The Fashoda Incident (1898) was the climax of imperial territorial disputes between the United Kingdom and France in Eastern Africa. It brought the United Kingdom and France to the verge of war but ended in a diplomatic victory for the UK. 1898 (MDCCCXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... East Africa is a region generally considered to include: Djibouti Eritrea Ethiopia Kenya Somalia Tanzania Uganda Burundi, Rwanda, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, and Sudan are sometimes considered a part of East Africa. ... An international crisis is a crisis between nations. ...

During the late 19th century, Africa was rapidly being occupied by European colonial powers. This period in African history is usually called the Scramble for Africa. The two major powers involved in this scramble were the United Kingdom and France. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... The following is an outline of African history, followed by a list of articles about the history of particular places in Africa. ... The Scramble for Africa (AKA Race for Africa) was the period between the 1880s and the start of World War I, when colonial empires in Africa proliferated more rapidly than anywhere else on the globe. ...

It came to pass that the French thrust into the African interior was mainly from West Africa (modern day Senegal) eastward, through the Sahel along the southern border of the Sahara, a territory covering modern day Senegal, Mali, Niger, and Chad. Their ultimate aim was to have an uninterrupted link between the Niger river and the Nile, hence controlling all trade to and from the Sahel region, by virtue of their existing control over the Caravan routes through the Sahara. The location of Sahel in Africa The Sahel (from Arabic ساحل, sahil, shore, border or coast of the Sahara desert) is the boundary zone in Africa between the Sahara to the north and the more fertile region to the south, known as the Sudan (not to be confused with the country... Map of Niger River with Niger River basin in green. ... For alternative meanings of Nile, see Nile (disambiguation) The Nile (Arabic: النيل an-nīl), in Africa, is one of the two longest rivers on Earth. ...

The British, on the other hand, wanted to link their possessions in Southern Africa (modern South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Zambia), with their territories in East Africa (modern Kenya), and these two areas with the Nile basin. Sudan (which in those days included modern day Uganda) was obviously the key to the fulfillment of these ambitions, especially since Egypt was already under British control. This 'red line' (i.e. a proposed railway, see Cape-Cairo railway) through Africa is made most famous by Englishman and South African Political force Cecil Rhodes, who wanted Africa 'painted [British] Red'. Categories: Africa geography stubs | Southern Africa ... East Africa is a region generally considered to include: Djibouti Eritrea Ethiopia Kenya Somalia Tanzania Uganda Burundi, Rwanda, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, and Sudan are sometimes considered a part of East Africa. ... Rhodes: Cape to Cairo The Cape-Cairo Railway is an uncompleted project to cross Africa from south to north by rail. ... Cecil Rhodes. ...

When one draws a line from Cape Town to Cairo (Rhodes' dream), and one from Dakar to the Horn (the French ambition), these two lines intersect somewhere in eastern Sudan near Fashoda (present-day Kodok), explaining its strategic importance. In short, the United Kingdom had sought to extend its East African empire contiguously from Cairo to the Cape of Good Hope, while France had sought to extend its own holdings from Dakar to the Sudan, which would enable its empire to span the entire continent from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea. Kodok (formerly Fashoda) is a town in the southeastern Sudanese state of Upper Nile. ... Cairo (Arabic: ‎ translit: ) is the capital city of Egypt (and previously the United Arab Republic) and has a metropolitan area population of approximately 15. ... The Cape of Good Hope; looking towards the west, from the coastal cliffs above Cape Point. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Location of the Red Sea Image:Red Seaimage. ...

Fashoda was also bound up in the Egyptian Question – a long running dispute between the United Kingdom and France over the legality of the British occupation of Egypt. Since 1882 many French politicians, particularly those of the parti colonial, had come to regret France’s decision not to join with Britain in occupying the country. They hoped to force Britain to leave, and thought that a colonial outpost on the Upper Nile could serve as a base for French gunboats. These in turn were expected to make the British abandon Egypt. Another proposed scheme involved a massive dam, cutting off the Nile’s water supply and forcing the British out. These ideas were highly impractical, but they succeeded in frightening many British officials, who sought to protect Egypt by securing the Nile. 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

