General Charles George GORDON (1833-1885)

Autograph Letter Signed (“C.G. Gordon”) as Governor-General of the Sudan, to “My dear Nugent” [his friend Colonel Nugent of the Royal Engineers].
4 pages 8vo on onion-skin paper, Katarif, 24 April 1877 and “En route from Sennaar on Blue Nile to Khartoum”, 1 May 1877. 
“I wish in order to sicken you of any wish to travel, you were here for a week, with this heat, fatigue, worries and the feeling of complete impotency to remedy the state of affairs, that would be in you. I came here in 2½ days from Casata, 150 miles. We went like the wind generally at night, sitting out the day in the terrible heat, sweltering. We leave tonight for Sennaar. I have at least 8 or 10 months travel before I have even seen the Province. I go from Kartoum to Darfour, from Darfour to Wadi Halfa thence to Kartoum, then to Suakin & Berbera opposite Aden then to Kartoum and then to the lakes and then to Kartoum. I hope to rest there, for a time and digest the work. I met Col. Knox friends & Mr. Baird at Kasala, they had shot a lot of animals . . . They killed an Elephant, and found inside her, a small embryo elephant properly formed with tail, legs & not larger than a mole. Knox is a good sportsman, and knows these countries well. I am making great sweeping changes, irrespective of likes & dislikes. I do, as I can, without fear, and with as much justice, as I can see, this is the difficulty, for your seldom get the whole truth, however I go a great deal by instinct. En route from Sennaar on Blue Nile to Kartoum 1 May 1877 Received your kind letter dated 2 March today, on my way down. I have done nearly 900 miles on camel & found the boat (although always grounding owing to the shallows) a comfort. I have all sorts of troublesome work to do though I suppose scarcely ever has had a man a heavier task, I wear it very lightly so convinced I am that I can only do my best. How it will turn out, is not in my hands. I have a host of letters to answer, and have but little time, for I have to go to Darfur in 10 days. Johannes [the Emperor of Abyssinia, with whom Gordon hoped to sign a treaty] has his hands full, King Menelik of Shoa has attacked him in S.E. (Gondar) of his Kingdom, & Johannes has taken all his men away from the Frontier, so I speculate on his leaving me alone, for a time. I will write to Watson, & to you at length later.”
At the time of writing, Gordon was in the first months of his tenure as Governor General of the Sudan, and found himself responsible for a vast area of roughly a million square miles. His tasks were to root out the slave trade, put an end to the endemic corruption, and reconnoitre this vast territory, from the Second Cataract of the Nile to the great lakes, and from the Red Sea to the headwaters of Lake Chad.
Gordon had returned to England the previous year, having resigned his post of the Equatorial provinces where his powers were limited. However, in January 1877 the Khedive, Ismail Pasha, persuaded him to return with increased powers as Governor General of the entire area. He arrived in Cairo on 8 February 1877 and was installed as Governor General on 5 May. In the intervening months, he travelled widely and indefatigably throughout the terrirtory, as he describes in this letter.
Gordon was to remain in the Sudan for the next three years, and achieved remarkable results in charting the country and establishing better communications. His achievements both in government and in engineering were tremendous. He had virtually achieved his most important objective, the suppression of the slave trade, a task he regarded as entrusted to him by God, when Tewfik Pasha succeeded Ismail as Khedive, and Gordon eventually resigned.

Delivery

Autographs can be delivered worldwide. Delivery costs are calculated at the time of order and items will be sent by the most appropriate means, depending on your location and the value of the item. This will usually be by Royal Mail Special Delivery within the UK and Royal Mail Tracked outside the UK. 

 

The current delivery charges are:

• UK:

  Royal Mail Special Delivery £9.00

• Europe:

  Europe Royal Mail Tracked £15.00
  EU customers should note that, following brexit, local VAT and customs duties may apply to their purchases. 

   USA:

• Royal Mail Tracked £25.00

  Rest of the World:

• Rest of the World Tracked £20.00

   

Export Licensing

Customers should be aware that all letters and documents over 50 years old require an export licence, which may delay delivery by anything from one to three weeks. Signed photographs are not subject to export licence regulations, and can be sent immediately.

There is no charge for the export licence and I will take care of the application, the only inconvenience to you will be the delay.

Authenticity

The authenticity of the letters and documents offered is guaranteed.

Payment

Online sales orders

Payments made via the website are processed by Shopify Inc and can be made using Visa, Mastercard or American Express.

Telephone sales orders

Items may be purchased by phone. Please contact me using the website Contact Form and I will call you within 48 hours to discuss your requirements. Payment for purchases ordered by phone can be paid upon receipt of the invoice and must be paid within 7 days. Phone orders can be paid by cheque (in pounds sterling only) or bank transfer.

Items will be reserved for one week following the order confirmation and will be dispatched either within 7 days after full payment has been received, or after any required export licenses have been granted.

Returns Policy

Should you be in any way dissatisfied with your purchase, items may be returned within six weeks of delivery and a full refund will be made upon receipt of the returned item. The item must be received by Richmond Autographs in the same condition as when dispatched.  For full details, please read our Terms and Conditions.