There was a secret "ultra" faction in the War Office led by Wolseley that felt that the Liberal government was too inclined to withdraw from various places all over the globe at the first sign of trouble, and who were determined to sabotage the withdrawal from the Sudan. Gordon grew up in Climax, Sask., and worked in the Grain industry all his life, which he loved. [56], Gordon returned to Britain and commanded the Royal Engineers' project around Gravesend, Kent, to erect forts for the defense of the River Thames. [223] The body of the Mahdi was disinterred and beheaded. [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". Prince George Obituaries - Prince George Citizen He was first and foremost a passionate follower of Jesus Christ and lived his life in humble but firm faith, pressing on towards the upward call he felt from a young age. George M. Gordon Obituary. George Gordon Obituary - Fort Worth, TX - Dignity Memorial [174] Travelling through Korosko and Berber, he arrived at Khartoum on 18 February, where he offered his earlier foe, the slaver-king Rahama Zobeir, release from prison in exchange for leading troops against Ahmed. Im so deeply sorry for the loss of your father. George Gordon Obituary We are sad to announce that on May 13, 2020, at the age of 51, George Gordon (Raymore, Saskatchewan) passed away. [195] Wolseley was a bureaucratic general whose talents lay in administrative work, and as a field commander, Wolseley was slow, methodical, and cautious, making him, in the opinion of Urban, supremely unqualified to lead the relief expedition as he found one excuse after another to proceed up the Nile at a sluggish pace. I got to know George thru his sons, Greg and Tom, long before I actually met him. He first displayed his death wish as he wrote at the time that he had gone "to the Crimea, hoping, without having a hand in it, to be killed". To plant a tree in memory of George GORDON / GEORGE / HANSLOW, please visit Tribute Store . [152] The Spaffords had lost their home and much of their fortune in the Great Chicago Fire and then had seen one of their sons die of scarlet fever, four of their daughters drowned in a shipwreck, followed by the death of another son from scarlet fever, causing them to turn to religion as consolation for unbearable tragedy, making them very congenial company for Gordon during his stay in Jerusalem. [178] Additionally, Gordon had guns and armoured plating attached to the paddle wheel streamers stationed at Khartoum to create his own private riverine navy that served as an effective force against the Ansar. [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. When Isma'il's reign ended in 1879, Egypt's debt had risen to 93 million pounds. GEORGE GORDON OBITUARY GORDON, George Colburn. During the Crimean war, Gordon picked up an addiction to Turkish cigarettes which was to last for his rest of his life, and many commented that smoking was Gordon's most conspicuous vice as he always seemed to have a cigarette at his lips. [8] He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Royal Engineers on 23 June 1852,[9] completing his training at Chatham, and he was promoted to full lieutenant on 17 February 1854. 22/01/2023 to the family or plant a tree [169] Gladstone had gone to his estate at Hawarden to recover from illness and thus was not present at the meeting on 18 January where Gordon was given the Sudan command, but he was under the impression that Gordon's mission was advisory, whereas the four ministers present at the meeting had given Gordon the impression that his mission was executive in nature. He was promoted to captain on 1 April 1859. The garrison at Berber surrendered in May, and Khartoum was completely isolated. [253], Strachey, a member of the Bloomsbury Group of intellectuals, depicted Gordon as a ludicrous figure, a bad-tempered, deranged egomaniac with a nasty habit of knocking out Arabs whenever he was unhappy, and who led himself into disaster. George, an original California cowboy, attributed his work ethics to the years of newspaper delivery in Eureka and ranching on horseback in and around Ferndale. 1 Still Hopes Dr, West Columbia, SC 29171. George Gordon Obituary - The Indianapolis Star In October 1880, Gordon paid a two-week visit to Ireland, landing at Cork and travelling over much of the island. