In 1882 Garnet Wolseley calls Simon Fonthill back into service as Britain prepares to intervene in Egypt. Fonthill and Jenkins are sent ahead of the army to discover the strength and intentions of Ahmed ‘Urabi’s forces, placing them between a nationalist military movement, European interests and a British command determined to secure the route through the Suez Canal. Their scouting mission ends amid the rapid campaign that drives toward the fortified Egyptian position at Tel el-Kebir.
The historical background is the Anglo-Egyptian War of 1882 and the ‘Urabi revolt against the political order surrounding Khedive Tewfik and foreign influence. Wolseley’s army landed through the canal zone and defeated ‘Urabi at Tel el-Kebir on 13 September, opening the way to Cairo and the long British occupation of Egypt. The novel makes intelligence gathering and battlefield reconnaissance the bridge between Fonthill’s fictional mission and the decisive real campaign.
