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59-592: The Nile Expedition , sometimes called the Gordon Relief Expedition (1884–1885), was a British mission to relieve Major-General Charles George Gordon at Khartoum , Sudan . Gordon had been sent to Sudan to help the Egyptians withdraw their garrisons after the British decided to abandon Sudan in the face of a rebellion led by self-proclaimed Mahdi , Mahommed Ahmed . A contingent of Canadians

118-559: A Major General rank is usually held by someone that is a Regional Military Command General Officer Commanding (Regional Commander or တိုင်းမှူး) or a Director such as Director of Defence Service Intelligence ( Khin Nyunt for example) In the New Zealand Army , major-general is the rank held by the chief of army (formerly the chief of general staff). The more senior rank of lieutenant-general is reserved for when an army officer holds

177-543: A crossed sword and baton, all surmounted by St. Edward's Crown. It is worn on the shoulder straps of the service dress tunic, and on slip-ons on other uniforms. On the visor of the service cap are two rows of gold oak leaves. Major-generals are initially addressed as 'general' and name, as are all general officers; thereafter by subordinates as 'sir' or 'ma'am' as applicable in English ( French : mon général ). Major-generals are normally entitled to staff cars . In Myanmar,

236-519: A dozen men along with enough cargo to supply them for a hundred days. In mid-November, the expedition received word from General Gordon that he could only survive the siege for another forty days. Realising that time was running out for General Gordon in Khartoum, Wolseley split his force into two columns. He sent the Desert Column of 1,400 men by camel on a 280 km shortcut from Korti, across

295-503: A field command, a major general is typically in command of a division consisting of around 6,000 to 25,000 troops (several regiments or brigades ). It is a rank that is subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the rank of brigadier or brigadier general . In the Commonwealth, major general is equivalent to the navy rank of rear admiral . In air forces with a separate rank structure (Commonwealth), major general

354-405: A fortified site at Kirbekan they hoped would impede the main British column still ascending the river. These military operations were occurring some two weeks after the fall of Khartoum and Brigadier Wilson's earlier glimpse of the fallen city from his steamship. At Kirbekan, whilst the British successfully seized the position, the British commander General William Earle was killed near the end of

413-702: A relief force to Khartoum. The Expedition was put under the command of General Garnet Wolseley , who had seen service in the Crimean War , Canada , the Gold Coast and the South African Wars . The Expedition was composed of two officers and 43 soldiers from each British Light Cavalry Regiment. Wolseley decided that the best way of reaching Khartoum would be to ascend the Nile . Based on his favourable experience with them during his expedition along

472-475: A removable flood wall was constructed in the downtown area so that residents did not lose their connection to the river. In Winnipeg, the flood crested at 24.5 feet (7.5 m) above datum at the James Avenue pumping station, making it the third-highest flood at Winnipeg in recorded history . It was surpassed by the floods of 1825, and 1826. The city was largely spared the fate of Grand Forks thanks to

531-533: A specific vulnerable section near Grafton city, located between Grand Forks and Emerson, that is highly susceptible to severe floods. On May 8, 1950, the Red River reached its highest level at Winnipeg since 1861. Eight dikes protecting Winnipeg gave way and flooded much of the city, turning 1,600 km (600 sq mi) of farmland into an enormous lake. The city turned to the Canadian Army and

590-405: A total of $ 3.5 billion in damage and required temporary evacuation of towns and cities on both sides of the border. The cities of Grand Forks, North Dakota , and East Grand Forks, Minnesota , suffered the most damage, and most of their populations had to be evacuated. The river crested at more than 54 feet (16 m) above datum . The cities worked with FEMA and the state of Minnesota to clear

649-679: A wet summer in 2010, as well as an above average amount of snowfall through the winter in the Red River Valley, the Red River spilled its banks. It crested in Winnipeg at the James Avenue pumping station at 19.59 feet (5.97 m) above datum, as the sixth highest flood levels in recorded history if flood protection such as the Portage Diversion and the Red River Floodway were not in place. That same year there

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708-460: Is a misnomer. While the Red River drains the region, it did not create a valley wider than a few hundred feet. The much wider floodplain is the lake bed of the ancient glacial lake. It is remarkably flat; from its origin near Breckenridge, Minnesota, to the international border near Emerson, Manitoba , its gradient is only about 1:5000 (1 metre per 5 kilometres), or approximately 1 foot per mile. The river, slow and small in most seasons, does not have

