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General Jan Smuts and His First World War in Africa, 1914-1917 (Hardcover)
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General Jan Smuts and His First World War in Africa, 1914-1917 (Hardcover)
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World War I ushered in a renewed scramble for Africa. At its helm,
Jan Smuts grabbed the opportunity to realise his ambition of a
Greater South Africa. He set his sights upon the vast German
colonies of South-West Africa and East Africa - the demise of which
would end the Kaiser's grandiose schemes for Mittelafrika. As part
of his strategy to shift South Africa's borders inexorably
northward, Smuts even cast an eye toward Portuguese and Belgian
African possessions. Smuts, his abilities as a general much
denigrated by both his contemporary and then later modern
historians, was no armchair soldier. This cabinet minister and
statesman donned a uniform and led his men into battle. He learned
his soldiery craft under General Koos De la Rey's tutelage, and
another soldier-statesman, General Louis Botha during the South
African War 1899-1902. He emerged from that war, immersed in the
Boer manoeuvre doctrine he devastatingly waged in the guerrilla
phase of that conflict. His daring and epic invasion of the Cape at
the head of his commando remains legendary. The first phase of the
German South West African campaign and the Afrikaner Rebellion in
1914 placed his abilities as a sound strategic thinker and a bold
operational planner on display. Champing at the bit, he finally had
the opportunity to command the Southern Forces in the second phase
of the German South West African campaign. Placed in command of the
Allied forces in East Africa in 1916, he led a mixed bag of South
Africans and Imperial troops against the legendary Paul von
Lettow-Vorbeck and his Shutztruppe. Using his penchant for Boer
manoeuvre warfare together with mounted infantry led and manned by
Boer Republican veterans, he proceeded to free the vast German
territory from Lettow-Vorbeck's grip. Often leading from the front,
his operational concepts were an enigma to the British under his
command, remaining so to modern-day historians. Although unable to
bring the elusive and wily Lettow-Vorbeck to a final decisive
battle, Smuts conquered most of the territory by the end of his
tenure in February 1917. General Jan Smuts and his Great War in
Africa makes use of multiple archival sources and the official
accounts of all the participants to provide a long-overdue
reassessment of Smuts's generalship and his role in furthering the
strategic aims of South Africa and the British Empire in Africa
during World War I.
General
Imprint: |
Casemate Publishers
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Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
April 2022 |
Authors: |
David Brock Katz
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Dimensions: |
228 x 152 x 35mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Hardcover
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Pages: |
288 |
ISBN-13: |
978-1-63624-017-6 |
Categories: |
Books
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LSN: |
1-63624-017-8 |
Barcode: |
9781636240176 |
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