The insurgents were numerous, and he saw that diplomacy had a better chance of success. You will receive email notifications when changes are made to the online memorial, including when family and friends post to the Guestbook. I had the privilege of working with George for many years at both the Ridout Street & Hyde Park Sterling locations. [3] He was educated at Fullands School in Taunton, Taunton School, and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. [160], The only other place to hold out for a time was a region in the south held by the Governor of Equatoria, Emin Pasha. [166] Urban wrote: "The Pall Mall Gazette articles, in short, began a new chapter in international relations; powerful men using media manipulation of public opinion to trigger war. He was kind and caring person and we are blessed to have known him. Goodbye, C. G. George Gordon 1925 - 2021 BORN 1925 DIED 2021 ABOUT Cornell University FUNERAL HOME Metcalf & Jonkhoff Funeral Service 4291 Cascade Road SE Grand Rapids, MI GEORGE GORDON OBITUARY George H.. In September 1883, an Egyptian Army force under Colonel William Hicks set out to destroy the Mahdi. Nutting's book was noteworthy as the first book to argue that Gordon had a death wish. So, therefore, I believe in our active employment in a future life, and I like the thought. (for "Grand Old Man"), to "M.O.G." [51] Gordon wrote a letter home that his losses were "no joke" as 48 of his 100 officers and about 1,000 of 3,500 soldiers had been killed or wounded in action. [201] However, Faught wrote that there was a fundamental difference between Gordon and the Mahdi in that Gordon never tried to convert the Muslims of the Sudan to Christianity whereas the Mahdi was an "Islamic extremist" who believed he would establish a worldwide caliphate, looking forward to the day when he would "see the world bow before him". He has written a 526-page flora of County Durham, plus a handbook on wild roses - a. 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. Dirk, a tall thin kindly gentleman was a Hebrew and followed the laws of both old and new testaments, observing Passover, the feast of Tabernacles and annual Holy Days on the family farm with other Hebrews. We are very sorry to hear about George, It seems we never seem to get together until we have a reason like this. [219], Many biographies have been written of Gordon, most of them highly hagiographic, such as the one by William Butler. [40], Gordon was honest and incorruptible, and unlike many Chinese officers, did not steal the money that was meant to pay his men, but rather insisted on paying the Ever Victorious Army on time and in full. [24] Gordon did not speak Romanian, but his fluency in French allowed him to socialise with the Francophile Romanian elite, who were all fluent in French. He loved their wives, Chelsea, Janine, and Samantha as if they were his own, a trait learned from the great and limitless love he received from his parents-in-law, Tom and Edna Lewis. Mr. Pinsent, who was long famous in Canada, but who did not gain wider international recognition until one of his final performances, in the 2006 film "Away From Her," died on Feb. 25 in . George graduated from Arsenal Technical High School in 1960 and went on to graduate from Purdue University in 1965, majoring in Electrical Engineering. 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. Im grateful to [58], The traders of Shanghai offered Gordon huge sums of money to thank him for his work commanding the Ever Victorious Army. [183], Gordon decided to stay and hold Khartoum despite the orders of the Gladstone government to merely report about the best means of supervising the evacuation of the Sudan. [157] In 1882, nationalist rage in Egypt against Baring's economic policies led to the revolt by Colonel Urabi Pasha, which was put down by Anglo-Egyptian troops. Survived by his daughter, Melanie (Barry) Thompson. [198], On 24 January, two of the steamers, under Sir Charles Wilson, carrying 20 soldiers of the Sussex Regiment wearing red tunics to clearly identify them as British, were sent on a purely reconnaissance mission to Khartoum, with orders from Wolseley not to attempt to rescue Gordon or bring him ammunition or food. [258], More balanced biographies are Charley Gordon: An Eminent Victorian Reassessed (1978) by Charles Chenevix Trench and Gordon: The Man Behind the Legend (1993) by John Pollock. 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. GORDON, George Colburn. In both cases, naval power was the key factor, as gunboats in the Red Sea and on the Nile provided a degree of firepower with which the Ansar could not cope. Ismai'il's Chief of General Staff was the American general Charles Pomeroy Stone, and a number of other veterans of the American Civil War were commanding Egyptian troops. Dirk was an avid photographer and winner of awards, and a law school instructor working right up to the time of his death. [187] When a Lebanese merchant visited Gordon in the evening, the Ansar began an artillery bombardment, leading the frightened merchant to suggest that perhaps Gordon ought to dim the lights to avoid drawing enemy fire down on the palace. [194], It was not until August 1884 that the government decided to take steps to relieve Gordon, with the British relief force, called the Nile Expedition, or, more popularly, the Khartoum Relief Expedition or Gordon Relief Expedition (a title that Gordon strongly deprecated). This was a very evangelical branch of CMS and was able to start work in Sudan in 1900 as soon as the Anglo-Egyptian Condominium took control after the fall of Khartoum in 1899. "[187], At another point, a death-obsessed Gordon wrote in his diary: "Better a bullet to the brain than to flicker out unheeded". [87] Before Gordon boarded the ship