The Mahdi and his followers had been fighting a jihad since 1881 and looked forward to taking on the famous General Gordon as a chance to win glory for Allah. I am nearly dead". [18] Despite the best efforts of the Allies, the French failed to take the Malakhov fortress while the British failed to take the Redan fortress on 18 June. I wish there was anything I could do to help take away some of your pain. George Gordon GORDON, George - 1919-2007, peacefully at the Apotex Jewish Home for the Aged on Monday, May 7th. "[1] Besieged by the Mahdi's forces, Gordon organised a citywide defence that lasted for almost a year and gained him the admiration of the British public, but not of the government, which had wished him not to become entrenched there. [187] In his last weeks, those who knew Gordon described him as a chain-smoking, rage-filled, desperate man wearing a shabby uniform who spent hours talking to a mouse that he shared his office with when he was not attacking his Sudanese servants with his rattan cane during one of his rages. Located in the town centre of his birthplace of Woolwich is General Gordon Square, formerly known as General Gordon Place until a major urban landscaped area was developed and the road name changed. The B.C. I am the successor of God's Prophet and I have no need of any sultanate of Kordofan or anywhere else! [13] Gordon was especially impressed with Philippians 1:21 where St. Paul wrote: "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain", a passage he underlined in his Bible and often quoted. [133], In May, the Marquess of Ripon, who had been given the post of Governor-General of India, asked Gordon to go with him as private secretary. George Leslie Gordon July 18, 1939 - March 12, 2022 George Leslie Gordon, 82, of Pynn's Brook, NL, passed away peacefully on March 12, 2022, at the Corner Brook Long-term Care Home. Gordon personally explored Lake Albert and the Victorian Nile, pushing on through the thick, humid jungle and steep ravines of Uganda amid heavy rains and vast hordes of insects in the summer of 1876 with an average daily temperature of 95F (35C), down to Lake Kyoga. Login or Sign-up to show all important data, death records and obituaries absolutely for free! [40], No monuments to Gordon exist in China today, though the British journalist Rob Stallard noted that the modest Gordon would have no doubt wanted it that way. When he woke up again that afternoon, he found Gordon's body covered with flies and the head cut off. One observer noted that whenever he left and entered the Governor's Palace in Khartoum: "Government officials, consular agents, and native people awaited him in large numbers. [179] The hero-worshiping Powers wrote about Gordon: "He is indeed I believe the greatest man of this century". [187] The merchant recalled Gordon's response: "He called up the guard and gave the orders to shoot me if I moved" and ordered all of the lamps in the palace to be lit up as brightly as possible. In his biography of Gordon, Anthony Nutting wrote that Gordon was obsessed with "the ever-present, constantly repeated desire for martyrdom and for that glorious immortality in union with God and away from the wretchedness of life on this earth". [192], Gordon had a low opinion of his enemy, writing that the Ansar besieging him were "some 500 determined men and some 2,000 rag-tag Arabs". I have a splendid camel-none like it; it flies along and quite astonishes the Arabs". [148] Gordon was promoted to major-general on 23 March 1882. Relations between Egypt and Abyssinia (later renamed Ethiopia) had become strained due to a dispute over the district of Bogos, and war broke out in 1875. your email below for our complimentary daily grief messages. A funeral service will be held on Wednesday, March 8th 2023 at 11:00 AM at the St. Louis Church (13 E St Louis Pl, Batesville, IN 47006 . [237], An identical statue by Thornycroftbut with the pedestal intactis located in a small park called Gordon Reserve, near Parliament House in Melbourne, Australia. GORDON, George [172] Gordon was well-received by a crowd of about 9,000 during his return to Khartoum where the crowd continually chanted, "Father!" OBITUARY George Forbes Gordon March 28, 1938 - May 15, 2022 It is with heavy hearts we bid a final farewell to Mr. George Forbes Gordon, 84, of Fountain Valley, California, who departed our world on May 15, 2022. [124], In March 1880, Gordon recovered for a couple of weeks in the Hotel du Faucon in Lausanne, 3 Rue St Pierre, famous for its views on Lake Geneva and because several celebrities had stayed there, such as Giuseppe Garibaldi, one of Gordon's heroes,[125] and possibly one of the reasons Gordon had chosen this hotel. [256] Like Strachey, Beatty found Gordon a ridiculous figure, but unlike Strachey, who had nothing but contempt for Gordon, Beatty's approach was a compassionate one, arguing that Gordon's many acts of charity and self-sacrifice were attempts to love others since he was unable to love himself. He doesn't want money!". The Cabinet felt highly uncomfortable with the appointment, as they had been pressured by the press to send a man who was opposed to their Sudan policy to take command there. I've worked with George the past five years and have a great deal of respect for him. In 1885, at a meeting in London, 3,000 were allocated to a Gordon Memorial Mission in Sudan. [211] The orders were not obeyed. [91] As part of his Westernisation programme, Isma'il often hired Westerners to work in his government both in Egypt and in the