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Right column - Recent additions~~~~1~464~~

Coming soon - new publications, discounted pre-order offers~~~~1~12868~~

Rhodesia: Last Outpost of the British Empire 1890-1980 - Peter Baxter~This is the first complete history of Rhodesia, the country founded by Empire Builder, Cecil John Rhodes. It tells how Rhodes’ men engaged Lobengula, the Matabele king, in lengthy negotiations while at the same time seeking a Royal Charter and the right for white pioneers to occupy Mashonaland. It relates Rhodesia’s history right up to Lancaster House in 1979 and the ‘free and fair’ elections that foisted the Marxist Robert Mugabe and his regime on the country.~~~1~12898~~

The Military Badges and Insignia of Southern Africa - Colin R Owen~Is not a new publication - we have located brand new copies of this elusive but important publication. (Second hand copies go for twice the price!).
This authoritive well bound large coffee table format book contains 3991 photos of badges, 1152 photos of cloth insignia which consist of wings, half wings and parachute wings with colour centres, and 1223 colour photos, of all the badges issued from 1850 to 1990. This 1990 publication still remains the top reference guide for collectors and historians worldwide.~~~1~12896~~

We Conquer from Above: 1 Parachute Battalion - Paul Els~The story of the South African 1 Parachute Battalion (popularly known as "Parabats") from inception in 1960 up to 1991. In 1966, units of 1 Parachute Battalion first participated in operations as part of the South African Border War in South-West Africa (now Namibia). This involvement was eventually to last for more than twenty years. This battalion also participated in South Africa's first major airborne operation in 1978 - 'Operation Reindeer' - the Battle of Cassinga, where they, together with other battalions attacked a large SWAPO base in Angola, successfully capturing it.~~~1~12845~~

Special Air Service Rhodesia: The Men Speak - Jonathan Pittaway~A completely re-worked 2004 publication SAS Rhodesia: Rhodesians and the Special Air Service - J Pittaway & C Fourie is available to order. This book has been re-titled, revised, updated. and re-worked with a lot of new material added. This title has been lavishly illustrated with many previously unseen photos of operations & personnel and includes personal stories by well known men plus it includes all the expected info such as Rolls of Honor, orbats, tables etc. A very well produced 'coffee table' sized book on the fine C Squadron (Rhodesia) 22 Special Air Service Regiment.~~~1~12800~~

Insignia and History of the Rhodesian Armed Forces 1890-1980 - Col. Dudley Wall~Just reprinted as 4th Edition
An interesting book showing the history of most of the Rhodesian Forces and the insignia of each. It covers various services within the Rhodesian Army, Rhodesian Air Force, Intaf and the Guard Force. The histories of each are on the brief side, but the book gives a good background to how the Rhodesian Forces were structured, and why the various units were eventually formed. The insignia are shown in outstanding colour plates. ~~~1~12808~~

Manovi: The Battle for Land in Zimbabwe - Susan Marr~This book is a heart wrenching account of the joys, the tragedies and the blood, sweat and tears - that were invested by the Marr family in their farm, their workers and their community...it will make you laugh and cry..and ultimately will give you a greater understanding of the complexity of the plight of Zimbabwean farmers and farm-workers alike..~~~1~12681~~

Rhodesian War Casualties and Air Force Memorials - Prop Geldenhuys~Another set of books from prolific author and former Rhodesian Air Force pilot Prop Geldenhuys, author of 'Operation Miracle: Three Bold Airmen', 'Rhodesian Air Force Operations: With Air Strike Log', & 'Nickel Cross'. This book should interest anyone who has lost a relative or close friend during the Rhodesian Bush War 1965 - 1980. The book comes in three parts: Rolls of Honour, List of the 40 aircraft shot down or lost on operations (The four crash sites recently found by Bob Manser / Rick van Malsen has been expanded on with more detail), and brief write-ups with some photos of the numerous associated memorials, monuments, museums & shrines.~~~1~12636~~

Above Board and Under Cover - Capt Ivor C Little (SAN) (Rtd) R190~This is Ivor Little's story of his life at sea and on shore. It details his experiences both as a civilian Master Mariner and in the South African Navy. He qualified as a Master Mariner at the age of 24 - a record of the youngest ever at the time, also by then had already virtually sailed the world. Thereafter he spent many years being land-based, unrelated to those expected of a Master Mariner. All of his activities were as the book’s title indicates, 'Above Board', though some years were made very difficult being 'Under Cover' in a foreign country. Later he served in the South African Defence Force then the Defence Secretariat. He resigned when the sea called him once more..~~~1~12809~~