767-708: Is equivalent to air vice-marshal . In some countries including much of Eastern Europe , major general is the lowest of the general officer ranks without brigadier general rank. In the sultanate of Brunei , the rank of Major general ( Malay : Mejar jeneral ) is used by the Royal Brunei Land Force and the Royal Brunei Air Force . The rank is held by the Commander of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces . In

826-748: Is the Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central and Northern European countries, including Austria , Belgium , Denmark , Finland , Germany , Norway , and Sweden . Red River of the North The Red River is about 885 kilometres (550 mi) long, of which about 635 kilometres (395 mi) are in the United States and about 255 kilometres (158 mi) are in Canada. The river falls 70 metres (230 ft) on its trip to Lake Winnipeg, where it spreads into

885-604: The Air Force used the rank of air vice-marshal , instead. The rank insignia for a major-general in the Royal Canadian Air Force is a wide braid under a single narrow braid on the cuff, as well as two silver maple leaves beneath a crossed sword and baton, all surmounted by St. Edward's Crown. In the Canadian Army, the rank insignia is a wide braid on the cuff, as well as two gold maple leaves beneath

944-619: The British Parliament passed a motion thanking them for their efforts. A collection of records from the expedition was compiled and edited by C.P. Stacey , and published by the Champlain Society in 1959. Among the journalists who covered the expedition was Charles Lewis Shaw who worked for the Winnipeg Times and published an account in his book Nile Voyageur . A memorial plaque "Nile Voyageurs 1884–85"

1003-599: The Canadian Armed Forces , the rank of major-general (MGen) ( French : major-général ) is both a Canadian Army and Royal Canadian Air Force rank equivalent to the Royal Canadian Navy 's rank of rear-admiral . A major-general is a general officer , the equivalent of a naval flag officer . The major-general rank is senior to the ranks of brigadier general and commodore , and junior to lieutenant-general and vice admiral . Prior to 1968,

1062-693: The Hudson Bay watershed . The mouth of the Red River forms a freshwater river delta called the Netley–Libau Marsh. The Netley Marsh is west of the Red and the Libau Marsh is east, forming a 26,000-hectare (64,000-acre) wetland. Southern Manitoba has a frost-free season of between 120 and 140 days per year in the Red River Valley. The Red River flows across the flat lake bed of the ancient glacial Lake Agassiz , an enormous glacial lake created at

1121-468: The Red Cross and The Salvation Army for help, and nearly 70,000 people were evacuated from their homes and businesses. Four of eleven bridges in the city were destroyed, and damage was estimated at between $ 900 million and $ 1 billion. As a result of the floods, a flood control project was constructed to prevent such damage in the future. The Red River Floodway around Winnipeg attracted some derision at

1180-716: The Red River to Fort Garry (now Winnipeg ) from 1869–1870 to suppress the Red River Rebellion , Wolseley asked the Governor General of Canada , the Marquess of Lansdowne , if it would be possible to recruit a contingent of Canadian voyageurs to help him navigate the Nile. He requested that they be commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick C. Denison , who had served as Wolseley's aide-de-camp during

1239-666: The Seven Years' War . Following that, they took over French possessions in Canada. Settlers of the Red River Colony established farming along the river, and their primary settlement developed as Winnipeg , Manitoba. What became known as the Red River Trails , nineteenth-century oxcart trails developed originally by the Métis, supported the fur trade and these settlements. They contributed to further development of

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1298-479: The flood of 1997 . 75% of the population in the former city was evacuated, and all of the latter. Many of the residential areas along the rivers were inundated and all the homes had to be destroyed. Afterward, a massive flood protection project was undertaken to protect both cities. Atashi et al. study conducted spatial analyses of the Permanent Water Area (PWA) and Seasonal Water Area (SWA), revealing

1357-508: The floodplains of the river on both sides, prohibiting future housing or businesses in this area. They created the Greater Grand Forks Greenway on both sides, which includes city and state parks, a long bike trail, and other recreational amenities. The trees and greenery help absorb floodwaters. A dike system was constructed outside this area on both sides to protect the cities from future floods. In East Grand Forks,

1416-653: The Army ( Major-General do Exército ) became extinct in 1950, with their roles being unified in the then created Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces . In the Russian Army , the rank 'major general' is known as Russian : генера́л-майо́р , romanized :  generál-mayór . It is equivalent to a British brigadier or an American brigadier general . The Turkish Army and Air Force refer to