Sudan. He had an unfaltering testimony of the Gospel, which he happily shared with others, particularly when he and Sybil served two proselytizing missions, one in Edmonton and the other in Las Vegas, Nevada. He claimed that his army service and frequent travels to dangerous places made it impossible for him to marry. View Tribute Book. [79] The South African minister, Dr. Peter Hammond, denied that Gordon was a homosexual, citing the numerous statements made by Gordon condemning homosexuality as an abomination, charging that the claim that Gordon was a homosexual was a theory with no foundation in fact. [14], When the Crimean War began, Gordon was assigned to his boyhood home of Corfu, but after several letters to the War Office, he was sent to the Crimea instead. [40] Gordon's insistence on paying his men meant that he was always pressing the Imperial government for money, something which often irritated the mandarins who did not understand why Gordon did not just let his men loot and plunder as a compensation for wages. It was a highly dangerous job that frequently put him under enemy fire, and led to him being wounded for the first time when a Russian sniper put a bullet into him. He was present during the capture of Peking and at the destruction of the Summer Palace. [93], Gordon remained in the Equatoria province until October 1876. George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron FRS (22 January 1788 - 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. [245] The British historian Alex von Tunzelmann criticised the film for portraying Gordon and the Mahdi regularly meeting and as frres ennemis, though she added that it is true that Gordon and the Mahdi did exchange letters. [12], To block the French, a British force under Herbert Kitchener was sent to conquer the Mahdiyah state and defeated the Ansar at the Battle of Omdurman in 1898. In his 62nd year, George Gordon passed unexpectedly into the presence of his Lord and Saviour. [104] Gordon chose not to meet Muteesa himself, instead sending his chief medical officer, a German convert to Islam, Dr. Emin Pasha, to negotiate a treaty wherein in exchange for allowing the Egyptians to leave the Buganda, the independence of the kingdom was recognised. The clash led to Gordon informing the Khedive that he did not wish to return to the Sudan, and he left for London. [69], King Leopold II then asked Gordon again to take charge of the Congo Free State. [56] The British journalist Mark Urban, wrote: "People saw a brave man who acted with humanity in an otherwise ghastly conflict, standing out from the other mercenaries, adventurers, and cut-throats in wanting almost nothing for himself". [168] Gordon and Wolseley were good friends (Wolseley being one of the people Gordon prayed for every night), and after a meeting with Wolseley at the War Office to discuss the crisis in the Sudan, Gordon left convinced that he had to go to the Sudan to "carry out the work of God". The men of the Gordon family had served as officers in the British Army for four generations, and as a son of a general, Gordon was raised to be the fifth generation; the possibility that Gordon would pursue anything other than a military career seems never to have been considered by his parents. Doreen Sargeant. [174], The Mahdi ended his letter with the remark: "I am the Expected Mahdi and I do not boast! [208], The manner of Gordon's death is uncertain, but it was romanticised in a popular painting by George William Joy General Gordon's Last Stand (1893, currently in the Leeds City Art Gallery), and again in the film Khartoum (1966) with Charlton Heston as Gordon. Send Flowers. [248], In the 20th century, many British military leaders came to have a critical view of Gordon, with Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery writing that Gordon was "unfit for independent command, mentally unbalanced, a fanatic, self-imposed martyr", adding that he should never have been sent to the Sudan and the GladstoneGordon relationship was a case study in dysfunctional civilmilitary relations. [8] A man of medium stature, with striking blue eyes, the charismatic Gordon had the ability to inspire men to follow him anywhere. [217], The failure to rescue General Gordon's force in Sudan was a major blow to Prime Minister Gladstone's popularity. To plant a tree in memory of George GORDON, please visit. [41], In March 1863, Gordon took command of the force at Songjiang, which had received the name of "Ever Victorious Army". The relief force, under the command of Gordon's old friend, Field Marshal Sir Garnet Wolseley, was not ready until November 1884. His Irish-Italian family raised him. He also rented a small house in East Terrace for working boys to be taught for free. [96] The other force for law and order were the much-feared bashi-bazouks, irregulars who were not paid a salary, but were expected to support themselves by looting. In 1982 disgusted with "Big Brother" encroaching on his business, he educated himself and others on law and courtroom procedure, and established a law school in Boise, Barristers Inn, which name was changed to George Gordon's School of Common Law when he moved to Isabella, Mo in 1984 following his patriarchal marriage to Jacqueline. George Gordon Battle Liddy was born in Brooklyn on Nov. 30, 1930, and grew up in Hoboken, N.J. [192] Nutting wrote that Gordon "could have withdrawn at almost any moment between March and May" if only he had been willing. [232], Gordon's memory, as well as his work in supervising the town's