New publications~~~~1~11846~~

Blue and Old Gold: The History of the BSAP 1889–1980 - Peter Gibbs~The BSAP held the Right of the Line - one of the finest police forces of the British Empire and Commonwealth. Produced in 3 volumes in one 'coffee table' format book with dozens of anecdotal contributions and accounts from ex-members, updated and comprehensive nominal rolls and roll of honour and Dick Hamley’s beautiful colour plates. Over 750 photographs - many of them previously unpublished. This never-to-be-repeated record of the history of a country is a must for former BSAP members, their children and descendants, and anyone with an interest in the unfolding developments in the country now known as Zimbabwe.~~~1~12756~~

Sunday Bloody Sunday: A Soldier’s War in Northern Ireland, Rhodesia, Mozambique and Iraq - by Jake Harper-Ronald as told to Greg Budd~Jake Harper-Ronald wanted to be a soldier from childhood. In 1966 his ambition was fulfilled when he was conscripted as a National Serviceman into the Royal Rhodesia Regiment. He afterwards moved to the UK and passed selection for the ultra tough Parachute Regiment - the famed Red Berets. Jake was the official photographer for Britain’s elite 1-Parachute Battalion when they deployed in Londonderry to combat an IRA-inspired ‘peace’ march whern shots were fired at the Paras who returned fire and killed 13 marchers - the infamous ‘Bloody Sunday’. He later joined the Rhodesian SAS and then moved to the Selous Scouts, taking part in daring cross-border raids into hostile territory with both units. After the Bush War he joined the Counter-Intelligence Division of Zimbabwe’s CIO and covertly spied for South African, US and British intelligence. He left the ZCIO to took up a British MI6 offer to run anti-Renamo Militias in Mozambique for them. He afterwards served two tours with a private military company in Iraq.~~~1~12612~~

Shadows in an African Twilight: Game Ranger, Soldier, Hunter - Kevin Thomas~Life as Game Ranger, Special Force Soldier, Professional Hunter and Personal Security Officer. Shadows in an African Twilight is a collection of fascinating stories about a life of adventure spread across nearly four decades in Africa and culminating in Iraq. This is an amazing autobiography that starts with the author commencing as a game ranger with the Rhodesian National Parks, then serving in the Rhodesian Army as a pseudo counter-terrorist operator in the elite special forces Selous Scouts, then after the Bush War ended, working as a professional hunter. The story ends with two years spent in Iraq with the US Department of Defense, in the specialized field of Security Escort Teams. A highly recommended read.~~~1~12589~~

We Fear Naught but God - Paul Els~The story of the elite South African Special Forces ("the Recces") from inception in the 1960s to disbandment in 1993. A unique account of one of South Africa's premier units, masters in the art of reconnaissance and clandestine warfare. Pro-rata, the most highly decorated unit during the wars in Angola and Namibia / SWA. This is no gung-ho account, this is about the "operators", the men of the Recces, their exploits in Angola, SWA/Namibia and other southern africa territories, written by the author who was there since the unit's inception.
The 1st Revised Edition (April 2009) of only 100 copies printed sold out like hot cakes within weeks. We are now expecting to receive stocks of the corrected Revised Edition (Dec 2009) in early Feb 2010.~~~1~12822~~

This September Sun - Bryony Rheam~Fiction. This September Sun is a chronicle of the lives of two women, the romantic Evelyn and her granddaughter Ellie. Growing up in post-Independence Zimbabwe, Ellie yearns for a life beyond the confines of small town Bulawayo, a wish that eventually comes true when she moves to the United Kingdom. However, life there is not all she dreamed it to be, but it is the murder of her grandmother that eventually brings her back home and forces her to face some hard home truths through the unravelling of long-concealed family secrets. ~~~1~12857~~

Hobo - David Lemon~The author liked the blurb on this one...... 'He had heard that no-one had ever rowed the lake before,' it said. 'So he set out to write his name into the history books.' .... He didn't. It was merely something he wanted to do, so off he went. It was pretty hairy at the time, but he survived ..... He set off from Kariba Dam in a 10ft dingy, rowed past Mlibizi on the upper reaches of Kariba and then back again, covering over 1000km in 63 days. He hit the rocks during his first storm loosing most of his stuff ... encountered many wild animals on the way ... even got bitten on the foot by a night adder ...~~~1~12791~~

Undefeated: The Extraordinary Life and Death of Lt Col Jack Sherwood Kelly VC, CMG, DSO - Philip Bujak~Lt Col Jack Kelly was a South African soldier who, in 1917, was called “the bravest man in the British Army” who crossed swords with Churchill in an attempt to stop British soldiers being killed in a secret, needless and directionless campaign against Russia – the relevance of this book with the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq could not be more pertinent.~~~1~12661~~

Troepie: From Call-Up to Camps - Cameron Blake~This is military history with a human face, relating the experiences of the South African troops on the ground rather than depersonalised military events, narrated by a large number of former conscripts, the book covers a range of experiences, which provides a rich and varied sense of life in the SADF.~~~1~12654~~