1475-522: The Bayuda Desert to Metemma where they would link with Gordon's steamboats awaiting them (avoiding the Great Bend of the Nile ). The Desert Column was attacked by Mahdists at Abu Klea and Abu Kru , but repelled the rebel attacks both times and reached the Nile near Metemma where they linked with Gordon's steamboats. The remaining 6,000 soldiers continued up the river. Progress up the river

1534-506: The Floodway, which was pushed to its capacity during the 1997 flood. In 2009 the Red River flooded in early spring. By Friday, March 27, the river at Fargo had reached the highest level in recorded history. Its discharge at that location was far in excess of normal flows. The river crested at the James Avenue pumping station in Winnipeg at 22.5 feet (6.9 m) above datum, making it the fourth-highest flood in recorded history. Due to

1593-562: The Mahdi. This led to consideration of an operational pause, to last several months over the Sudanese summer, which might allow fresh British reinforcements to be assembled in Egypt and later sent up the river to Wolseley. The Panjdeh incident of 29 March 1885, initiated by Imperial Russia in south-central Asia, gave the British government sufficient excuse to make a face-saving withdrawal of

1652-470: The Red River expedition. The Prime Minister of Canada , John A. Macdonald , did not object once he was assured that the voyageurs were volunteers and would be paid by the British. Denison complied and on 15 September 1884, only 24 days after the request was received, 386 voyageurs set sail for Egypt. The Canadians were known at the time as the Nile Voyageurs. As the traditional role of the voyageur

1711-590: The Red River was part of Rupert's Land , the concession established by the British Hudson's Bay Company in north central North America. The Red was a key trade route for the company, and contributed to the settlement of British North America. The river was long used by fur traders , including the French and the Métis people , who established a community in this area some time before the British defeated France in

1770-493: The Wolseley force to Egypt and then home, thereby ending any further commitment to the region, including on the coast at Suakin . With the fall of Khartoum and now the subsequent removal of the last British troops in the vicinity of the upper Nile, Muhammad Ahmad controlled the whole of Sudan, allowing him to establish an Islamic state governed by Sharia law. He died less than six months later. His state survived him, but Sudan

1829-654: The afternoon of 28 January 1885. It came two days too late: Khartoum had been seized by the Mahdists in the early hours of 26 January. The entire garrison, along with Gordon and 4,000 civilians had been killed. Wilson received criticism afterwards for his delay in sailing to Khartoum, with Wolseley stating that Wilson had "lost any nerve he had ever possessed". Other sources however, spread the blame, particularly on Wolseley. The public in England also blamed Prime Minister William Gladstone for not having taken steps to relieve

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1888-411: The attack. The fall of Khartoum and the massacre of all within led to various communiques between Wolseley and London. Indicative of the confusion, on 7 February 1885, three days before the battle of Kirbekan, Wolseley was told by London to make no retrograde steps down the Nile to Egypt. Wolseley himself, however, was concerned that with the fall of Khartoum, he lacked sufficient military force to subdue

1947-467: The city. Dismayed at the sight of the city's fall, Colonel Charles William Wilson , the on-scene commander, ordered his flotilla to turn about and steam back down river to Metemma. It was the closest the relief column would get to Khartoum. Emboldened by their victory at the Siege of Khartoum , the Mahdists resisted British efforts to force the Nile. This included, on 10 February 1885, the Mahdists defending

2006-493: The contingent of North American Indian voyageurs who led the British boat..." by Louis Jackson.) On 7 October 1884, the Canadians reached Alexandria by sailing ship and headed up the Nile by a combination of shallow draft steam launch and train. On 26 October 1884, the Canadians met Wolseley and his force of 5,400 soldiers at Wadi Halfa . By November the combined force were at the first of six cataracts and began to ascend

2065-514: The defence of Khartoum. On 18 March 1884, the Mahdist army laid siege to the city . The rebels stopped river traffic and cut the telegraph line to Cairo . Khartoum was cut off from resupply, which led to food shortages, but could still communicate with the outside world by using messengers. Under pressure from the public, in August 1884, the British government decided to reverse its policy and send

2124-661: The effect of refilling, in part, the ancient lake. Floods happen in the Red River when the water level increases over the tops of riverbanks due to significant precipitation over the same area for long periods, in the forms of persistent thunderstorms, rain, or snow combined with spring snow melt and ice jam. Major floods in historic times include those of 1826 , 1897 , 1950 , 1997 , 2009 , 2011 , and there has been significant flooding many years in between. Geologists have found evidence of many other floods in prehistoric times of equal or greater size. These " paleofloods " are known from their effects on local landforms, and have been

