Black Soldiers in the Rhodesian Army

Black Soldiers in the Rhodesian Army PDF Author: M. T. Howard
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009348442
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 307

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Book Description
Draws from original interviews to provide insight into why thousands of black soldiers fought loyally and effectively for the Rhodesian Army.

Black Soldiers in the Rhodesian Army

Black Soldiers in the Rhodesian Army PDF Author: M. T. Howard
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009348442
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 307

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Book Description
Draws from original interviews to provide insight into why thousands of black soldiers fought loyally and effectively for the Rhodesian Army.

Fighting and Writing

Fighting and Writing PDF Author: Luise White
Publisher: Duke University Press
ISBN: 1478021284
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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Book Description
In Fighting and Writing Luise White brings the force of her historical insight to bear on the many war memoirs published by white soldiers who fought for Rhodesia during the 1964–1979 Zimbabwean liberation struggle. In the memoirs of white soldiers fighting to defend white minority rule in Africa long after other countries were independent, White finds a robust and contentious conversation about race, difference, and the war itself. These are writings by men who were ambivalent conscripts, generally aware of the futility of their fight—not brutal pawns flawlessly executing the orders and parroting the rhetoric of a racist regime. Moreover, most of these men insisted that the most important aspects of fighting a guerrilla war—tracking and hunting, knowledge of the land and of the ways of African society—were learned from black playmates in idealized rural childhoods. In these memoirs, African guerrillas never lost their association with the wild, even as white soldiers boasted of bringing Africans into the intimate spaces of regiment and regime.

The Rhodesian War

The Rhodesian War PDF Author: Paul L. Moorcraft
Publisher: Stackpole Books
ISBN: 0811707253
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
- The vicious conflict (1964-79) that brought Robert Mugabe to power in Zimbabwe - Expert coverage of the war, its historical context, and its aftermath - Descriptions of guerrilla warfare, counterinsurgency operations, and actions by units like Grey's Scouts Amid the colonial upheaval of the 1960s, Britain urged its colony in Southern Rhodesia (modern-day Zimbabwe) to grant its black residents a greater role in governing the territory. The white-minority government refused and soon declared its independence, a move bitterly opposed by the black majority. The result was the Rhodesian Bush War, which pitted the government against black nationalist groups, one of which was led by Robert Mugabe. Marked by unspeakable atrocities, the war ended in favor of the nationalists.

A Handful of Hard Men

A Handful of Hard Men PDF Author: Hannes Wessels
Publisher: Casemate
ISBN: 161200346X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
A biography of a Special Forces soldier who battled the forces of Mugabe and Nkomo, earning a reputation as a military maestro. During the West’s great transition into the post-colonial age, the country of Rhodesia refused to succumb quietly, and throughout the 1970s, fought back almost alone against Communist-supported elements that it did not believe would deliver proper governance. During this long war, many heroes emerged, but none more skillful and courageous than Capt. Darrell Watt of the Rhodesian SAS, who placed himself at the tip of the spear in the deadly battle to resist the forces of Robert Mugabe and Joshua Nkomo. It is difficult to find another soldier’s story to equal Watt’s in terms of time spent on the field of battle and challenges faced. Even by the lofty standards of the SAS and Special Forces, one has to look far to find anyone who can match his record of resilience and valor in the face of such daunting odds and with resources so paltry. A bush-lore genius, blessed with uncanny instincts and an unbridled determination, he had no peers as a combat-tracker—and there was plenty of competition. The Rhodesian theater was a fluid and volatile one, in which he performed in almost every imaginable fighting role: as an airborne shock-trooper leading camp attacks, long range reconnaissance operator, covert urban operator, sniper, saboteur, seek-and-strike expert, and, in the final stages, as a key figure in mobilizing an allied army in neighboring Mozambique. After twelve years in the cauldron of war, his cause slipped from beneath him, however, and Rhodesia gave way to Zimbabwe. When the guns went quiet, Watt had won all his battles but lost the war. In this fascinating biography we learn that in his later years, he turned to saving wildlife on a continent where animals are in continued danger, devoting himself to both the fauna and African people he has cared so deeply about.

