Rudolph de Lisle, a talented naval officer, chronicled his global travels through letters and sketches before perishing in battle.

Rudolph de Lisle RN entered Naval College in 1868 aged 13, and was only 31 when he died, ironically for a naval officer, in the Sudanese desert at the Battle of Abu Klea, 17 January 1885.

An inveterate letter writer and talented artist, he consistently documented his eventful naval career as he traveled the world. His letters home were embellished with stunning sketches and watercolors.

In August 1884, Rudolph was selected to join the Naval Brigade in the Gordon Relief Expedition led by General Sir Garnet Wolseley. His principal role was to help drag troop boats over the six cataracts that blocked their way up the Nile to Khartoum.

Rudolph’s letters graphically describe this historic journey. We read of the struggles and ingenuity of the officers and men, the hardships and the daily dangers, and the shambolic, sometimes comic, chaos peculiar to the seemingly impossible task. His sketches, some of which were published in the Illustrated London News, vividly portray the challenges facing the Expedition.

Gerard de Lisle, Rudolph's great nephew, has edited and compiled this superb collection, so that it can be appreciated by a wider audience and provide a fascinating insight into this famous yet too long overlooked military campaign. The result will appeal widely and particularly to art collectors and naval historians.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Rudolph de Lisle’s Nile Medal
• Accoutrements of Rudolph de Lisle RN
• Swords
• Introduction & Acknowledgements Gerard de Lisle (2024)
• Exculpation Gerard de Lisle (2024)
• A Leicestershire Naval Officer: The Life and Early Death of Lieutenant Rudolph Edward Lisle March Phillipps de Lisle RN, 1853–1885 David Howell (2016)
• March Phillipps de Lisle Genealogy
• Who’s Who Lorren Boniface (2023)
• Maps Jennifer Johnston (2023)
  • Sudan
  • Egypt
• Sketches by Rudolph de Lisle
• The Letters
  • Principles of Inclusion
  • The Nile Letters
  • Other Letters
  • Notes
• Rudolph’s Sketches in The Illustrated London News
• Descriptions of the Death of Rudolph de Lisle RN
• Funeral Sermon
• Will of Rudolph de Lisle Lieut. RN
• The Mortuary Card of Rudolph de Lisle Lieut. RN
• Epilogue
• Appendices
  • Appendix I: Abu Klea Revisited Drunner A. Bourne-May (2016)
  • Appendix II: A Bitter Wail from the Soudan Sir Henry Newbolt (1862–1938)
  • Appendix III: Lieutenant Rudolph De Lisle, R.N. The Month (1886)
  • Appendix IV: Memorial Pulpit, St Henry & St Elizabeth, Sheerness, Kent (1886)
  • Appendix V: Engraving – Abu Klea Battle Site
• Bibliography