at Alexandria that was to take him home, he sent off a series of long telegrams to various ministers in London full of Biblical verse and quotations that he claimed offered the solution to all of the problems of modern life. [241][242], The Church Missionary Society (CMS) work in Sudan was undertaken under the name of the Gordon Memorial Mission. [93], Reflecting these realities, Gordon had to undertake much of the administrative work himself, travelling ceaselessly and constantly all over the Sudan via camel in attempts to make the bureaucracy actually obey his orders, something that occurred when he was present, but stopped as soon as he left. [87], The French-educated Isma'il Pasha greatly admired Europe as the model for excellence in everything, being an especially passionate Italophile and Francophile, saying at the beginning of his reign: "My country is no longer in Africa, it is now in Europe". Sir Gordon Downey, who has died aged 93, leaves a substantial legacy of parliamentary and government scrutiny. George Gordon April 15, 1925 ~ May 21, 2021 96 Years Old Obituary & Services Tribute Wall Obituary George H. Gordon, Husband, Father, Grandfather, Oilman and decorated World War II veteran, died peacefully in Naples, Florida May 21. George Gordon of Isabella, Mo died in his wife's arms at his farm August 30 and was buried that same day in the family cemetery on the farm. [47], The Ever Victorious Army was entirely a mercenary force whose only loyalty was to money and whose men were interested in fighting only in order to gain the chance to plunder. Alone in [Africa], dauntless and unfaltering, he discharges his great trust, holding the capital of the Sudan against the beleaguering hordes". I will keep him in my thoughts and prayers all the time. Gordon passed away peacefully Monday, October 31 at the glorious age of 91, at Good Samaritan Prairie Ridge in Raymond. Obituary. George G. Gordon 80, of Indianapolis, passed away December 18, 2022. Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, January 4, 2022 at the Jurrens Funeral Home in George, IA with Pastor Jeremy Winter, officiating. He received no reply as the king had gone southwards to fight with the Shoa. He went up to Bogos and wrote to the king proposing terms. Born Geoffrey George Gordon FitzClarence, he was the son of William FitzClarence, 2nd Earl of Munster (19 May 1824 - 30 April 1901) and Wilhelmina Kennedy-Erskine (27 June 1830 - 9 October 1906). [249], As a young man, Winston Churchill shared in the national consensus that Gordon was one of Britain's greatest heroes. [188], The Shaggyeh (one of the few Arab tribes who did not rally to the Mahdi) drove Gordon to distraction, with Gordon writing in his diary about them: "Dreadful lot! Gordon himself was honest and incorruptible, but he was almost alone in possessing these qualities, and the venal and corrupt Egyptian bureaucrats usually ignored his orders when they conflicted with the chance to make money. Ever since the realisation of the sacrament, I have been turned upside down". George Gordon, 75, of Wesley Chapel, Florida, passed away September 11, 2022 from complications related to Multiple System Atrophy and Parkinson's Disease. [182], The ferocity of the Haddendowa attacks astonished the British, and Graham argued that he needed more troops if he were to advance deeper into the Sudan while one newspaper correspondent reported that the average British soldiers did not understand why they were in the Sudan fighting "such brave fellows" for "the sake of the wretched Egyptians". 05/01/2023. [209], The Ansar began their final attack by storming the city via the gap in the defence caused by the low Nile and after an hour's fighting, the starving defenders had abandoned the fight and the city was theirs. [94] John Russell, the son of the famous war correspondent William Howard Russell, was another European recruited to serve on Gordon's staff. To download this photo, the file name must have less than 255 characters. [65], Faught maintained that Gordon was a heterosexual whose Christian beliefs led him to maintain his virginity right up to his death, because he believed that sexual intercourse was incompatible with his faith. We will strive to make you proud, and continue the Gordon legacy of faith you began. 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 . Gordon was sickened by the poverty of the Irish farmers, which led him to write a six-page memo to the Prime Minister, William Gladstone, urging land reforms in Ireland. [159], On 35 November 1883, the Ansar (whom the British called "Dervishes"), as the Mahdi's followers were known, destroyed the Egyptian army of 8,000 under Colonel Hicks at El Obeid, with only about 250 Egyptians surviving and Hicks being one of the slain. George E. Harrington, 86 of Oswego. Loved husband of Betty for 66 years. 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. [165], Stead's interview caused a media sensation and led to a popular clamour for Gordon to be sent to the Sudan. He is greatly missed by all who were touched by his intellectual kindness. to the family or plant a tree Your email will not be used for any other purpose. The true joy of George's life were his five beloved and oftentimes spoiled grandchildren: Maeve, Emmett, Isla, Felicity, and Nixon. [193], To keep up morale, Gordon had a military band perform concerts in the central plaza every Friday and Sunday evenings for free, and cast his own decorations for his men. Family and friends are welcome to leave their condolences on this memorial page and share them with the family. [190], Gladstone was opposed to hanging onto the Sudan, saying in a speech in the House of Commons that sending a relief force to Khartoum would be "a war of conquest against a people struggling to be free.