Escape On the Wildside - Rose Ridgen~Rose Ridgen's best art to date! This 5th Wildside cartoon book carries on with a similar sporting/golfing theme as with her previous best selling book 'Golf on the Wildside'. Wildside is an extraordinary collection of the humorous African wildlife art where the artist shows her wry sense of humour by transposing relations between 'animals and us' to create situations which are amusing to readers of all nationalities and all ages.
Ideal as gifts - order now in time for xmas!~~~1~12609~~

Storm Clouds Over Africa - Doug Cunningham~Fiction. The story is of two boys, one a descendant of the proud ruling house of the Matabele, and the other, the son of a white settler, a pioneer. They grow up in paradise on a farm in the rugged Matopos area of Matabeleland. Their friendship develops and they declare themselves blood brothers, but as time passes, the stones of prejudice and politics wear down their vow. One friend joins the freedom fighters, and the other enlists in the Rhodesian security forces. A story of Africa, a passionate story of survival, hatred and love seen through the eyes of both freedom fighter and white settler. It is a conflict that stems from the soul of two people who lay claim to a piece of land they both call home.~~~1~12664~~

Two Wheels and a Tokoloshe - David Lemon~Fried caterpillars, lions in the night and the wide smiles of Africa - all these and more, David Lemon encountered while cycling alone from Nairobi to Cape Town. He was arrested twice, beaten up by armed soldiers and menaced by hyenas. He fell off his bike on numerous occasions and went down with amoebic dysentery in Tanzania. Despite the problems, he enjoyed himself and his irreverently laconic account of the journey makes compulsive reading for anyone interested in armchair adventure or the people of Africa.~~~1~12575~~

Noteworthy Recent Additions~~~~1~11373~~

Border-Line Insanity: A National Serviceman’s Story - Tim Ramsden~Tim Ramsden served his time as a National Serviceman in the SADF’s elite Mechanised Battalions and tells his story from his tough training days to the SADF’s final confrontation with Cuban armoured forces during the last days of the border war before a peace deal with Angola and Cuba was finalised in New York in December 1988. The book includes the journey's of three of the author’s National Service comrades who were captured and imprisoned in Mozambique. The author also details his trip to the Namibian/Angolan border several years later to visit people who are no longer his enemies. Included are many photos taken covertly whilst on ops and shown for the first time.~~~1~12533~~

19 with a Bullet: A South African Paratrooper in Angola - Granger Korff~A fast-moving, action-packed account of Granger Korff’s two years’ service during 1980/81 with 1 Parachute Battalion at the height of the South African ‘bush war’ in South West Africa (Namibia) and Angola. Apart from the ‘standard’ counter-insurgency activities of Fireforce operations, ambushing and patrols, to contact and destroy SWAPO guerrillas, he was involved in several massive South African Defence Force (SADF) conventional cross-border operations, such as Protea, Daisy and Carnation, into Angola to take on FAPLA (Angolan MPLA troops) and their Cuban and Soviet allies.~~~1~12458~~

From Rhodesia To Mugabe's Zimbabwe: Chronicles of a Game Ranger - Nick Tredger~This exciting book relates how after serving two years national service in the Rhodesian Army the author, Nick Tredger, joined the Department of National Parks and Wildlife as a cadet ranger in 1978 - starting with a posting to the remote Chizarira National Park on the shores of Lake Kariba. He takes the reader through the last days of Rhodesia with Wankie National Park and thence the first four years of Robert Mugabe's disastrous rule of an independent Zimbabwe with postings in Zambezi Valley and Mana Pools.~~~1~12525~~

Long Range Desert Group: Rhodesia - Jonathan Pittaway~"Not by strength, by guile". This long awaited updated and revised 2nd Edition traces the history of Rhodesians in the special forces LRDG patrols during the 2nd World War from their unit's formation in 1940 to disbandment in 1945. It follows their exploits in the Western Desert, the Agean (including Leros), Middle East & Balkan theatres. Lavishly illustrated with many previously unseen photos of operations & personnel, including such well known leaders as Ralph Bagnold, David Stirling & Le Clerc. ~~~1~12352~~

Eagle Strike: The Story of the controversial airborne assault on Cassinga 1978 - Colonel Jan Breytenbach~This is not only an autobiography but also a comprehensive journal (640 pages) of one of the greatest airborne assaults ever mounted in Africa - on a SWAPO fortified base containing its Military Headquarters, logistical support, reserves and training facilities. Colonel Jan Breytenbach planned, jumped in and led South African paratroopers into the Battle of Cassinga in Angola with total commitment, superb strategy and leadership ability that has made him legendary in military circles worldwide. The assault was supported by a very strong airstrike by bombers and fighters as well as by air transport to drop the paratroopers into battle 250 kms deep behind enemy lines, and thus, of a necessity, the deployment of a veritable swarm of helicopters to extract the paratroopers back to safety. This work is destined to become a reference work by which future airborne operations will be measured by.~~~1~11899~~

