The River War
Encyclopedia
The River War: An Historical Account of the Reconquest of the Soudan is an 1899 book by Winston Churchill
, concerning his experiences as a British Army
officer, during the Mahdist War
in Sudan
.
The book provides a history of the British involvement in the Sudan
and the conflict between the British forces led by Lord Kitchener
and Dervish
forces led by Khalifa Abdallahi ibn Muhammad
, heir to the self-proclaimed Mahdi
Muhammad Ahmad
who had embarked on a campaign to conquer Egypt, to drive out the non-Muslim infidel
s and make way for the second coming of the Islamic Mahdi
.
The River War was Churchill's second published book after The Story of the Malakand Field Force
, and originally filled two volumes with over 1000 pages in 1899. The River War was subsequently abridged to one volume in 1902.
, which was the unit taking part in the war. This was granted by the War office, but rejected by the commander of the British force in Sudan, General Kitchener. Churchill next took leave to Britain, where he enlisted friends and family to lobby Kitchener to permit him to take part. This continued to be unsuccessful, even when the prime minister Lord Salisbury made an inquiry on his behalf. Eventually, however, he prevailed upon Sir Evelyn Wood, Adjutant General of the Horse Guards
, who had authority over appointments to the regiment in England, and he received an attachment to the Lancers in place of an officer who had died, on July 24, 1898. On August 5 he was in Luxor
and on August 24 the regiment set out from Atbara to attack the Mahdist forces.
Before leaving London, Churchill obtained a commission to write accounts of the war for the Morning Post
, producing thirteen articles between September 23 and October 8, 1898 for which he was paid fifteen pounds each. This helped offset his expenses for the trip, which the war office had declined to meet, as well as refusing any liability should he be killed or injured. The Times
had two correspondents covering the war, one of whom was killed and another injured, and Churchill wrote a piece for this newspaper also, but Kitchener vetoed sending of the report.
After the battle of Omdurman the Lancers were ordered to return to other duties so Churchill's personal experience of the war ceased at that point. Although Omdurman had been taken from Khalifa Abdullahi, the Khalifa himself escaped and was not captured for another year. The campaign included a number of persons who were to play important parts in the First World War. Aside from Churchill and Kitchener, captains Douglas Haig
and Henry Rawlinson
became generals in the war, while lieutenant David Beatty
then commanding a Nile gunboat became an admiral and Commanded the British Grand Fleet.
Churchill returned to England to complete his leave, before returning to India for three months and finally resigning from the army. As a direct result of Churchill's writings, a rule was introduced prohibiting serving officers from also acting as war correspondents. This was one factor contributing to his leaving the army, since his earnings from writing were some five times greater than his army pay during his three years of army service.
In India Churchill visited the Viceroy
, Lord Curzon, who had himself written a history of "Persia and the Persian Question" eight years before. He read everything he could find containing background information about the Sudan. On the way home he stopped for two weeks in Egypt to visit Lord Cromer
, then in charge of the Egyptian government, who read through the text and made suggestions and corrections; in particular playing down the popular impression of General Gordon
, murdered by the Mahdi's forces fourteen years before, as a hero. While in Cairo
he spoke to Slatin Pasha, author of a work about the Sudan, Sir Reginald Wingate Director of Intelligence on Kitchener's staff, Edouard Girouard responsible for building railways through Egypt which allowed the British advance, and others who had played some part. Sailing home across the Mediterranean, Churchill had as a fellow passenger George Warrington Steevens
, who was also a war correspondent, working for the Daily Telegraph. They had met on a couple of previous occasions, and Churchill prevailed upon him also to read the manuscript. His suggestion was to reduce the degree of philosophising, that despite the accuracy of Churchill's commentary it might bore the reader.
In vivid style the book describes the background to the war, the relationship of the Upper Nile to Egypt
, the murder of General Charles George Gordon
in the siege at Khartoum
, the political reaction in England, and Kitchener's elaborate preparations for the war. While in the Sudan Churchill participated in the Battle of Omdurman
. Churchill comments at length on the mechanization of war with use of the telegraph, railroad, and a new generation of weaponry.
s, and colored maps. It also contains vivid narratives of personal adventures of the author, his views on British expansionism, passages of deep reflection about the requirements of a civilized government, criticism of military and political leaders and religion. The first edition was reviewed by The Times
, which described it as containing material sufficient for two good books and one bad one, with the bad one being the more interesting.
