History of the Sudanese War 58 Chapter Nine The English Campaign in Suakin When the news of the Egyptian defeat in Suakin reached the English government, they sent their troops to rescue Tokar and appointed General Graham to lead them. He arrived in Suakin quickly and intended to follow the campaign that Baker Pasha had undertaken to reach Tokar. He sent his soldiers to Trinkat, and by the twenty-second of February, three thousand fighters had gathered there. At that time, news of the fall of Tokar spread in Suakin. It appeared that the enemy had surrounded it and directed the fire of the cannons they had captured from the Egyptians upon it. The garrison became alarmed and, in their desperation, barricaded the city gates, awaiting the arrival of the English campaign to rescue them. It was said that the garrison had about forty-five thousand rounds of ammunition and consisted of three hundred fighters, while the enemy's numbers were only a thousand. They fired on Tokar for five consecutive days, but it only caused minor damage to the garrison, killing two and wounding twelve. This was not enough to warrant the garrison's surrender, and therefore people attributed cowardice, weakness of resolve, and lack of steadfastness to them. This news did not deter General Graham from advancing to Tokar. On the twenty-fifth of February, he sent a detachment of his soldiers to the fort that Baker Pasha had built, as previously mentioned. The enemy was close to it and began to retreat slowly whenever the English cavalry approached. Then, the next day, two thousand of the enemy arrived, so that they became