16 h 54 minAudiobook15 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 16 h 54 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
River rapids, desert heat, and a city cut off: how far can courage carry a young man?
In The Dash for Khartoum, G. A. Henty draws a young hero into the Nile Expedition of 1884 and 1885. A British army pushes into Sudan to relieve General Gordon, cut off in Khartoum. The journey brings river boats, long marches, and battles against the forces of the Mahdi.
Lord Wolseley leads the expedition, while Canadian boatmen guide small boats through rapids and cataracts. Against this real campaign, Henty sets an adventure where honesty, loyalty, and duty face hard tests. His young hero enters events larger than himself, in a story shaped by the imperial outlook of its age.
What you’ll discover
- A river full of obstacles Follow the expedition upstream, where rapids and cataracts make the journey itself a struggle.
- The strain of desert marches Feel the pressure of long marches and heat as the expedition presses toward Khartoum.
- Courage under hard pressure Meet a young hero whose world demands honesty, loyalty, and a cool head in danger.
- History woven into adventure Explore the Nile Expedition through a young hero's part in a real military campaign.
- A Victorian moral world Encounter clear ideals of duty and friendship within the story's imperial view of the conflict.
Who will love it
You will enjoy this book if you like Victorian adventure, regiment life, desert marches and real battles, and stories of brothers who stand by each other.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Two boys share an uncertain beginning
- Love grows stronger than birth
- Edgar leaves before asking for help
- Courage reaches beyond an old rivalry
- The truth finds Edgar far away
- A search for help brings captivity
- Edgar earns respect without surrendering honesty
- Rupert risks his life for Edgar
- Honest talk matters more than flight
Who’s who
- Edgar ClintonA steady, proud schoolboy who runs away to join the Hussars as Trumpeter Smith and wants to make his own way in the world.
- Rupert ClintonEdgar's lively brother, who loves him dearly and will risk his life to find him.
- Captain Percy ClintonA rich, fair-minded officer who loves both boys equally and refuses to learn which is his own son.
- Jane HumphreysA clever, scheming woman who mixes up two babies and later tries to profit from the secret.
- Sergeant John HumphreysA decent soldier whose wife ruins his career, and who later serves again under the name of Bowen.
- EastonA fussy, drawling schoolboy and later Guards officer who hides great skill and loyalty behind his lazy manner.
- SkinnerA fierce, loyal football captain who later joins the Marines and sticks to his friends through every hardship.
- El BakhatA headstrong Arab sheik who captures Edgar and refuses to hand him to the Mahdi's men.
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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The Dash for Khartoum
by G. A. Henty · 1892
Two boys are switched as babies in Agra, and years later one runs away to join the Hussars.
Medium level5–10 hours to read2 languages
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In short
What if two babies were mixed up in a cradle, and no one on earth could ever say which was which? In a cantonment at Agra in India, a sergeant's wife dresses two sleeping infants in the same gowns, and by morning the question has no answer.
The Dash for Khartoum at a glance
- Reading time
- About 8 h 35 min6 h 50 min fast, 10 h 15 min slow
- Length
- 122,500 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1892by G. A. Henty
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Two babies are mixed up in Agra
Jane Humphreys is clever and proud, and she rules her husband, a young sergeant, so smoothly that he never notices. Soon after her own son is born, she also nurses the baby of Mrs Clinton, wife of Captain Clinton, who is gravely ill. The two infants look as alike as two peas.
One evening she asks her husband whether the captain is rich. He says yes. She says that one of the babies will be a rich man, and she stops before saying what the other will be. Soon after, she tells the doctor and the captain that the babies are mixed up. The doctor suspects she did it on purpose, and so does her husband.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 15 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1892
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Henty, G. A. The Dash for Khartoum. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-dash-for-khartoum.
Henty, G. A. (2026). The dash for Khartoum. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-dash-for-khartoum (Original work published 1892)
Henty, G. A. The Dash for Khartoum. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-dash-for-khartoum.
@book{henty2026dash,
author = {Henty, G. A.},
title = {The Dash for Khartoum},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-dash-for-khartoum},
note = {First published 1892}
}
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What is The Dash for Khartoum about?
It follows two boys raised as brothers after a baby mix-up in India. One runs away, becomes a soldier and joins the British expedition to rescue General Gordon, while the other sets out to find him.
Is The Dash for Khartoum a true story?
The characters are invented, but the Nile Expedition, the battles of El-Teb, Abu Klea and Metemmeh, and General Gordon's siege are real events. Henty wrote it soon after they happened.
Who are Edgar and Rupert Clinton?
They are two boys raised together by Captain Clinton. Each might be his son or the sergeant's son, and nobody can ever tell which. Edgar enlists in the army and Rupert follows him.
The author
G. A. Henty
1832–1902 · English historical adventure novelist
George Alfred Henty (1832–1902) was a British novelist and war correspondent. He was born in Trumpington, Cambridgeshire, and lived in London. During the late nineteenth century, he wrote historical adventure novels for young readers. His books include The Cat of Bubastes, The Dash for Khartoum, and With Cochrane the Dauntless.
More by G. A. Henty
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