About Islam
he wrote:
About the British attitude to war:
About the modern machinery of war and its effectiveness against native tribesmen:
Churchill spread his criticisms wherever he found fault. A passage was highly critical of General Kitchener
for ordering the desecration of the Mahdi's tomb and carrying off his head as a trophy. The head was returned by the order of Lord Cromer, once he discovered what had happened. The matter was debated in parliament and led to a newspaper campaign against Kitchener as well as deepening the ill feeling which already existed between two men who as members of the British government in 1914 were expected to cooperate militarily as heads of the army and navy departments. All reference to the incident was removed from the second edition.
Criticisms extended to the supplies for the troops: British soldiers were sent out from England with boots made substantially from cardboard, which rapidly disintegrated and had to be bound with cloth or string to hold them together. While the Indian army was equipped with highly effective Dum-dum bullets produced in India, British bullets sent to Egypt were simply pointed, and 1,000,000 rounds had to have their ends filed off to increase their effectiveness. The rough remodelling meant the bullets were inaccurate at long ranges, giving soldiers a choice of bullets able to hit their target but only wound, or killing bullets which were likely to miss and could jam the guns. Railway engines needed to carry troops and supplies into Sudan had to be obtained from all over the world as British companies were unable to supply at short notice. By contrast, American companies could supply locomotives immediately which were more effective and cheaper than some obtained from England.
Much of the removed content included passages where Churchill recounted his own experiences, as he had done in other works, such as The Story of the Malakand Field Force
. This removal gave the revised book a somewhat different feel to these others, and to its original form. Other removals included discussions on the ethics of warfare and Churchill's own opinions of events. The revised book was described as an authoritative history of the war.
Abridgements were published numerous times over the twentieth century, with increasing excisions. A complete new edition of the original work is planned for 2009.
Sources
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
, concerning his experiences as a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer, during the Mahdist War
Mahdist War
The Mahdist War was a colonial war of the late 19th century. It was fought between the Mahdist Sudanese and the Egyptian and later British forces. It has also been called the Anglo-Sudan War or the Sudanese Mahdist Revolt. The British have called their part in the conflict the Sudan Campaign...
in Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
.
The book provides a history of the British involvement in the Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
and the conflict between the British forces led by Lord Kitchener
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC , was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway...
and Dervish
Dervish
A Dervish or Darvesh is someone treading a Sufi Muslim ascetic path or "Tariqah", known for their extreme poverty and austerity, similar to mendicant friars in Christianity or Hindu/Buddhist/Jain sadhus.-Etymology:The Persian word darvīsh is of ancient origin and descends from a Proto-Iranian...
forces led by Khalifa Abdallahi ibn Muhammad
Abdallahi ibn Muhammad
Abdullah Ibn-Mohammed or Abdullah al-Taaisha, also known as "The Khalifa" was a Sudanese Ansar General and ruler.-Early years:Abdullah was born into the Ta'aisha Baqqara tribe in Darfur around 1846 and was trained and educated as a preacher and holy man.He became a follower of Mohammed Ahmed "the...
, heir to the self-proclaimed Mahdi
Mahdi
In Islamic eschatology, the Mahdi is the prophesied redeemer of Islam who will stay on Earth for seven, nine or nineteen years- before the Day of Judgment and, alongside Jesus, will rid the world of wrongdoing, injustice and tyranny.In Shia Islam, the belief in the Mahdi is a "central religious...
Muhammad Ahmad
Muhammad Ahmad
Muhammad Ahmad bin Abd Allah was a religious leader of the Samaniyya order in Sudan who, on June 29, 1881, proclaimed himself as the Mahdi or messianic redeemer of the Islamic faith...
who had embarked on a campaign to conquer Egypt, to drive out the non-Muslim infidel
Infidel
An infidel is one who has no religious beliefs, or who doubts or rejects the central tenets of a particular religion – especially in reference to Christianity or Islam....
s and make way for the second coming of the Islamic Mahdi
Mahdi
In Islamic eschatology, the Mahdi is the prophesied redeemer of Islam who will stay on Earth for seven, nine or nineteen years- before the Day of Judgment and, alongside Jesus, will rid the world of wrongdoing, injustice and tyranny.In Shia Islam, the belief in the Mahdi is a "central religious...
.
The River War was Churchill's second published book after The Story of the Malakand Field Force
The Story of the Malakand Field Force
The Story of the Malakand Field Force: An Episode of Frontier War was an 1898 book written by Winston Churchill; it was his first published work of non-fiction.-Writing:...
, and originally filled two volumes with over 1000 pages in 1899. The River War was subsequently abridged to one volume in 1902.
