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32 Battalion
The inside Story of South Africa’s Elite Fighting Unit
Author: Piet Nortje
Published by Zebra Press;
315pp; size 230 X 148mm;
lavishly illustrated with battle maps and some black
and white and colour pics;
Hardback; ISBN 1-86872-670-3.
Non fiction.
Every war has at least one - a unit so different, so daring, that it becomes the stuff of which legends are made and heroes are born. Among the South African forces fighting in Angola from 1975 to 1989, that unit was 32 Battalion.
Founded in utmost secrecy from the vanquished remnants of a foreign rebel movement, undefeated in 12 years of front-line battle, feared by enemies that included both conventional Cuban armies and Namibian guerrilla fighters, the Buffalo Soldiers became the South African army's best combat unit since World War II, with no fewer than 13 members winning the highest decoration for bravery under fire.
But when peace broke out in southern Africa, the victors of Savate became the victims of sophistry. Their fate and future determined by by politicians who understood little and cared less about this truly unique fraternity. 32 Battalion ceased to exist in 1993, its short history and long list of battle honours known only to those whose enemies called them Os Terriveis - the Terrible Ones.
This book is a worthy supplement to Buffalo Soldiers: The Story of South Africa's 32-Battalion 1975-1983 by its legendary founding commander, Col Jan Breytenbach.
Media reviews:
For anybody who has the remotest interest in South African history and the goings-on during the apartheid era, this book will provide a fascinating insight into the minds of the Securocrats who shaped a lot of the goings on in Southern Africa from 1975 to 1989. For those who are interested in tales of military action there are some amazing feats documented in the book as well. These were all the more amazing for me because they are true.
The Mercury — Durban
This is a must for all war buffs and for anyone who had a personal involvement in the Angolan War.
The Citizen — Johannesburg
NB: The Price includes shipping costs inside South Africa.
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R270.00 |