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Raymond Stampede and Exhibition or to the Canadian Cancer Society. After meeting his old friend, Gordon assured Li that if Russia should attack he would resign his commission in the British Army to take up a commission in the Chinese Army, an action that if taken, risked prosecution under the Foreign Enlistments Act. A visitation will be held on Wednesday, September 7, 2022 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Northview Funeral Chapel and Cremation Centre, 1490 Highbury Avenue North, London, where Georges Life will be celebrated on Thursday, September 8 at 11:00 a.m. Interment of cremated remains at Pond Mills Cemetery. [51] In China, the penalty for rebellion was death. My heart breaks for George's family because we went through the same not too long ago with my own George.. [72] Gordon's parents expected him to marry and were disappointed about his lifelong bachelorhood. [65] Gordon often spoke nostalgically of his service in China, and wished he could return to that country.[70]. [132] In April, the government of the Cape Colony offered him the position of commandant of the Cape local forces, which Gordon declined. [227], After the Battle of Omdurman, Kitchener opened a letter from the Prime Minister, Lord Salisbury, and for the first time learned the real purpose of the expedition had been to keep the French out of the Sudan and that "avenging Gordon" was merely a pretext. [174], The Mahdi ended his letter with the remark: "I am the Expected Mahdi and I do not boast! [171] Gordon made a short trip to Brussels to tell King Leopold that he would not be going to the Congo after all, news that enraged the King. [2], Gordon grew up in England, Ireland, Scotland, and the Ionian Islands (which were under British rule until 1864) as his father was moved from post to post. [189] Gordon had a low opinion of the Egyptian, Turkish, and Arab Sudanese troops under his commandwhom he constantly described as a mutinous, badly disciplined, and ill-trained rabble good only for looting but had a much higher opinion of his Black Sudanese soldiers, most of them former slaves who would rather die fighting as free men than live as slaves again; it was well known that the Mahdi's forces were going to enslave the Blacks of Khartoum once they took the city. His words started out with "I'm here to serve" and ended with those words, after humbly explaining all the amazing things he did at Sterling. Search by name or location to find online obituaries. 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. Nutting made the controversial claim that the basis of Gordon's death wish was that he was gay, noting that Gordon never married, is not known to have had a relationship with any women, and often wished that he had been born a eunuch, which strongly suggested that Gordon wished to have no sexual desires at all. In the 1980s this quiet civil servant . [203], In 1982, a documentary on Gordon's life was written and presented by the actor and historian Robert Hardy, entitled "Gordon of Khartoum". When he woke up again that afternoon, he found Gordon's body covered with flies and the head cut off. Tribute will contact you if there are any issues. [136], An exchange of telegrams ensued between the War Office in London and Gordon in Bombay about just what exactly he was planning on doing in China, and when Gordon replied that he would find out when he got there, Gordon was ordered to stay. When oil mixes with water, we will mix together". Fri,03/03/23-11:56AM, 38 Reads. [103] The heat greatly affected Gordon as he wrote to his sister Augusta, "This is a horrid climate, I seldom if ever get a good sleep". In early 1884, Gordon was sent to Khartoum with instructions to secure the evacuation of loyal soldiers and civilians and to depart with them. 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. George J Gordon III (Trey) of Azle, TX passed away May 1, 2022. Let them take an idea into their heads and nothing will take it out. View Gordon Averyt Murrill's obituary, send flowers and find service dates or sign the guestbook. Jackie and Thomas Reinke | Obituaries | norfolkdailynews.com [43] At times, Gordon feared that assaults by the Taiping would take the Hyson, but all the attacks were repulsed. She grew up in Rochester and also resided in Caledonia and for the majority of her life in Wayland. Gordon was bored with the work of the Danube commission, and spent as much time as possible exploring the Romanian countryside, whose beauty enchanted Gordon when he was not making visits to Bucharest to meet up with his old friend Romolo Gessi, who was living there at the time. [254] Strachey ended his essay on Gordon on a cynical note: "At any rate, it all ended very happilyin a glorious slaughter of twenty-thousand Arabs, a vast addition to the British Empire and a step in the Peerage for Sir Evelyn Baring". [173] Gordon immediately confirmed Baring's fears as he started to issue press statements attacking the rebels as "a feeble lot of stinking Dervishes" and demanded he be allowed to "smash up the Mahdi". Their wishes for cremation