Colonel William Hicks, also known as Hicks Pasha, (18305 November 1883),

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

soldier, entered the

Bombay Army The Bombay Army was the army of the Bombay Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India. It was established in 1662 and governed by the East India Company until the Government of India Act 1858 transferred all presidencies to the d ...

in 1849, and served through the Indian mutiny, being mentioned in dispatches for good conduct at the action of Sitka Ghaut in 1859. In 1861 he became captain, and in the

Abyssinian expedition The British Expedition to Abyssinia was a rescue mission and punitive expedition carried out in 1868 by the armed forces of the British Empire against the Ethiopian Empire (also known at the time as Abyssinia). Emperor Tewodros II of Ethiopia, t ...

of 1867–1868 was a brigade major, being again mentioned in dispatches and given a

brevet major In many of the world's military establishments, a brevet ( or ) was a warrant giving a commissioned officer a higher rank title as a reward for gallantry or meritorious conduct but may not confer the authority, precedence, or pay of real rank. ...

ity. He retired with the

honorary rank Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a m ...

of colonel in 1880. He then entered the service of the Egyptian government, who controlled the Sudan. He led the Egyptian army that was completely defeated in the Battle of Shaykan, in which he was killed and decapitated.

Service to the Khedive

After the close of the 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War, he entered the Khedive's service and was made a

Pasha Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitar ...

. In 1881, Sudan was controlled by Egypt;

Muhammad Ahmad Muhammad Ahmad ( ar, محمد أحمد ابن عبد الله; 12 August 1844 – 22 June 1885) was a Nubian Sufi religious leader of the Samaniyya order in Sudan who, as a youth, studied Sunni Islam. In 1881, he claimed to be the Mahdi, ...

proclaimed himself

Mahdi The Mahdi ( ar, ٱلْمَهْدِيّ, al-Mahdī, lit=the Guided) is a messianic figure in Islamic eschatology who is believed to appear at the end of times to rid the world of evil and injustice. He is said to be a descendant of Muhammad w ...

and began conquering neighboring territory and thus threatening the precarious Egyptian control of the territory. Early in 1883 Hicks went to

Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...

as chief of the staff of the army there, then commanded by Suliman Niazi Pasha. Camp was formed at Omdurman and a new force of some 8000 fighting men collected—mostly recruited from the ''

fellahin A fellah ( ar, فَلَّاح ; feminine ; plural ''fellaheen'' or ''fellahin'', , ) is a peasant, usually a farmer or Agriculture, agricultural laborer in the Middle East and North Africa. The word derives from the Arabic language, Arabic wor ...

'' of Arabi's disbanded troops, sent in chains from Egypt. After a month's vigorous drilling Hicks led 5000 of his men against an equal force of

dervish Dervish, Darvesh, or Darwīsh (from fa, درویش, ''Darvīsh'') in Islam can refer broadly to members of a Sufi fraternity (''tariqah''), or more narrowly to a religious mendicant, who chose or accepted material poverty. The latter usage i ...

es in Sennar, whom he defeated, and cleared the country between the towns of

Sennar Sennar ( ar, سنار ') is a city on the Blue Nile in Sudan and possibly the capital of the state of Sennar. It remains publicly unclear whether Sennar or Singa is the capital of Sennar State. For several centuries it was the capital of the F ...

and

of rebels.

1883 expedition

Relieved of the fear of an immediate attack by the

sts, the Egyptian officials at Khartoum intrigued against Hicks, who in July tendered his resignation. This resulted in the dismissal of Suliman Niazi and the appointment of Hicks as commander-in-chief of an expeditionary force to

Kordofan Kordofan ( ar, كردفان ') is a former province of central Sudan. In 1994 it was divided into three new federal states: North Kordofan, South Kordofan and West Kordofan. In August 2005, West Kordofan State was abolished and its territory ...

with orders to crush the Mahdi, who in January 1883 had captured El Obeid, the capital of that province. Hicks, aware of the worthlessness of his force for the purpose contemplated, stated his opinion that it would be best to "wait for Kordofan to settle itself" (telegram of 5 August). The Egyptian ministry, however, did not then believe in the power of the Mahdi, and the expedition started from Khartoum on 9 September. It was made up of 7000 infantry, 1000 cavalry and 2000 camp followers and included thirteen Europeans. On the 10th the force left the Nile at Duem and struck inland across the almost waterless wastes of Kordofan for El Obeid. On 5 November the army, misled by possibly treacherous guides and thirst-stricken, was ambushed in dense forest at Kashgil, south of El Obeid. With the exception of some 300 men the whole force was killed. (See the

Battle of El Obeid The Battle of Shaykan was fought between Anglo-Egyptian forces under the command of Hicks Pasha and forces of Muhammad Ahmad, the self-proclaimed Mahdi, in the woods of Shaykan near Kashgil near the town of El-Obeid on 3–5 November 1883. ...

). According to the story of Hicks's cook, one of the survivors, the general was the last officer to fall, pierced by the spear of the Khalifa Mahommed Sherif. After emptying his revolver the pasha kept his assailants at bay for some time with his sword, a body of

Baggara The Baggāra ( ar, البَقَّارَة "heifer herder") or Chadian Arabs are a nomadic confederation of people of mixed Arab and Arabized indigenous African ancestry, inhabiting a portion of the Sahel mainly between Lake Chad and the Nile ri ...

who fled before him being known afterwards as "Baggar Hicks" (the cows driven by Hicks), a play on the words baggara and baggar, the former being the herdsmen and the latter the cows. Hicks's head was cut off and taken to the Mahdi.

Cultural depictions

Hicks was played by

Edward Underdown Charles Edward Underdown (3 December 190815 December 1989) was an English theatre, cinema and television actor. He was born in London and educated at Eton College in Berkshire. Notable work Early theatre credits include: Noël Coward's '' Words ...

in the 1966 film ''

''.

Notes

References

* *''Mahdiism and the Egyptian Sudan'', book iv., by

Francis Reginald Wingate General Sir Francis Reginald Wingate, 1st Baronet, (25 June 1861 – 29 January 1953) was a British general and administrator in Egypt and the Sudan. He earned the ''nom de guerre'' Wingate of the Sudan. Early life Wingate was born at Port G ...

(London, 1891) *''With Hicks Pasha in the Soudan'', by

John Colborne Field Marshal John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton, (16 February 1778 – 17 April 1863) was a British Army officer and colonial governor. After taking part as a junior officer in the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland, Sir Ralph Abercromby's expedi ...

(London, 1884). *''The Road to Shaykan: Letters of General William Hicks Pasha written during the Sennar & Kordofan Campaigns, 1883.'' edited with an introduction and notes by M.W. Daly. University of Durham 1983 *''Khartoum, the Ultimate Imperial Adventure'' by Michael Asher (London, 2005) {{DEFAULTSORT:Hicks, William 1830 births 1883 deaths British East India Company Army officers British Indian Army officers Pashas British colonels British military personnel killed in the Mahdist War British military personnel of the Abyssinian War British military personnel of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 British people of the Mahdist War