Gordon had a low opinion of his enemy, writing that the "Ansar" besieging him were "some 500 determined men and some 2,000 rag-tag Arabs". Nutting wrote that Gordon "could have withdrawn at almost any moment between March and May" if only he had been willing. The American historian James Perry wrote: "But instead of following instructions, he stayed put, longing for martyrdom. It wasn't exactly fair to the Egyptian garrisons he had been sent to evacuate; they had no death wish". On 25 July 1884, the Cabinet over the objections of the Prime Minister voted to send a relief expedition to Khartoum. On 5 August 1884, the House of Commons voted to send the relief force with a budget of £300,000.