have been honored. [16], In the 19th century, Russia was Britain's archenemy, with many people in both nations seeing an ideological conflict between Russian autocracy and British democracy, and Gordon was anxious to fight in the Crimea. My condolences to all of George's family, and may they be comforted that George is in heaven with Jesus, looking after us all. George married Lola Shafer and they divorced. The scriptures both Old and New Testaments are the law of his life and death. [37], Gordon then made a rapprochement with Li and visited him in order to arrange for further operations. The Mahdi is a messianic figure in Islam which tradition holds will appear at the dawn of every new (Islamic) century to strike down the enemies of Islam. [239] Much later, a second casting was made. Obituary | George G. Gordon of Indianapolis, Indiana | Matthews Mortuary Enter [254] Even more devastatingly, Strachey depicted Gordon as a monumental hypocrite, noting the contrast between Gordon's lofty Christian ideas of love, compassion, charity, grace, and hope vs. a career full of hate, war, carnage, death, and destruction. [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". "[129] Gordon was an ardent Christian cosmologist, who also believed that the Garden of Eden was on the island of Praslin in the Seychelles. He loved Nancy, his cherished wife of 39 years, as Christ loved the church. This eventually led to the Warlord Era and the Chinese Civil War which saw the communists defeat the nationalists and establish control over China. [192] On 25 July 1884, the Cabinet, over the objections of the Prime Minister, voted to send a relief expedition to Khartoum. Family and friends are welcome to leave their condolences on this memorial page and share them with the family. Published on December 13, 2020 Plant a Living Memorial George GORDON Obituary (2016) - Glen Innes, Auckland - The New Zealand [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. Baker met with great difficulties and managed little beyond establishing a few posts along the Nile. A cornor [i.e., corner] in palace hall. [93], Typical of the men that Khedive Isma'il Pasha hired was Valentine Baker, a British Army officer dishonorably discharged after being convicted of raping a young woman in England that he had been asked to chaperon. [37] Burgevine was an unsavory character known for his greed and alcoholism. [142] After meeting with him there, Hart described Gordon as "very eccentric" and "spending hours in prayer", writing that: "As much I like and respect him, I must say he is 'not all there'. Share Obituary. [191] Khartoum was surrounded by the Ansar in March 1884, but was not cut off from the outside world for a considerable time afterward. Right up to 1914, Egypt was officially a vilayet (province) of the Ottoman Empire, but after Mohammed Ali become the vali (governor) of Egypt in 1805, Egypt was a de facto independent state where the authority of the Ottoman Sultan was more nominal than real. We will forever be changed by both your life and your sudden absence in ours. "[204] On 14 December 1884, Gordon wrote the last entry in his diary, which read: "Now MARK THIS, if the Expeditionary Force and I ask for no more than two hundred men, does not come in ten days, the town may fall; and I have done my best for the honour of our country. The British sinologist Demetrius Charles Boulger published a biography of Gordon in 1896 which depicted him as a staunch patriot and a Christian of immense virtue who displayed superhuman courage in the face of danger. He was born in Fortuna, CA 75 years ago to Winton and Evelyn Chase Gordon. [50] The Ever-Victorious Armywhich was inclined to lootinghad been ordered not to enter Suzhou, and only Imperial forces entered the city. During his "career break" in the Holy Land, the very religious Gordon sought to explore his faith and biblical sites. [43], Gordon then reorganised his force and advanced against Kunshan, which was captured at considerable loss. [179], Gordon made all of his personal dispatches to London public (there was no Official Secrets Act at the time) in attempts to win public opinion over to his policy, writing on one dispatch: "Not secret as far as I am concerned". know George was a good and faithful servant of the Lord , and our parting will only be for a little while. [113], As governor, Gordon faced a variety of challenges. My friend [88] Isma'il was a Muslim who loved Italian wine and French champagne, and many of his more conservative subjects in Egypt and the Sudan felt alienated by a regime that was determined to Westernise the country with little regard for tradition. [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. [172], After arriving