The Suakin Expedition was either of two British military expeditions, led by Major-General Sir

Gerald Graham Lieutenant General Sir Gerald Graham, (27 June 1831 – 17 December 1899) was a senior British Army commander in the late 19th century and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that ...

V.C., to

Suakin Suakin or Sawakin ( ar, سواكن, Sawákin, Beja: ''Oosook'') is a port city in northeastern Sudan, on the west coast of the Red Sea. It was formerly the region's chief port, but is now secondary to Port Sudan, about north. Suakin used to b ...

in Sudan, with the intention of destroying the power of the Sudanese military commander

Osman Digna Osman Digna ( ar, عثمان دقنة) (c.1840 – 1926) was a follower of Muhammad Ahmad, the self-proclaimed Mahdi, in Sudan, who became his best known military commander during the Mahdist War. He was claimed to be a descendant from the A ...

and his troops during the Mahdist War. The first expedition took place in February 1884 and the second in March 1885.

First expedition

The first expedition, in February 1884, led to several notable British victories, among them the Second Battle of El Teb and the Battle of Tamai.

Second expedition

Following the fall of Khartoum on 26 January 1885, Graham led a second expedition in March 1885. This expedition is sometimes referred to as the Suakin Field Force. Its purpose was to defeat Mahdist forces under

in the region and to supervise and protect the construction of the

Suakin-Berber Railway The Suakin-Berber railway on the Red Sea coastal region in Sudan was a short-lived military project that never reached completion. Its construction began in February 1885, being intended to provide a connection between Berber on the River Nile ...

. A week after its arrival in Suakin, the expedition fought in two actions: the Battle of Hashin or Hasheen on 20 March, and the

Battle of Tofrek The Battle of Tofrek was fought on 22 March 1885 some 5 miles inland from the port of Suakin on the Red Sea coast of Sudan. A contingent of some 3000 troops from the British and Indian "Suakin Field Force" led by Major General Sir John Carstai ...

on 22 March. The British force was later joined by the

New South Wales Contingent The New South Wales Contingent served in Sudan with British forces as part of the Suakin Expedition in 1885. Consisting of an infantry battalion, an artillery battery, and a small field ambulance detachment, it departed from Sydney on 3 March ...

, which arrived at Suakin on 29 March. However, within two months the Gladstone government decided to abandon both the railway and its military campaign in Sudan. General Graham and his Suakin Field Force were evacuated from the port city on 17 May 1885. Nevertheless, Britain maintained an ongoing presence in Suakin between 1886 and 1888, and the then brevet Lt. Col.

Herbert Kitchener Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener, (; 24 June 1850 – 5 June 1916) was a senior British Army officer and colonial administrator. Kitchener came to prominence for his imperial campaigns, his scorched earth policy against the Boers, h ...

acted out the role of Governor General of Eastern Sudan.Green, D., "Armies of God – Islam and Empire on the Nile 1869–1899", pub. Century, 2007, p. 278.

Note

References

* {{cite book, last=Grant, first=Ian, title=A Dictionary of Australian Military History: From Colonial Times to the Gulf War, year=1992, publisher=Random House, location=Milsons Point, New South Wales, isbn=9780091825928 Conflicts in 1884 Conflicts in 1885 Mahdist War