What was the Fashoda Incident and why was it significant?
What was the Fashoda Incident and why was it significant?
The Fashoda Incident was the climax of imperial territorial disputes between Britain and France in Eastern Africa, occurring in 1898.
What happened to Marchand at Fashoda?
On November 4 he instructed Marchand to withdraw from Fashoda but continued to press French claims to a string of smaller posts that would have kept open a French corridor to the White Nile.
Why did the French go to Fashoda?
A French expedition to Fashoda on the White Nile river sought to gain control of the Upper Nile river basin and thereby exclude Britain from the Sudan. The French party and a British-Egyptian force (outnumbering the French by 10 to 1) met on friendly terms, but back in Europe, it became a war scare.
What happened when General Kitchener arrived in Fashoda?
After British General Herbert Kitchener’s victory at Omdurman on 2 September, he proceeded to Fashoda on orders from the British prime minister, Lord Salisbury. He arrived on 19 September and met with Marchand. Kitchener claimed the entire Nile valley for Great Britain, and, after several days, both parties withdrew peacefully.
How many British soldiers were involved in the Battle of Fashoda?
On 18 September a flotilla of five British gunboats arrived at the isolated Fashoda fort. They carried 1,500 British, Egyptian and Sudanese soldiers, led by Sir Herbert Kitchener and including Lieutenant-Colonel Horace Smith-Dorrien.
What did Kitchener wear when he landed at Fashoda?
Kitchener landed at Fashoda wearing an Egyptian Army Uniform and insisted in raising the Egyptian flag at some distance from the French flag. Both sides insisted on their right to Fashoda but agreed to wait for further instructions from home.
Who was the first European to visit Fashoda?
The surrounding area, although swampy, was populated by Shilluk people, and by the mid-1870s, Fashoda was a bustling market and administrative town. The first Europeans to arrive in the region were explorers Georg Schweinfurth in 1869 and Wilhelm Junker in 1876.