Kitchener won fame in 1898 for winning the Battle of Omdurman and securing control of the Sudan; after which he was given the title 'Lord Kitchener of Khartoum; as Chief of Staff (1900-02) in the second Boer war he played a key role in Lord Roberts' conquest of the Boer Republics; then succeeded Roberts as commander-in-chief - by which time Boer forces had taken to guerrilla fighting and British forces imprisoned Boer civilians in concentration camps. His term as Commander-in-Chief (1902-09) of the Army in India saw him quarrel with Viceroy Lord Curzon; who eventually resigned. Kitchener then returned to Egypt as British Agent and Consul-General (de facto Viceroy).

In 1914; at the start of the First World War; Lord Kitchener became Secretary of State for War; a Cabinet Minister. One of the few men to foresee a long war; one in which Britain's victory was far from secure; he organised the largest volunteer army that Britain; and indeed the Empire; has seen and a significant expansion of materiels production to fight Germany on the Western Front. His commanding image; appearing on recruiting posters demanding 'Your Country Need You!'; remains recognised and parodied in popular culture to this day. He died in 1916.