The Equus Men

The Equus Men PDF Author: Alexandre Binda
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781910294048
Category : Zimbabwe
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This all new work by accomplished military historian Alexandre Binda, former paymaster to the Grey's Scouts, tables the remarkable story of Rhodesia's mounted infantry, the Grey's Scouts. Working closely with the last commanding officer, squadron commanders and a whole host of regimental personalities, all of whom have given The Equus Men their unequivocal support Binda has enjoyed unparalleled access to thousands of pages of archival documents and many hundreds of previously unpublished photographs. Here, he has traced the Grey's from their early origins in the Matabele Rebellion of 1896, where an 'unassuming Englishman, the Honorable George Grey', found himself originating a body of horseman named the 'Bulawayo Field Force', through to the formation of the Animal Transport Unit (ATU) which went on to become the Mounted Infantry Unit (MIU). With the skill of a practiced narrator, Binda takes the reader through these early days to the establishment of the Grey's Scouts in the Rhodesian Army order of battle in 1976. Deployed to great effect during the bitter Rhodesian Bush War of the late 1960s - 1970s, the mounted operations conducted by the Grey's are succinctly and clearly detailed. Some of the contacts related make for astonishing reads and with the lively, vibrant, text one can almost feel the steaming sweat of rider and mount; sense the pounding adrenaline; hear the thundering hooves as a fearful enemy is pursued to battle's inevitable conclusion. Suffice to say, "The Equus Men" makes for an engaging read. Trained and utilized as mounted infantry as opposed to cavalry, the Grey's Scouts saw exceptional success in the field. Lightly equipped, they were able to cover great distances at speed, live off the veldt with minimal support and through 'shock action', quickly engage and destroy insurgent forces. Originally a regular formation, the Grey's Scouts were augmented by Territorial and National Service soldiers as the conflict progressed and by 1980, when hostilities ceased, the Regiment numbered some 600 soldiers, both men and women, black and white. With its informative text and rich profusion of photographs, "The Equus Men" is a stunning tribute to the equestrian and fighting prowess of the Grey's Scouts. It is a remarkable story and one that is ever more relevant, given recent mounted and pack horse operations conducted by British and US special forces in Afghanistan.

The Army and Politics in Zimbabwe

The Army and Politics in Zimbabwe PDF Author: Blessing-Miles Tendi
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108472893
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 351

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Book Description
An essential biographical record of General Solomon Mujuru, one of the most controversial figures within the history of African liberation politics.

Selous Scouts

Selous Scouts PDF Author: Peter Baxter
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781907677380
Category : Atrocities
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
"Its members consisted of some of the finest guerrilla-fighting men in the western world, unconventional in many ways, disregardful of parade-ground discipline, unorthodox in their dress, yet a force so tightly knit in the face of danger that those who knew anything about them could only marvel" - The Citizen. Formed in 1973 by the legendary Lieutenant-Colonel Ron Reid-Daly at the behest of Rhodesian military supremo General Peter Walls, the Selous Scouts were to write their name into the annals of military history as one of the finest counterinsurgency units of all time, through their innovative pseudo-guerrilla tactics, brilliant reconnaissance operations into Zambia and Botswana and daring flying-column raids into Mozambique. Feared and hated by the liberation movements ZIPRA and ZANLA, the Scouts wreaked untold havoc and destruction on their Soviet- and Chinese-backed enemies, accounting for 68% of guerrilla casualties within Rhodesia alone during the bitter bush war of the 1970s. Uniquely ahead of its time, the regimen - a brotherhood of men that traversed cultural and racial barriers; their Shona motto was 'Pamwe Chete' (together only) - was to produce the type of soldier that earned for the unit one Grand Cross of Valour, nine Silver Crosses and 22 Bronze Crosses of Rhodesia.

Selous Scouts

Selous Scouts PDF Author: Ron Reid Daly
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780620066747
Category : Guerrillas
Languages : en
Pages : 752

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Book Description
This is the story of the Selous Scouts Regiment of Rhodesia, which was formed in 1973 and abolished without benefit of formal disbandment, when Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF took power after the British supervised elections in 1980. Its purpose on formation was the clandestine elimination of ZANLA and ZIPRA guerrillas, both within and outside Rhodesia. Their success in this field can be gauged by the fact that Combined Operations Rhodesia, officially credited them with either directly or indirectly being responsible for the deaths of 68% of all guerrillas killed within Rhodesia during the war - losing less than 40 Selous Scouts in the process.

Bush War Operator

Bush War Operator PDF Author: A. J. Balaam
Publisher: Helion and Company
ISBN: 1910777455
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
“The finest account I’ve read on the Selous Scouts . . . Andy Balaam tells it like it was—the fear, the terror, the adrenaline highs of combat in the bush.” —Chris Cocks, bestselling author of Fireforce From the searing heat of the Zambezi Valley to the freezing cold of the Chimanimani Mountains in Rhodesia, from the bars in Port St Johns in the Transkei to the Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa, this is the story of one man’s fight against terror, and his conscience. Anyone living in Rhodesia during the 1960s and 1970s would have had a father, husband, brother or son called up in the defense of the war-torn, landlocked little country. A few of these brave men would have been members of the elite and secretive unit that struck terror into the hearts of the ZANLA and ZIPRA guerrillas infiltrating the country at that time—the Selous Scouts. These men were highly trained and disciplined, with skills to rival the SAS, Navy Seals and the US Marines, although their dress and appearance were wildly unconventional: civilian clothing with blackened, hairy faces to resemble the very people they were fighting against. Twice decorated—with the Member of the Legion of Merit (MLM) and the Military Forces’ Commendation (MFC)—Andrew Balaam was a member of the Rhodesian Light Infantry and later the Selous Scouts, for a period spanning twelve years. This is his honest and insightful account of his time as a pseudo operator. His story is brutally truthful, frightening, sometimes humorous and often sad.

Africa and World War II

Africa and World War II PDF Author: Judith Ann-Marie Byfield
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 110705320X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 565

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Book Description
This volume offers a fresh perspective on Africa's central role in the Allied victory in World War II. Its detailed case studies, from all parts of Africa, enable us to understand how African communities sustained the Allied war effort and how they were transformed in the process. Together, the chapters provide a continent-wide perspective.