The Baggara, the tyrants of the desert, are horsemen.

The infantry were, for the most part, drawn from the conquered tribes.

They had enlisted in the Khalifa's force partly because they had no other means of subsistence, partly from their innate love of fighting.

They had, in fact, been little better than slaves; and their condition, as soldiers in the Egyptian Army, was immeasurably superior to that which they had before occupied.
Broadwood, with nine squadrons of Egyptian cavalry, was already on the western bank of the river opposite Atbara; and was to be joined at Metemmeh by the camel corps, and another squadron of horse from Merawi.
On the 3rd of August the six Soudanese battalions left Fort Atbara for the point of concentration, a few miles below the cataract.

To the sides of each gunboat were attached two of the steel barges; behind each were two native craft.