in Khartoum, Gordon announced that on the grounds of honour, he would not evacuate Khartoum, but rather, would hold the city against the Mahdi. [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. Northview Funeral Chapel takes safety seriously. Matters then remained quiet until March 1877, when Gordon proceeded to Massawa, hoping to make peace with the Abyssinians. [204] On arriving at Khartoum on 28 January, the reconnaissance gunboats found that the city had been captured and Gordon had been killed just two days before, coincidentally, two days before his 52nd birthday. [237], An identical statue by Thornycroftbut with the pedestal intactis located in a small park called Gordon Reserve, near Parliament House in Melbourne, Australia. The Europeans whom the Egyptians had hired to work as civil servants in the Sudan were no better and proved to be just as corrupt as the Egyptians. [77] Together with his sister Augusta, Gordon often prayed to be released from their "vile bodies" in which their spirits were "imprisoned" so that their souls might be joined with God. Gordon was quite critical of the way Chinese generals fought the war, observing that the Chinese were willing to inflict and accept gargantuan losses in battle, an approach Gordon disapproved of. [207] Gordon defiantly told the merchant: "Go tell all the people of Khartoum that Gordon fears nothing, for God has created him without fear! [78] Faught argued that no-one at the time suspected Gordon of having sexual relations with the legions of teenage boys living with him at the Fort House. He was predeceased by Beverly Fletcher, his first wife of 35 years, his parents, three brothers, four sisters and one granddaughter. [225][226] Lord Kitchener kept the Mahd's skull and it was rumoured that he intended to use it as a drinking cup or ink well. 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 . George worked as a custodial supervisor in the Lincoln County School system. . [68], Every year, Gordon gave away about 90% of his annual income of 3,000 (equivalent to 351,000 in 2021) to charity. [95], The Egyptian authorities had been extending their control southwards since the 1820s. He is fondly remembered for his flair for fun and excitement, witty sarcasm, and incredible passion for his work. He was warm, steadfast, and peaceable. 2023 from 11:00 a.m. until Funeral Service at 1:00 p.m. Interment will follow at St. George Cemetery, 7808 St. George Way off Siegen Lane. The clash led to Gordon informing the Khedive that he did not wish to return to the Sudan, and he left for London. Tom, Greg, and Curtis, The French hoped that conquering the Sudan would allow them to lever the British out of Egypt, and thus restore Egypt to the French sphere of influence. Leopold tried very hard to convince Gordon to enter his service, not least because Gordon was known to be modest in his salary demands, unlike Leopold's current agent in the Congo, Henry Morton Stanley, who received a monthly salary of 300,000 Belgian francs. Many of Gordon's papers were saved and collected by his two sisters, Helen Clark Gordon, who married Gordon's medical colleague in China, Dr. Moffit, and Mary Augusta, and possibly his niece Augusta, who married Gerald Henry Blunt. George was born January 27, 1994 in Fort Worth, Texas where he enjoyed going to the zoo and riding his jeep in the park and at Granny Janny's house. [52] The Ever Victorious Army did not take part in the final offensive that ended the war with the Capture of Nanking as the "Imps", as Gordon called the Imperial Army, wanted the honour of taking Nanking, the Taiping capital, for themselves. [87] Gordon's reforming zeal made him popular with the ordinary people of the Sudan. [51] Following a dispute with Li over the execution of rebel leaders, Gordon withdrew his force from Suzhou and remained inactive at Kunshan until February 1864. whatever God wants will be). They celebrated H.E's [His Excellency] arrival with an indescribable uproar". [217], The failure to rescue General Gordon's force in Sudan was a major blow to Prime Minister Gladstone's popularity. [192] Nutting wrote that Gordon "could have withdrawn at almost any moment between March and May" if only he had been willing. Obituaries act as quiet reminders of the finite nature of our lives. [127], The intensely religious Gordon had been born into the Church of England, but he never quite trusted the Anglican Church, instead preferring his own personal brand of Protestantism. Leave your condolences to the family on this memorial page or send flowers to show you care. C. G. Gordon", but the messenger (who knew very little English) had memorised another, darker message from Gordon, namely: "We want you to come quickly".