2183-552: The end of the Wisconsin glaciation from meltwaters of the Laurentide Ice Sheet . As this continental glacier decayed, its meltwaters formed the lake. Over thousands of years, sediments precipitated to the bottom of the lakebed. These lacustrine soils are the parent soils of today's Red River Valley . The river is very young; it developed only after Lake Agassiz drained, about 9,500 years ago. The word "valley"

2242-491: The energy to cut a gorge. Instead it meanders across the silty bottomlands in its progress north. In consequence, high water has nowhere to go, except to spread across the old lakebed in "overland flooding". Heavy snows or rains, especially on saturated or frozen soil, have caused a number of catastrophic floods, which often are made worse by the fact that snowmelt starts in the warmer south, and waters flowing northward are often dammed or slowed by ice. These periodic floods have

2301-540: The evacuation of Egyptian soldiers, civilian employees and their families. Travelling from London , General Gordon reached Khartoum on 18 February 1884. He immediately began sending women, children and wounded soldiers back to Egypt as the military situation deteriorated in Sudan with the south of the country being in danger of being cut off from Egypt by the Mahdist army. Britain withdrew its troops from Sudan until Khartoum

2360-747: The position of chief of defence force, who commands all of New Zealand's armed forces. This position is subject to rotation between the heads of the New Zealand Air Force , New Zealand Army, and New Zealand Navy . Major general in the Pakistan Army is equivalent to rear admiral in the Pakistan Navy and air vice marshal in the Pakistan Air Force . It is the lowest of the general officer ranks, ranking between brigadier and lieutenant general. The rank of major-general

2419-720: The rank as tümgeneral . The Turkish Navy equivalent is tümamiral . The name is derived from tümen , the Turkish word for a military division ( tümen itself is an older Turkish word meaning 10,000). Thus, linguistically, it is similar to the French equivalent for a major general, French : général de division . In the United States , the rank of major general exists in the United States Air Force , United States Army , United States Marine Corps , and United States Space Force . Generalmajor

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2478-409: The rapids. The southward progress of the expedition sped up with the experienced voyageurs manning the boats. The boats that Wolseley selected were modified Royal Navy whalers. They were almost 10 metres (33 ft) long, 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) wide and .75 metres (2 ft 6 in) deep, and were equipped with twelve oars, two masts and a removable rudder . The boats had the capacity for

2537-564: The region on both sides of the international border. The Red River begins at the confluence of the Bois de Sioux and Otter Tail rivers, on the border of Wahpeton, North Dakota and Breckenridge, Minnesota . Downstream, it is bordered by the twin cities of Fargo, North Dakota  – Moorhead, Minnesota , and Grand Forks, North Dakota  – East Grand Forks, Minnesota . It crosses the Canada–United States border just before reaching

2596-606: The siege of Khartoum and some historians have held Major-General Gordon responsible, because he had refused the order to evacuate while it was still possible. Not wanting to be involved in the costly suppression of the rebellion led by Mahommed Ahmed, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland ordered Egypt to abandon its administration of Sudan in December 1883. The British government asked General Gordon, former Governor-General of Sudan, to go to Khartoum and aid in

2655-470: The small boats up the river. General Gordon's last entry in his journal, dated 14 December 1884, read, “Now mark this, if the Expeditionary Force, and I ask for no more than 200 men, does not come in ten days, the town may fall; and I have done my best for the honour of our country. Good bye.” On 26 January 1885, Khartoum fell to the Mahdist army of 50,000 men. At that time of year the Nile

2714-553: The subject of scholarly studies. After the disastrous 1950 flood, which resulted in extensive property damage and losses in Winnipeg , the province of Manitoba undertook flood prevention by constructing the Red River Floodway . Completed in 1968, it diverts floodwaters around the city to less settled areas farther down the river. Grand Forks, North Dakota, and East Grand Forks, Minnesota, suffered widespread destruction in

2773-400: The time, as some people thought it was massively overbuilt and was the then-largest earth-moving project in the world. The project was completed under-budget, and has been used for at least some flood control 20 times in the 37 years from its completion to 2006. The Floodway has saved an estimated CA$ 10 billion in flood damages. In the spring of 1997 a major flood of the Red River caused

