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His instructions were to evacuate the place and instead he decided to try and force government policy by making a stand. It made him popular with the public who perceived him as a romantic hero, but I can see where the British government must have been royally pissed at his stunt.
And it all worked out terribly for the Brits, not only were they forced to alter policy by this one individual, the relief army they sent arrived too late and Khartoum was lost anyway.
Gordon got himself and a lot of people killed, and caused his government to waste treasure and time trying to save his bacon, all for what strikes me as the ego of Gordon.
Gordon belongs in that same "not sure what to make of em" category as John Brown, and like Brown, Gordon was something of a religious fanatic.
I can't comment on the question per se, but I read a comment that was made by one of the officers of the relief column, and that was that he (Gordon) "was not worth the camels to save him."
Anyone seen the 1966 film Khartoum? Charlton Heston (!) plays Gordon but can't hold a British accent. Sir Laurence Olivier (!) plays the Madi. He is covered in makeup that must have been leftover from when he played "Othello".
When I was a pre-teen I thought he was heroic. Later, older, and better read I realize he it was a mistake. He was experienced enough as an engineer to know the obstacles faced by the relief column. I also think now he was probably nearly unemployable and perhaps had no other career recourse than to retain a measure of command where he was.
Buller said the quote about the camels. Buller was in his prime then, less so in the 2nd Boer War.
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