to abdicate, and the British declared war, as they had said they would. Hopelessly outgunned, and could not successfully defend his position against the British for long, losing his throne (and the war) in less than an hour.
History @ Aber 