Prisoners of the Mahdi

by Byron Farwell

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393305791
• ISBN13: 9780393305791
• Release Date: January 1989
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.9" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

Superb story of Little Known Era of History

The late Byron Farwell has to be the ultimate historian of Victorian military history, and this is one of his best works, along with "Queen Victoria's Little Wars" and "The Great War in Africa". The story of the Mahdi and his fundamentalist revolt in the Sudan in the late 1880s is the stuff that movies are made of (ie., "Khartoum", "The Four Feathers"), but what makes this book work is its detailed description of the trials and tribulations of 3 Western prisoners of the Mahdi who survived harrowing ordeals in the Sudan but lived to tell the story. Their stories are woven around such climactic battles as the siege of Khartoum and the Battle of Omdurman, giving these two pivotal events a more human feel, given the masterly work of the author. The events in the Sudan in the late 19th Century continue to effect us in the 21st Century, and the Mahdi was the first modern promoter of the type of militant fundamentalist Islam that is so occupied by the headlines of today. Although he was rebelling against a corrupt Egyptian (and British influenced) occupational administration, the excesses and barbarities of his reign were eggregious to the extreme, and Farwell puts everything into a fascinating perspective where you simulateously admire and despise the man. He remains a cultural hero and icon to many people in the Muslim world of today. A fascinating and highly recommended read. If you find this to be an enthralling story about an exciting epoch of 19th century history, then you would be encouraged to also read Dominic Green's "Three Empires On The Nile: The Victorian Jihad 1869-1899", which provides a greater overview of the interplay between Great Britain, the Ottoman Empire, and the Mahdist Rebellion and how this power struggle literally changed the world stage from that time, to the present.

This is the most interesting history book I have ever read.

The author gives a vivid picture of all the major figures involved in the Mahdist revolt, from Mohammed Ahmed and the Khalifa Abdullahi to the three main European prisoners. With detailed accounts of military engagements, the stories of those trapped in the Sudan, and escape attempts, this is very engrossing reading.