Best Sellers / Popular titles~~~~1~11647~~

Counter-Strike from the Sky: The Rhodesian All-Arms Fire Force in the War in the Bush 1974–1980 - JRT Wood~'Fireforce' as a military concept dates from 1974 when the Rhodesian Air Force (RhAF) acquired the French MG151 20mm cannons. Coupled with this, the traditional counter-insurgency tactics of follow-ups, tracking and ambushing in the Rhodesian Bush War simply weren't producing satisfactory results. Visionary RhAF and Rhodesian Light Infantry (RLI) officers thus expanded on the idea of a 'vertical envelopment' of the enemy, with the 20mm cannon being the principle weapon of attack, mounted in an Alouette III K-Car ('Killer car') helicopter, flown by the air force commander, with the army commander on board directing his ground troops deployed from troop-carrying gunship G-Cars as well as being parachuted from DC-3 Dakotas. In support would be small ground-attack aircraft and on call would be Canberra bombers, Hawker Hunter and Vampire jets. A definitive work on this unique concept of total airborne envelopment of a guerrilla enemy.~~~1~12500~~

The Bush War in Rhodesia: The Extraordinary Combat Memoir of a Rhodesian Reconnaissance Specialist - Dennis Croukamp~Formerly titled as Only My Friends Call Me "Crouks" : Rhodesian Reconnaissance Specialist - now out of print.
This is a soldier's story told simply, with feeling, humour and without heroics. It also gives a fascinating insight into the personality of the author, who relates his personal experiences in a down-to-earth, no bull style of storytelling. In his career as a soldier for 16 years, Dennis at first served in an Rhodesian infantry unit (RLI), but later served as member of the elite Selous Scouts under the command of Lieutanant-Colonel Ron Reid-Daly. He became an reconnaissance specialist and saw action on all border areas of Rhodesia and also in Mozambique, Zambia and Botswana.
The author tells it as it was, unvarnished, seen from the ground-level, no effort to safeguard careers.~~~1~11643~~

Fireforce - One Man's War in the Rhodesian Light Infantry - Chris Cocks~ Latest high quality re-print - 4th Edition.
Widely acclaimed as the classic account of counter-insurgency warfare in Africa, as told by the combat soldier "on the ground". The gut-wrenching account of brutal face-to-face combat in the Rhodesian bush (now Zimbabwe) is not for the squeamish. This is the compelling, brutally honest account of Chris Cocks' service in 3 Commando, The Rhodesian Light Infantry, during the Rhodesian bush war. Fireforce, a method of combat developed by the Rhodesians and perfected by the RLI, involved troops being helicoptered or parachuted into an area immediately after a guerrilla presence had been reported or a sighting made. Due to the enormous shortage of ground troops, the same men were sometimes parachuted into contacts as many as three times per day. *** RECOMMENDED ***~~~1~11725~~

Popular titles~~~~1~11490~~

They Served Africa with Wings - WGM Stirling & JA House~Over a 15 year period, Mitch Stirling with more than 30 professional years flying experience, and John House, started collecting photographs and stories about aviation in the old days in Central Africa - Northern Rhodesia / Zambia; Southern Rhodesia / Zimbabwe and Nyasaland / Malawi . The end result is a excellent evocative and well researched & illustrated 277 page +/- 'A4' sized publication, dedicated to all those fine men and women who served, so well, the cause of aviation between 1920 and 1980.
~~~1~11729~~

Collection of cartoon books - Wildside 1, 2, 3, & 4 - Rose Ridgen~Wildside is an extraordinary collection of the humorous African wildlife art that has had people from around the world doubled over in laughter. Rose's extraordinary knowledge of the bush is coupled with a gentle perception of real human behaviour. She shows her wry sense of humour by transposing relations between 'animals and us' to create situations which are amusing to readers of all nationalities and all ages. Ideal as gifts - discounts available when ordering extra copies/'sets'.~~~1~11117~~

Some top sellers~~~~1~10969~~

Popular titles / prints~~~~1~10970~~

A Hunter's Wanderings in Africa - FC Selous.~
(Facsimile, 1969 - reprinted for "Gold Series" & "African Hunting Series"). World renowned hunter and his exploits in Southern Africa during 1870 - 1880. [Catalogue]~~~1~10971~~

Africana big game Hunting & Wildlife collectables.~ From the very earliest books to circa 1950's. Some very rare and not so rare. See Africana Hunting catalogues in left hand menu.~~~1~1080~~

New Layout Table~~~~1~10849~~

Worldpay~

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