Ali wad Hilu

Ali wad Hilu (died 25 November 1899) was one of the three Kalifas or lieutenants of Muhammad Ahmad (1844-1885), who styled himself the Mahdi, the others being Muhammad Sharif and 'Abd Allah ibn Muhammad.[1]

Ali wad Hilu's followers included the Dighaym, Kianan and al-Lahiwiyin Baqqara Arabs from the Gezira region, which lies between the Blue Nile and the White Nile.[2] He joined the Mahdi in 1881, and his warriors were the first of the Baqqara to join the cause.[3] His forces participated in the sack of Khartoum in January 1885 in which General Gordon died, and which established the Mahdi's control over the Sudan.[2] When the British re-invaded the Sudan, at the Battle of Omdurman (2 September 1898) he led a force of 5,000 fighting under his green flag.[4] For the next year he remained loyal to the Khalifa 'Abd Allah as he wandered in the regions of the White Nile, Nuba Mountains and Kordofan.[3] Ali wad Hilu was killed at the Battle of Umm Dibaikarat (25 November 1899), where the Khalifa 'Abd Allah and other Mahdist leaders also died.[4]

References
  1. Spiers 1998, pp. 207.
  2. Featherstone 1993, pp. 18.
  3. Spiers 1998, pp. 215.
  4. Hill 1967, pp. 47.

Sources

  • Featherstone, Donald F. (1993). Khartoum 1885: General Gordon's last stand. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-85532-301-X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Hill, Richard Leslie (1967). A biographical dictionary of the Sudan. Routledge. ISBN 0-7146-1037-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Spiers, Edward M. (1998). Sudan: the reconquest reappraised. Routledge. ISBN 0-7146-4749-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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