ABSTRACT
The population of the Sudan at the time of the reconquest was largely a tribal one. Despite the dislocation of tribes during the Mahdia and the weakening of their economic and social structure, the tribes continued to perform a major function in society. Hence the British authorities in the Sudan realized that the reconstruction of the country depended first and foremost on the pacification of the tribes, their resettlement and their loyalty to the new regime. To achieve these aims with a minimum of administration and expense, the authorities used different measures in the northern and southern provinces. The northern Sudan, with its Muslim and largely Arabic speaking population, was the more easily accessible to the new administrators. Moreover, most of the government’s officials were either Egyptians or Lebanese, who had a common language with, and in many cases the same religion as, the indigenous inhabitants. Consequently, after an initial period of pacification, the government could establish direct administrative control over most of this area with little recourse to military expeditions.