Background
Aware that there was a war in Sudan, Churchill determined to be part of it. He was not alone in this, because in a time generally of peace, many British army officers wanted experience of battle to further their careers. In Churchill's case, he did not see his career as lying with the army, but had already started writing about wars and wanted a new campaign to write about. He first attempted to obtain a transfer from his regiment stationed in India to the 21st Lancers21st Lancers
The 21st Lancers were a cavalry regiment of the British Army, created in 1858 and amalgamated to form the 17th/21st Lancers in 1922...
, which was the unit taking part in the war. This was granted by the War office, but rejected by the commander of the British force in Sudan, General Kitchener. Churchill next took leave to Britain, where he enlisted friends and family to lobby Kitchener to permit him to take part. This continued to be unsuccessful, even when the prime minister Lord Salisbury made an inquiry on his behalf. Eventually, however, he prevailed upon Sir Evelyn Wood, Adjutant General of the Horse Guards
Royal Horse Guards
The Royal Horse Guards was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry.Founded August 1650 in Newcastle Upon Tyne by Sir Arthur Haselrig on the orders of Oliver Cromwell as the Regiment of Cuirassiers, the regiment became the Earl of Oxford's Regiment during the reign of...
, who had authority over appointments to the regiment in England, and he received an attachment to the Lancers in place of an officer who had died, on July 24, 1898. On August 5 he was in Luxor
Luxor
Luxor is a city in Upper Egypt and the capital of Luxor Governorate. The population numbers 487,896 , with an area of approximately . As the site of the Ancient Egyptian city of Thebes, Luxor has frequently been characterized as the "world's greatest open air museum", as the ruins of the temple...
and on August 24 the regiment set out from Atbara to attack the Mahdist forces.
Before leaving London, Churchill obtained a commission to write accounts of the war for the Morning Post
Morning Post
The Morning Post, as the paper was named on its masthead, was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by The Daily Telegraph.- History :...
, producing thirteen articles between September 23 and October 8, 1898 for which he was paid fifteen pounds each. This helped offset his expenses for the trip, which the war office had declined to meet, as well as refusing any liability should he be killed or injured. The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
had two correspondents covering the war, one of whom was killed and another injured, and Churchill wrote a piece for this newspaper also, but Kitchener vetoed sending of the report.
After the battle of Omdurman the Lancers were ordered to return to other duties so Churchill's personal experience of the war ceased at that point. Although Omdurman had been taken from Khalifa Abdullahi, the Khalifa himself escaped and was not captured for another year. The campaign included a number of persons who were to play important parts in the First World War. Aside from Churchill and Kitchener, captains Douglas Haig
Douglas Haig
Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig was a British soldier and senior commander during World War I.Douglas Haig may also refer to:* Club Atlético Douglas Haig, a football club from Argentina* Douglas Haig , American actor...
and Henry Rawlinson
Henry Rawlinson, 1st Baron Rawlinson
General Henry Seymour Rawlinson, 1st Baron Rawlinson, GCB, GCSI, GCVO, KCMG , known as Sir Henry Rawlinson, Bt between 1895 and 1919, was a British First World War general most famous for his roles in the Battle of the Somme of 1916 and the Battle of Amiens in 1918.-Military career:Rawlinson was...
became generals in the war, while lieutenant David Beatty
David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty
Admiral of the Fleet David Richard Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty, GCB, OM, GCVO, DSO was an admiral in the Royal Navy...
then commanding a Nile gunboat became an admiral and Commanded the British Grand Fleet.
Churchill returned to England to complete his leave, before returning to India for three months and finally resigning from the army. As a direct result of Churchill's writings, a rule was introduced prohibiting serving officers from also acting as war correspondents. This was one factor contributing to his leaving the army, since his earnings from writing were some five times greater than his army pay during his three years of army service.
In India Churchill visited the Viceroy
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
, Lord Curzon, who had himself written a history of "Persia and the Persian Question" eight years before. He read everything he could find containing background information about the Sudan. On the way home he stopped for two weeks in Egypt to visit Lord Cromer
Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer
Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer, GCB, OM, GCMG, KCSI, CIE, PC, FRS , was a British statesman, diplomat and colonial administrator....
, then in charge of the Egyptian government, who read through the text and made suggestions and corrections; in particular playing down the popular impression of General Gordon
Charles George Gordon
Major-General Charles George Gordon, CB , known as "Chinese" Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British army officer and administrator....
