A 225 mile railway through the Nubian desert that proved crucial in General Kitchener's conquest of Sudan.
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The Desert Railway was one of the most ambitious engineering constructions undertaken during a war by the Victorian British Army.
Overseen by a Canadian Royal Engineer, Percy Girouard, using thousands of local labourers who had never even seen a railway before, the 200 mile route dramatically reduced the time needed to bring troops and supplies to Kitchener’s army advancing into Sudan to avenge the death of Charles Gordon in Khartoum 10 years previously.
The railway still connects the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, to Egypt, to this day.
However, before it could be completed, Kitchener had to capture the town of Abu Hamad on the River Nile.
In a lightening advance, Sudanese troops serving Kitchener advanced 146 miles in 8 days.
Under the command of hector MacDonald, a crofter’s son who had risen from the ranks, they completed the last 36 miles in just 35 hours to take the `mahdist garrison by surprise.
Shocked by MacDonald’s arrival they fled the town and a month later the railway was completed.
With the railway bringing fresh troops and supplies to his army, Kitchener was in a position to deliver his final blow and advance on the Mahdi’s successor at Omdurman.
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:22 Summary
1:39 Mahdist Revolt
2:39 The Scramble For Africa
3:43 British Interest In Sudan
5:51 Dongola Expedition
8:08 Fears About The French
8:46 Abu Hamad
10:19 The Desert Railway
11:29 Percy Girouand
13:44 Cecil Rhodes
15:01 Hector MacDonald
16:19 Sudan Military Railway
17:42 Battle of Atbara
Sources used to produce this video included:
"Khartoum" - Michael Asher
"The Scramble For Africa" - Thomas Packenham
"Queen Victoria's Little Wars" - Byron Farwell
"The River War" - Winston Churchill
Dictionary of Canadian Biography
British Battles.com
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My name is Chris Green and I love to share stories from British history. Not just because they are interesting but because, good or bad, they have shaped the world we live in today.
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