2832-602: The town of Emerson, Manitoba . Manitoba 's capital, Winnipeg, is at the Red's confluence with the Assiniboine River , at a point called The Forks . Together with the Assiniboine, the Red River fully encloses the endorheic basin of Devils' Lake and Stump Lake. The Red flows further north before draining into Lake Winnipeg which then drains through the Nelson River into Hudson Bay , both part of

2891-551: The vast deltaic wetland known as Netley Marsh. Several urban areas have developed on both sides of the river, including the city of Winnipeg in Canada, as well as the Fargo-Moorhead and Grand Forks–East Grand Forks metropolitan areas, both of which straddle the North Dakota–Minnesota border. Long an important highway for trade, the Red River has been designated a Canadian Heritage River . The watershed of

2950-401: The voyageurs, including their commander, Denison, signed up for a second six-month contract. The rest elected to return to Canada, hoping to arrive in time for the spring logging season. This did not halt the expedition, as the worst of the river was already behind them and the smaller number of soldiers travelling by river reduced the need for the Canadians. Denison and his men continued piloting

3009-677: Was erected at Kitchissippi Lookout on Island Park Drive just west of the Champlain Bridge in 1966. Lance Corporal Jones in the television sitcom Dad's Army claimed to have been involved in the Anglo-Egyptian invasion of Sudan in 1896–1899 and the Nile Expedition. Major-General Major general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general . In English-speaking countries , when appointed to

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3068-549: Was moved up one level, with the role of brigade commander being assumed by the below rank of brigadier-general. In most of the 19th and first half of the 20th century, major-general was not used as a rank in the Portuguese military, but as an appointment title conferred to the general officer that acted as the military head of a service branch . The roles of Major-General of the Navy ( Major-General da Armada ) and Major-General of

3127-404: Was re-conquered by the British in a campaign from 1895 to 1898, led by Lord Kitchener . On 17 April 1885, the Canadian contingent set sail from Alexandria for home. Sixteen Canadians had died on the expedition. They are memorialised in Canada's Peace Tower , which recognises all of Canada's war dead. Wolseley wrote a letter to the Governor General of Canada praising the Canadians' service and

3186-548: Was recruited to help the British navigate their small boats up the Nile River . The Nile Expedition was the first overseas expedition by Canadians in a British imperial conflict, although the Nile Voyageurs were civilian employees and did not wear uniforms. The expedition was commanded by Garnet Wolseley . After Commander Herbert Stewart was mortally wounded, Brigadier-General Charles William Wilson took command of an advance party of about 1,400 men. A small part of Wilson's Desert Column reached Khartoum on two Nile steamers in

3245-416: Was reintroduced in the Portuguese Army , Portuguese Air Force , and Portuguese National Republican Guard in 1999, replacing the former rank of brigadier in the role of brigade commander. As a rank, it had previously been used in the Army only for a brief period (from 1862 to 1864). It is equivalent to the rank of contra-almirante (rear-admiral) in the Portuguese Navy . In 2015, the rank of major-general

3304-418: Was shallow enough to be forded and the Mahdists were able to breach the city's defences by attacking the poorly-defended approaches from the river. The entire garrison was slaughtered, including General Gordon. His head was cut off and delivered to the Mahdi. Two days later, two of Gordon's armed steamers, towing several native boats, the flotilla carrying some 140 British and native troops, came within sight of

3363-482: Was slow, and often the boats had to be pulled through rapids by rope from shore. At several places the strength of the current necessitated several crews pulling one boat. They settled on a method of stationing the voyageurs at difficult stretches along the river, so that each group would become familiar with a particular stretch of water. The Canadians’ six-month contracts were soon to expire, and they were asked to re-enlist. Though offered generous inducements, only 86 of

3422-416: Was the last remaining outpost under British control. Gordon differed with the British government's decision to abandon the Sudan. He thought that the Mahdists had to be crushed for fear that they might eventually overwhelm Egypt. He based this on the Mahdi's claim of dominion over all Islamic lands. Defying orders from the British government to withdraw, General Gordon, leading a garrison of 6,000 men, began

3481-409: Was waning, most were formerly employed helping transport log booms down rivers such as the Ottawa , Gatineau and Saguenay . Eighty-six of the voyageurs were members of the First Nations , mostly Caughnawaga, an offshoot from the Mohawk and Ojibwa . (The involvement of these Indigenous men was chronicled in the 1885 book "Our Caughnawagas in Egypt: a narrative of what was seen and accomplished by

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