Gordon’s fall shattered what remained of Egyptian authority in Sudan. The region, once claimed in maps and ledgers, slipped into the hands of the Mahdist state. But in Britain, the loss reverberated beyond strategy. It struck the national psyche... a public accustomed to victory saw one of its most revered officers abandoned and butchered. The outcry wasn’t fleeting. It hardened into a new imperial posture: less hesitant, more aggressive. From that point forward, British ambition in Africa i...