Colonization in Sudan

By: Praewa Kobkurkul

 Geography of Sudan

● Northeastern Africa
● The size of the country is really big;
therefore there are different climates
○ North Sudan — a hot desert
○ Central Sudan — a desert and tropics
○ The south — a tropical climate with
rain forests
● Have the Nile and the White Nile and the
blue river
 Capital City

Capital City1 — Khartoum

● In northeast Sudan
● The biggest city in Sudan

Capital City2 — Omdurman

● It became the capital city of
Sudan after the fall of
Khartoum
 People

● Semi-nomadic tribes which usually

had polytheistic beliefs
● Islamic influence
● Feudal system
○ A king gives a land to a lord.
○ A lord gives a land to people.
○ People can do agriculture with
the help of slaves.

Beja tribe
Natural resources
● Copper
● Iron
● Gold
● Zinc
● Silver

Main exports
● Incense
● Slaves
 The Nile river

● It’s an important river of Africa

● The country that conquered it could control
the economy, travel, and trade of the
surrounding countries.
● Nile flows through Egypt, Tanzania,
Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, Kenya,
Ethiopia, Sudan, and Zaire.
● Its branches include the Blue nile, which is
originated in Ethiopia, and the white Nile
which is originated in East Africa. Both of
them meet at Khartoum.
Suez canal
● A waterway built in Egypt to connect the
Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea.
● It is a shortcut to India
● It’s one of the factors making European
countries start colonizing Africa.
● The main share was the French
● Egypt had too much debt and couldn’t afford
the share, so they sold it to Britain.
● After the opening of the canal, economic and
strategic importance of Sudan increased.
○ The british saw the great importance and
beneficial outcome
 Why Britain colonized Sudan?

● Sudan didn’t have anything

that the British interested
● But it’s a good place to
conquer
○ To protect Egypt
○ To safeguard the suez
canal from the French
○ Had the Nile
 British colonization

● The relationship between Britain and

Sudan was connected with Egypt
○ Egypt had hired British
administrators, explorers and
generals to pacify Sudan.
Sir Samuel White Baker

● The first governor-general was Sir Samuel

White Baker
○ He was assigned to governed
Equatorial Nile Basin — today’s
south Sudan and northern Uganda
○ He was replaced by Charles George
Gordon afterwards
 Charles George Gordon
● Became the Khedive (a ruler in a colony) in Egypt
● was granted the governorship of the Egypt’s territories
outside Egypt, including Sudan, in 1877.
○ tried reform the country
○ stopped slavery trade due to his religious belief —
he was successful to do so in Darfur, a region in
the west of Sudan.
○ promoted agriculture
○ eliminated corruption
○ opened up communication
● He was tired of Egyptian authority; therefore resigned
in 1879
● Many Europeans who served under him also resigned.
 Mahdist movement
● After the resignation, The Mahdist movement — a
movement to overthrow Egyptian rule in Sudan — rose.
● The movement was led by Muhammad Ahmad
○ Claiming that he could fix everything
● Ethic Sudanese were frustrated
○ Abolition of slave trade
○ Gordon was appointed in a high position
● Gordon was sent back to Khartoum to become a
governor-general in 1884
○ He was sent to evacuate Egyptians from Sudan,
and control the situation.
○ However, He tried to defend the state and
supported Sudanese population, due to his
The Mahdi
religious belief.
 Nile Expedition (Gordon relief expedition)

● The situation in Sudan was terrible; therefore the

British government asked him to return.
● He refused because he wanted to protect the country.
● Garnet Joseph Wolseley was sent to rescue him
● However, by the time they arrived, he was dead already
● This led to The fall of Khartoum
● Muhammad Ahmad became the ruler of most parts of
what is now Sudan
○ established a religious state, the Mahdiyah
(Omdurman)
The battle of Omdurman
● After the British situation and finance
improved, they started to pacify Sudan
again
○ Revenge for Gordon
○ To get the command over Sudan
back
● The battle was led by General Sir Herbert
Kitchener
○ the army had about 15000 men
○ They had more technology advance
● So they won, and the rebellion was over in
the Battle of Umm Diwaykarat.
 Anglo-Egyptian Sudan

● In 1899, Sudan was declared to be

controlled by an Anglo-Egyptian
Condominium
○ joint authority of Egypt and
Britain
○ However, Egypt had so little
influence

Imperial flag of Sudan

 Effects
● Sudan was divided into North Sudan and South Sudan
○ North Sudan was forced to practise Islamic
religion
○ South Sudan was forced to practise Christianity
○ The reason was to make both of them distrust
and dislike each other, rather than hating Britain
○ So it would be easy for them to rule.
● They had no direct power to rule the country, so they
created a policy that made them distrust each other.
● This led to civil wars.
 South Sudan and North Sudan

● They claimed that South Sudan wasn’t

ready to open up, so it wasn’t
modernized.
● It had an indirect rule policy
○ The british gave to tribal leaders
○ Made the south to be divided into
many informal chiefdoms
● They invested a lot of money to
modernize North Sudan