Mahdiyah destroyed the Sudanese economy

People claiming to be the Mahdi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
There have been several personalities over time who have considered themselves the Mahdi prophesized in Islam. They are regarded as false by mainstream Muslims.

Muhammad Ahmad, who founded a short-lived empire in Sudan in the late 19th century made a claim of being the promised Mahdi. His troops laid siege to Khartoum starting on March 13, 1884 against the defenders led by British General Charles George Gordon. The heavily damaged city fell to the Mahdists on January 26, 1885. Omdurman, a suburb of Khartoum, was the scene of the bloody battle (September 2, 1898) in which British forces under Sirdar Horatio Kitchener defeated the Mahdist forces defending the city.

During their short reign, the Mahdiyah had destroyed the Sudanese economy, and about half of the population died due to famine, disease, persecution, and warfare. Their efforts to wipe out the former tribal differences left few loyalties intact, and internecine warfare was common. In general the country welcomed the fall of the Mahdiyah.