Buffalo soldiers breytenbach

This is a soldier's story about South African soldiers in southern Angola and Namibia and the enemies they fought. It tells of insurgency and counter-insurgency, guerrilla warfare and counter-guerrilla warfare, almost conventional warfare and conventional warfare. It tells of a conflict which the world saw as unpopular and unjust, in which South Africa was perceived as the aggressor. The South African soldiers who fought in it, however, saw it as a conflict fought to stop what is now Namibia falling into the hands of the Soviet and Cuban-backed SWAPO black nationalist political organisation. After Namibia South Africa would be next. They saw the whole conflict as an extension of the Cold War, but while it was on the frontiers in Europe, in Angola they were fighting a very hot war in Angola. Eventually, after the fall of the Soviet Union, the war was resolved by the democratic solution of UN supervised free and fair elections in Namibia. Since then, regrettably, there has been interference by the ruling party with the democratic constitution put in place in Namibia which has eroded much of that hard won democracy. 32 Battalion, of which Colonel Jan Breytenbach was the founding commander, became the most controversial unit in the South African Army because of the secrecy surrounding it. Its story is virtually the story of the Angolan/Namibian war, because its involvement in it was greater than any other South African unit. The regiment primarily consisted of black troops and NCOs originating from virtually every tribe in Angola. They were led by white South African officers and NCOs. Neither apartheid nor any form of racial discrimination was ever practiced in the unit. There was always a sprinkling of whites originating from countries like Great Britain, the old Rhodesia, Portugal and the USA amongst its leadership cadre, although in the latter stages of its existence this shrank to only a few. Such a presence undoubtedly led to stories circulating that the unit was a led by foreign white mercenaries. While it was true that the black Angolan element could have fallen with the mercenary definition, the whites involved were attested soldiers in the South African Army. In any case, they formed a minority and the vast majority of white officers and NCOs were born South Africans. The unit's aggressiveness and the successes it achieved in the field of battle, often against incredible odds, lay in its spirit and its  espirit de corps. In this respect and in many other ways it compared favourably with the French Foreign Legion. Its story parallels with and reminds one of the British and British Commonwealth Chindits of World War-2, operating behind the Japanese lines in Burma in large formations, out-guerrillaing those who only three years earlier had been regarded in awe as the unbeatable jungle warfare experts. Likewise, 32-Battalion consistently outfought both FAPLA, SWAPO and the Cubans in the Angola bush throughout the war years. It created a problem to which neither they nor their Soviet and East German mentors ever found a solution to. After the 1989 Namibian settlement the unit was with withdrawn to South Africa where they were deployed to effectively deal with MK infiltrations into the north of South Africa. From there, after the unbanning of the ANC in 1990, they were redeployed to deal with political troubles, principally between armed ANC self defense units and armed units of the IFP. The intrusion of black foreigners into the townships who were prepared to deal with troubles robustly and without fear or favour, did not suit either the ANC or the IFP, as they could not be subverted to support local causes because they held no local tribal allegiances. In the end it seems they became something of a bargaining chip at the CODESA negotiations, designed to find a new political dispensation for South Africa. Despite it having borne the brunt of South Africa' war in Angola with the blood of its troops, the National Party Government disgracefully ordered its arbitrary disbandment in March 1993 and the unit ceased to exist. Paperback, 360 pages with photos & maps  

THE BUFFALO SOLDIERS BY COL. JAN BREYTENBACH GALAGO- PUBLISHED 2004-360 PAGES-CONDITION LIKE NEW    

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The Buffalo Soldiers - The Story of South Africa's 32 Battalion 1975-1993 By: Col. Jan Breytenbach A softcover edition published by Galago in 2004 Picture cover boards are clean & bright but with bump at rear cover spine top & light rub book ends Postage within South Africa R50.00 Overseas Customers can contact us for a Postal Quotation

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Subtitle: The Story of South Africa's 32 Battalion Author: Colonel Jan Breytenbach Publisher: Galago Publishing () Edition: First Edition ISBN-10: X ISBN-13: Dust Jacket Condition: DJ has light creasing to edges, but is othewise VG+  Bright, clean with no chips or tears. Book Condition: Very Good. A very clean copy. Some wear and a small tear at spine. Binding: Hardcover with dust jacket Pages: 360 Dimensions: 25 x 18 x 3 cm +++ by Colonel Jan Breytenbach +++ The only authorized story of the founding of 32 Battalion, by its founding father, Col. Jan Breytenbach.   A passion for books and a passion for collecting fine editions was the recipe that created the successful group of bookshops in Johannesburg called Bookdealers. The group started thirty years ago with one store in the quirky suburb of Yeoville and has grown through the years to a total of five shops, plus our online sales. Bookdealers is well-known for its collectable and used books. We also have a large variety of remaindered books sourced from around the world.  If you collect from one of our five branches there is no delivery charge. We also offer postal delivery (when available) and courier delivery, subject to a quote.

They Live by The Sword by Col Jan Breytenbach 32 'Buffalo' Battalion - South Africa's Foreign Legion 1st Print 1990  Hard cover Book with 272 pages. The book is in a very good condition. Clean copy with no inscriptions.     Please see the Photo's as part of the description. Sold as per scan. International  Bidders Welcome (Please inquire about shipping costs) Postage and Packaging: Shipping includes time, labor, packaging material and travel costs Post Office: R58 (With Tracking number) --- Courier R130 up to 5 kg Postnet: R109  Items can be combined on request.              

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The Tempered Sword, Colonel Jan Breytenbach's 2011 published book, is aptly sub-titled "Forged in Battle revisited; Operation Savannah and the birth of 32Bn".  This fascinating account takes the reader back to the period before the launch of Operation Savannah in 1975, through this epic campaign in South Africa's military history, to 1976, when South African soldiers withdrew from Angola and the formation of 32Bn. As you know, Operation Savannah encompassed and touched the whole country, from the Recce Operators who were instrumental in training the rag-tag FNLA soldiers, the Paratroopers, the Armour guys in their noddy cars, the Infantry and logistics chaps doing their National Service, to the CF regiments contributing "border camps" and a host of ancillary arms, both on the border and back in the "states"! Colonel Breytenbach tell his fascinating story in his no-nonsense direct style, punctuated by his often wicked sense of humor, interspersed with the compassion and humility of one of SA's greatest warriors of our time.  The Tempered Sword is illustrated with a generous selection of black and white photographs, and for once, accurate and detailed campaign and battle maps to satisfy the most ardent student of latter day Bush War history. Hardcover, 444 pages FIRST EDITION, FIRST PRINT - VERY  RARE. 

 They Live by the sword - 32"Buffalo" Battalion - Col. Jan Breytenbach

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