Captain Boycott disturbances. An Irishman hamstrung French's horse with a sickle while he was sitting on it. He became adjutant of his regiment on 1 June 1880. At that time the 19th Hussars had only one major but as three different men held that rank in three years (1877–1880) the resulting turnover of officers brought French his promotion to captain on 16 October 1880. He became adjutant of the Northumberland Hussars on 1 April 1881. While in Northumberland he missed out on active service: the 19th Hussars took part in the occupation of Egypt and Battle of Tel el-Kebir (13 September 1882) but French's applications to rejoin his regiment were rejected by the War Office. An increase in the number of majors in the 19th Hussars brought French promotion to that rank on 3 April 1883. These promotions (captain at the age of 28, major at 30) were relatively rapid. Sudan French was initially expected to rejoin his regiment when they returned to Ireland, but the emergence of the Mahdi in the Sudan required them to remain in the theatre, fighting Mahdist forces in the eastern Sudan near Suakin. French eventually rejoined the regiment when they returned to Cairo in October 1884. French took part in the Sudan expedition to relieve Major-General Charles Gordon in 1884. He was second-in-command to his friend Lieutenant Colonel Percy Barrow, with the cavalry which accompanied Brigadier-General Sir Herbert Stewart as he took the short route across 176 miles of desert (the other British force under Major-General Earle marched the long way along the bend of the Nile). Most of the cavalry work was in reconnaissance and warding off Dervish raids, although they did—at a walk—pursue the retreating enemy after the Battle of Abu Klea in January 1885. By the time they reached the Nile the horses had not been watered for between 56 and 72 hours. During the retreat back across the desert via Jakdul (the expedition had reached Khartoum too late to save Gordon) Major French led a rearguard of thirteen men, again warding off Dervish attacks and impressing Redvers Buller and Sir Garnet Wolseley. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 7 February 1885. Once again, this was an unusually early promotion, and he was appointed second-in-command of the 19th Hussars. His experience of handling cavalry with scarce water would stand him in good stead in South Africa. In January 1886 he