The Maxim Gun Is a Myth. This Is the Real Reason 10,000 Men Were Slaughtered.
The Battle of Omdurman’s 1:200 casualty ratio is often seen as the Maxim gun’s decisive victory. But the real turning point was the Khalifa’s religious refusal to launch a night attack—a choice that turned a potential British disaster into a slaughter, and one that would haunt the British 15 years later at the Somme.