, murdered by the Mahdi's forces fourteen years before, as a hero. While in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
he spoke to Slatin Pasha, author of a work about the Sudan, Sir Reginald Wingate Director of Intelligence on Kitchener's staff, Edouard Girouard responsible for building railways through Egypt which allowed the British advance, and others who had played some part. Sailing home across the Mediterranean, Churchill had as a fellow passenger George Warrington Steevens
George Warrington Steevens
George Warrington Steevens, usually credited as G.W. Steevens, , was a British journalist and writer.Steevens was born in Sydenham, and educated at the City of London School and Balliol College, Oxford...
, who was also a war correspondent, working for the Daily Telegraph. They had met on a couple of previous occasions, and Churchill prevailed upon him also to read the manuscript. His suggestion was to reduce the degree of philosophising, that despite the accuracy of Churchill's commentary it might bore the reader.
Content
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, the murder of General Charles George Gordon
Charles George Gordon
Major-General Charles George Gordon, CB , known as "Chinese" Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British army officer and administrator....
in the siege at Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
, the political reaction in England, and Kitchener's elaborate preparations for the war. While in the Sudan Churchill participated in the Battle of Omdurman
Battle of Omdurman
At the Battle of Omdurman , an army commanded by the British Gen. Sir Herbert Kitchener defeated the army of Abdullah al-Taashi, the successor to the self-proclaimed Mahdi Muhammad Ahmad...
. Churchill comments at length on the mechanization of war with use of the telegraph, railroad, and a new generation of weaponry.
1899 unabridged, two-volume edition
The unabridged version contains many illustrations with drawings, photogravurePhotogravure
Photogravure is an intaglio printmaking or photo-mechanical process whereby a copper plate is coated with a light-sensitive gelatin tissue which had been exposed to a film positive, and then etched, resulting in a high quality intaglio print that can reproduce the detail and continuous tones of a...
s, and colored maps. It also contains vivid narratives of personal adventures of the author, his views on British expansionism, passages of deep reflection about the requirements of a civilized government, criticism of military and political leaders and religion. The first edition was reviewed by The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, which described it as containing material sufficient for two good books and one bad one, with the bad one being the more interesting.
About Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
he wrote:
About the British attitude to war:
About the modern machinery of war and its effectiveness against native tribesmen:
Churchill spread his criticisms wherever he found fault. A passage was highly critical of General Kitchener
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC , was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway...
for ordering the desecration of the Mahdi's tomb and carrying off his head as a trophy. The head was returned by the order of Lord Cromer, once he discovered what had happened. The matter was debated in parliament and led to a newspaper campaign against Kitchener as well as deepening the ill feeling which already existed between two men who as members of the British government in 1914 were expected to cooperate militarily as heads of the army and navy departments. All reference to the incident was removed from the second edition.
Criticisms extended to the supplies for the troops: British soldiers were sent out from England with boots made substantially from cardboard, which rapidly disintegrated and had to be bound with cloth or string to hold them together. While the Indian army was equipped with highly effective Dum-dum bullets produced in India, British bullets sent to Egypt were simply pointed, and 1,000,000 rounds had to have their ends filed off to increase their effectiveness. The rough remodelling meant the bullets were inaccurate at long ranges, giving soldiers a choice of bullets able to hit their target but only wound, or killing bullets which were likely to miss and could jam the guns. Railway engines needed to carry troops and supplies into Sudan had to be obtained from all over the world as British companies were unable to supply at short notice. By contrast, American companies could supply locomotives immediately which were more effective and cheaper than some obtained from England.
1902 abridged, one-volume edition
In 1902 Churchill had become a member of parliament. It was thought that the commentary about some of the people mentioned had better be excised in a revised edition. The book was thus edited down to one single volume, removing approximately one third of the total.Much of the removed content included passages where Churchill recounted his own experiences, as he had done in other works, such as The Story of the Malakand Field Force
The Story of the Malakand Field Force
The Story of the Malakand Field Force: An Episode of Frontier War was an 1898 book written by Winston Churchill; it was his first published work of non-fiction.-Writing:...
. This removal gave the revised book a somewhat different feel to these others, and to its original form. Other removals included discussions on the ethics of warfare and Churchill's own opinions of events. The revised book was described as an authoritative history of the war.
Abridgements were published numerous times over the twentieth century, with increasing excisions. A complete new edition of the original work is planned for 2009.
External links
- New York Times 1900 Review of The River War
- A Churchillian Perspective on September 11 with a review of The River War
Sources
- The River War at Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
(scanned books) - The River War at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
via Online Books (1902 abridged edition) - The River War at LibriVoxLibriVoxLibriVox is an online digital library of free public domain audiobooks, read by volunteers and is probably, since 2007, the world's most prolific audiobook publisher...
(audiobook)