riverside fortifications, is commemorated in Gravesend; the embankment of the Riverside Leisure Area is known as the Gordon Promenade, while Khartoum Place lies just to the south. [98], From Khartoum, he proceeded up the White Nile to Gondokoro. Gordon then took his force through the country, seizing towns until, with the aid of Imperial troops, capturing the city of Suzhou in November. [74] The British historian Denis Judd, wrote about Gordon's sexuality: Like two other great Imperial heroes of his time, Kitchener and Cecil Rhodes, Gordon was a celibate. [257] Nutting noted that Gordon had often recklessly exposed himself to Russian fire while fighting in the Crimea and stated he hoped to die in battle against the Russians before leaving for the Crimea. I shall hold on here as long as I can, and if I can suppress the rebellion, I shall do so. [12], The British government asked Gordon to go to Khartoum to report on the best method of carrying out the evacuation. [121], In March 1879, Gessi had inflicted a sharp defeat on Zobeir even before Gordon had joined him to pursue their old enemy. [116] Faught wrote that Gordon's plans were "farsighted and humane", but Baring had no interest in Gordon's plans to suspend the interest payments. [42], Gordon's task was made easier by innovative military ideas Ward had implemented in the Ever Victorious Army. During his time in London, he was approached by Sir William Mackinnon, an enterprising Scottish ship owner who had gone into partnership with King Leopold II of the Belgians with the aim of creating a chartered company that would conquer central Africa, and wished to employ Gordon as their agent in Africa. [201], On 5 January 1885, the Ansar took the fort at Omdurman, which allowed them to use their Krupp artillery to bring down enfilading fire on the defences of Khartoum. [43] At times, Gordon feared that assaults by the Taiping would take the Hyson, but all the attacks were repulsed. He was a treasured and beloved uncle to many, and his favourite place was anywhere his family was, with a cup of good black coffee in his hand. Khartoum. [144], Gordon returned to Britain and rented a flat on 8 Victoria Grove in London. Gord was a fun-loving Uncle to five nephews and one . [52] At Kitang, Gordon was wounded for the second time on 21 March 1864, when a Taiping soldier shot him in the thigh. [187][197] Gordon received a letter from the Mahdi taunting him over the murders of his friends Powers and Stewart, warning that he would be next if he did not surrender. During this time in Khartoum, Gordon befriended Irish journalist Frank Powers, The Times (London) correspondent in the Sudan. [224] This symbolic decapitation echoed General Gordon's death at the hands of the Mahdist forces in 1885. 23/01/2023. Share. [12] However, the British public and Kitchener himself saw the expedition as one to "avenge Gordon". After his conversation with Baring, Churchill wrote: "Of course there is no doubt that Gordon as a political figure was absolutely hopeless. After he arrived in Britain, Gordon announced to the press that he "did not want to board the tram of the world" and asked to be left alone. He is a glorious fellow!With his many faults, his pride, his temper, and his never-ending demand for moneybut he is a noble man, and in spite of all I have said to him or about him, I will ever think most highly of him. Many Taipings were willing to surrender only if the Imperial government would spare the lives of themselves and their families. A group of European financial commissioners led by Evelyn Baring took charge of the Egyptian finances in an attempt to pay off the European banks who had lent so much money to Egypt. It is with heavy hearts the family of Don Bowen announce his passing at the Northumberland Hills Hospital Thursday, March 2, 2023, at the age of 79. He loved his Heavenly Father and his Saviour, and he was an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for which he held many positions and worked faithfully in many capacities. [4], In 1843, Gordon was devastated when his favourite sibling, his sister Emily, died of tuberculosis, writing years later, "humanly speaking it changed my life, it was never the same since". [137] Gordon arrived in Shanghai in July and met Li Hongzhang, and learned that there was risk of war with Russia. He attended schools in Ferndale and Eureka, CA. [56] Gordon also gained the popular nickname, "Chinese" Gordon. George G. Gordon 80, of Indianapolis, passed away December 18, 2022. [191] Khartoum was surrounded by the Ansar in March 1884, but was not cut off from the outside world for a considerable time afterward. [256], Another attempt to debunk Gordon was Anthony Nutting's Gordon, Martyr & Misfit (1966). Sep 1938 - Feb 2023. It was removed in 1943. The English uniform produces an immediate sensation". 05/01/2023. Among his best-known works are the lengthy narratives Don Juan and Childe Harold's Pilgrimage; many of his shorter lyrics in . He was deeply loved by all who knew him and he will be dearly missed every day, with joyful anticipation of an eventual heavenly reunion. The mandarins were thus much inclined to execute not only Taipings, but also their spouses, children, parents, and siblings as being all equally guilty of treason. [47] The suffering of the Chinese people strengthened Gordon's faith, as he argued that there had to be a just, loving God who would one day redeem humanity from all this wretchedness and misery. He loved Nancy, his cherished wife of 39 years, as Christ loved the church.