In 1896 when Kitchener, the Sirdar (Commander-in-Chief) of the Egyptian Army, set out to re-conquer the Sudan and avenged for the death of General Gordon (who was killed eleven years before by the Mahdi rebels), he knew that not only had he to defeat a great host of dauntless Sudanese warriors, but also to overcome the huge logistical problem of supplying 25,000 men and 10,000 beasts of burden over great distances in one of the most inhospitable climates in the world. Control of the River Nile was vital.
