And the ambitions of British policy.

A general revolt, the authority was handed over to the Khedive, Sudan is currently dependent on him, and all tribes are subject to him. None of this was hidden from the English, as if they knew more than others. The Governor of Egypt, Muhammad Sa'id Pasha, visited Sudan in 1858 and declared in Khartoum that he intended to withdraw his armies and government officials from that country. So the tribal sheikhs and Sudanese notables came from all directions, begging him not to do so, and he retracted his decision, the reason for which history has not yet revealed to us. Is this not evidence of the Sudanese people's inclination and adherence to Egyptian rule over them? Sa'id himself, while in Khartoum, appointed after the request made by the sheikhs, notables, and prominent figures, his Armenian scribe, Arakyel Effendi, as governor of that country. Those same notables rose up in complaint and sedition "because the governor appointed a Christian to their country." Arakyel did not do what Gordon and others did. Rather, he addressed the masses who were witnessing the revolt against him and stood among them and said to them, "If you have taken action against the governor's government because I appointed him to rule you, then this is my blood, spill it and remain loyal to the Egyptian government." So the embers of their anger were extinguished, and they turned from sedition to obedience and undertook to serve the government in maintaining security and peace throughout Sudan.

And this Mahdi, whom they portrayed as a monster, the revolt erupted throughout the country because of his emergence. If we examine his history, we will know that he was like those who claim Mahdism in this era. From the entry of Kitchener into Sudan until today, there have been 15 Mahdis in that country, and each one of them was surrounded by a group of people due to their naivety. However, some soldiers managed to capture them by their forelocks. The incident of Abu al-Su'ud, the officer sent by Raouf Pasha, the Governor of Sudan, to Ahmed when he emerged and called for him, is well-known. Abu al-Su'ud reached the man while he was in a cave with his companions, assessed the situation, and left him. If he had wanted to punish him or inflict severe punishment, it would not have been difficult or impossible. However, the sedition that began, as we have seen and as the Sudanese scholars themselves recall, eventually spread and encompassed them all.