Page 25 - GAHS Journal Volume 9

GREYSTONES ARCHAEOLOGICAL & HISTORICAL SOCIETY JOURNAL VOLUME 9

river from Korti to Khartoum led by Lord Wolseley, and a flying
column, the Desert Column, which would march across the
desert from Korti to capture Metemmeh, fifty miles north of
Khartoum. This part of the operation was assigned to Major
General Sir Herbert Stewart who had commanded the cavalry in
the Suakin campaign the previous year.

Major General Stewart’s Desert
Column, numbering 1,100 troops in all,
consisted of the Camel Corps, additional
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troops from the Sussex Regiment, the 19
Royal Hussars on horseback, and a Royal
Navy detachment with a Gardner gun, an
early type of manually cranked machine
gun. The Desert Column encountered
problems immediately as there were
insufficient camels available to carry all of
their supplies so Major General Stewart
had to take half of it across the desert to
the Jakdul Wells, midway between Korti
and Metemmeh, leave the troops there and send the camels
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back to bring up the remainder of his force. Finally, on 14
January 1885 the Desert Column left Jakdul Wells leaving a
small garrison behind to guard it.

Battle of Abu Klea

It was intended that Major General Stewart’s crossing of the
desert would give him the element of surprise and that
Metemmeh could be taken easily with minimum casualties.
However, scouts moving ahead of the main body of the Desert
Column encountered parties of Mahdists but eventually part of
th
the Column arrived close to the wells at Abu Klea on 16 January
1885 where scouts observed that these were held by a large
force of Mahdists and that it would be necessary to attack them
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