Abdallahi ibn Muhammad
At the start of his insurgency, the Mahdi encouraged his followers to wear similar clothing in form of the "jibba". As a result, the core army of the Mahdi and Abdallahi ibn Muhammad had a relatively regulated appearance from an early point. In contrast, other armies of supporters and allies initially did not adopt the "jibba" and maintained their traditional appearances. Riverine forces recruited from the Ja'alin tribe and the Danagla mostly wore simple white robes ("tobe"). The Beja also did not adopt the "jibba" until 1885.