A French force of 150 tirailleurs set out from Brazzaville under Major Jean-Baptiste Marchand with orders to secure the area around Fashoda as a French protectorate. After an epic 14-month trek across the heart of Africa they arrived on 10 July 1898. On 18 September, a powerful flotilla of British gunboats arrived at the isolated fort, led by Lord Kitchener and including Horace Smith-Dorrien. As the commander of the Anglo-Egyptian army that had just defeated the forces of the Mahdi at the battle of Omdurman, he was in the process of reconquering the Sudan in the name of the Egyptian Khedive. Both sides were polite but insisted on their right to Fashoda. Tirailleur means sharpshooter in French. ... Image of Kinshasa and Brazzaville, taken by NASA. Brazzaville is the capital and largest city of the Republic of the Congo and is located on the Congo River. ... Colonel Marchand Major Jean-Baptiste Marchand (1863-1934) was a French emissary in Africa. ... July 10 is the 191st day (192nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 174 days remaining. ... 1898 (MDCCCXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... September 18 is the 261st day of the year (262nd in leap years). ... Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener of Khartoum Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener of Khartoum PC, KBE, KCB, ADC ( June 24, 1850 - June 5, 1916) was a British Field Marshal and statesman. ... General Sir Horace Lockwood Smith-Dorrien General Sir Horace Lockwood Smith-Dorrien (May 26, 1858–August 12, 1930) was a British soldier and commander of the British II Corps of the BEF during the Great War. ... The Mahdi (Arabic: مهدي, also transliterated as: Mehdi or Mihdi; translated as: Guided One), in Islamic eschatology, is the prophesied redeemer of Islam, who will change the world into a perfect Islamic society before Yaum al-Qiyamah (literally Day of the Resurrection). The exact nature of the Mahdi differs according to... Map of Sudan with Khartoum Map of Ohmdurman with Khartoum and Bahri Omdurman is a city on the river Nile in Sudan, opposite the capital, Khartoum. ... Khedive (from Persian for lord) was a title created in 1867 by the Ottoman Sultan Abd-ul-Aziz for the then-governor of Egypt, Ismail Pasha. ...

News of the meeting was relayed to Paris and London, where it inflamed the imperial pride of both nations. Widespread popular outrage followed, each side accusing the other of naked expansionism and aggression. The crisis continued throughout September and October, and both nations began to mobilise their fleets in preparation for war.

Militarily, the situation was heavily in the United Kingdom’s favour, a fact that French deputies were to acknowledge in the aftermath of the crisis. The French fleet was badly built and poorly organised, while the British held an advantage both in numbers and technology. The French army was far larger than the British army, but there was little it would have been able to do against Britain in the face of British naval superiority.

This fact was undoubtedly an important one to Theophile Delcassé, the newly appointed French foreign minister. He was keen to gain Britain’s friendship in a future conflict with Germany, and saw no advantage in a colonial war with them. He therefore pressed hard for a peaceful resolution of the crisis. At the same time, people increasingly began to question the wisdom of war for the sake of such a remote part of Africa. In France, the reopening of the Dreyfus Affair did much to distract public opinion from events in the Sudan. The French government quietly ordered its soldiers to withdraw on 3 November. Théophile Delcassé, French diplomat and statesman Théophile Delcassé (March 1, 1852 - February 22, 1923) was a French statesman. ... The Dreyfus Affair was a political scandal which divided France during the 1890s and early 1900s. ... November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ...

In March 1899 the French and British agreed that the source of the Nile and the Congo rivers should mark the frontier between their spheres of influence. 1899 (MDCCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... For alternative meanings of Nile, see Nile (disambiguation) The Nile (Arabic: النيل an-nīl), in Africa, is one of the two longest rivers on Earth. ...

Some historians consider that the resolution of this incident and the increase in strength of Germany were the precursors of the Entente Cordiale. In any case, it was the last serious colonial dispute between Britain and France. The Entente Cordiale (French for friendly understanding) is a series of agreements signed on April 8, 1904, between the United Kingdom and France. ...

See also

• Berlin Conference
• Algeciras Conference

The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 regulated European colonization and trade in Africa. ... The Algeciras Conference of 1906 took place in Algeciras, Spain. ...

References

• Bates, Darell (1984). The Fashoda incident of 1898: encounter on the Nile. Oxford: OUP, ISBN 0192117718
• David Levering Lewis. The Race to Fashoda. New York: Weidenfield and Nicholson, 1987. ISBN 1555840582
• Wright, Patricia (1972). Conflict on the Nile: the Fashoda incident of 1898. London: Heinemann, ISBN 0434878308
• Churchill, Sir Winston (1902). The River War, available at Project Gutenberg. Chapter 17 is devoted to Fashoda, covering actions on the ground more than international diplomacy.