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Siege of Khartoum currency, anemergency paper money, was issued bygovernor-general of the Sudan, BritishMajor-GeneralCharles George Gordon during thesiege of Khartoum.[1][2][3][4][5] Denominated inpiastre (and a£E50 note), the first issue notes were dated 25 April 1884 and produced as late as November 1884.
Gordon began his military career with theRoyal Engineers (1852) and fought in theCrimean War and inChina, playing a significant role in stopping theTaiping Rebellion (1863–1864).[6] He was appointed Governor ofEquatoria (1872–1876),[7] and then Governor-general of the Sudan (1877–1880).[8] Gordon was re-appointed to the post of Governor-general in January 1884[9] and arrived atKhartoum on 18 February 1884,[10] less than one month prior to the siege.
Muhammad Ahmad bin Abd Allah, self-proclaimedMahdi, engaged in the 18-year longMahdist War (1881–1899) against theBritish Empire (Khedivate of Egypt), theEthiopian Empire, theCongo Free State, and theKingdom of Italy. In a series of telegrams in early March, 1884, Gordon informed the British government that the Mahdists were closing the roads, cutting off supplies and severingtelegraph communications.[11] As the fighting drew closer to the city walls, and theblockade tightened, thesiege of the city ofKhartoum (13 March 1884 – 26 January 1885) began. Reinforcements were denied, prompting Gordon to send a telegram (on about 8 April 1884) stating
As far as I can understand, the situation is this: you state your intention of not sending any relief up here or toBerber, and you refuse meZebehr. I consider myself free to act according to circumstances. I shall hold on here as long as I can, and if I can suppress the rebellion I shall do so.[12]
| Siege of Khartoum notes (1884) | |
|---|---|
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| 5 piastres | 10 piastres |
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| 20 piastres | 100 piastres |
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| 500 piastres | 1,000 piastres |
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| 2,000 piastres | 2,500 piastres |
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| 5,000 piastres | 50 Egyptian pounds |
On 26 April 1884, Gordon issued £2,500 stg in notes, payable six months from issue.[nb 1] By the end of July, it is estimated that between £26,000[3] and £50,000[5] had been issued. Neitherrepresentative norfiat money, Gordon’s notes were morepromissory in nature, and were personally guaranteed,[13][14] with the backing of the Egyptian government.[14] Accepted by both merchants and soldiers,[15] the notes initially provided economic relief and trade stimulus,[16] but had begun to depreciate by July.[17]
The siege notes are printed on card stock using a lithographic process.[18] The text of the notes is inArabic, with different shapes (just above center and beneath the upper rectangle) representing the various denominations.[nb 2] The seal of the Governor-General appears in bothEnglish andArabic on the higher denominations to the left and Gordon’s signature (either manuscript orhectographic) appears beneath his seal generally to the right on the higher denomination notes. Initially all notes were hand-signed by Gordon. As the issuance grew, notes with a hectographic signature were issued; however, merchants were reluctant to accept the printed signature variety,[19] so Gordon returned to signing each note. On the reverse of most notes is a stamp of an Italian lawyer (Tito Figari) based in Cairo.[nb 3]
Under the British Administration of Sudan there were four types of paper currency issued during the siege of Khartoum (the first two of which are illustrated in the table). Bearing a date of 25 April 1884, the first Sudan piaster issue was printed, in the following denominations: 1,[nb 4] 5, 10, 20, 100, 500, 1000, 2000, 2500 and 5000 piastres.[1] Also bearing the same issue date is the £E50 note (approximately 12 pieces known).[21] A third type issued on 25 April 1884 is a £20 stg note (extremely rare), with text in French, and signed "Gordon Pasha". Finally, on 1 August 1884, a second issue of the 100 piastre note (extremely rare) was printed. Outside of theStandard Catalog of World Paper Money for specialized issues, images of the last two types could not be found. The known population of remaining siege of Khartoum notes varies by denomination from the first type 100 piastre note (roughly 1,250 known) to the £E50 note (roughly 12 known).[1] Presumably there are fewer still of the one piastre, second type 100 piastre, and £20 stg notes.
5 – half-moon design going up at center
10 – oval design consisting of circles and angles at center
20 – half-moon design going down at center
100 – longer oval design of wavy line and dots at center
500 – circle with sawteeth at center
1,000 – more evenly oval design of circles and lines at center
2,000 – rectangle with sawteeth design at center
2,500 – plain half-moon going up with a smaller semicircular line coming down through it at center
5,000 – diamond design at center
50 pounds – diamond design at center.[1]
