The Irish and European Brigades in Boer service in South Africa By virtue of its abiding and justified fame, the term 'Foreign Legion' is usually thought to mean the standing force in the service of France. However, this is by no means the only example of a mercenary force, either in present times or throughout the history of military conflict. Some legions like those of the French and Spanish became part of the permanent military establishment and some have come and gone motivated by pay. Others have been raised specifically in time of war and have been manned by those driven by conviction, principle or the spirit of adventure, to serve causes not naturally their own. The Spanish Civil War famously had its International Brigades. When the Boers in South Africa rose against the might of the British Empire at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, they too attracted soldiers of fortune. Some, no doubt, were motivated to support an underdog against imperial oppression and others simply saw themselves as natural enemies of the British and were ready to take them on whenever and wherever the opportunity presented itself. The authors of the works in this special Leonaur volume belonged in each 'camp.' The French aide to de Villebois-Mareuil was able to dine amiably with English officers while travelling to the theatre of war, whereas the American, Blake, indentified in every way with the convictions of his 'Irish Brigade' comrades and roundly hated his enemy. This book provides unusual perspectives and often discomforting insights into the sharp end of the Boer War and will fascinate all those interested in the subject. Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket; our hardbacks are cloth bound and feature gold foil lettering on their spines and fabric head and tail bands.

Appel: A Canadian in the French Foreign Legion is the first-hand account of the author’s six years as a professional soldier during the 1990s, and his experience in the Legion's elite Groupe des Commandos Parachutistes (GCP). Joel Struthers recounts the dangers and demands of military life, from the rigours of recruitment and operational training in the rugged mountains of France, to face-to-face combat in the grasslands of some of Africa’s most troubled nations. Told through the eyes of a soldier, and interspersed with humorous anecdotes, Appel is a fascinating story that debunks myths about the French Foreign Legion and shows it more accurately as a professional arm of the French military. Struthers provides insight into the rigorous discipline that the Legion instills in its young recruits, – who trade their identities as individuals for a life of adventure and a role in a unified fighting force whose motto is “Honour and Loyalty.” Foreword by Col. Benoit Desmeulles, former commanding officer of the Legions 2e Régiment Étranger Parachutistes.

Reproduction of the original: With the Boer Forces by Howard C. Hillegas

Reissued at a time when South Africa faces another turning point in its history, this account of the Boer War, first published in 1975, sets out and explains the complex workings and issues of a war that was for Britain in many ways the prelude to World War I.

The story of the battle for independence from the British Empire in South Africa by “a vivid chronicler of military forces, generals, and wars” (Kirkus Reviews). The Great Boer War (1899-1902), more properly known as the Great Anglo-Boer War, was one of the last romantic wars, pitting a sturdy, stubborn pioneer people fighting to establish the independence of their tiny nation against the British Empire at its peak of power and self-confidence. It was fought in the barren vastness of the South African veldt, and it produced in almost equal measure extraordinary feats of personal heroism, unbelievable examples of folly and stupidity, and many incidents of humor and tragedy. Byron Farwell traces the war’s origins; the slow mounting of the British efforts to overthrow the Afrikaners; the bungling and bickering of the British command; the remarkable series of bloody battles that almost consistently ended in victory for the Boers over the much more numerous British forces; political developments in London and Pretoria; the sieges of Ladysmith, Mafeking and Kimberley; the concentration camps into which Boer families were herded; and the exhausting guerrilla warfare of the last few years when the Boer armies were finally driven from the field. The Great Boer War is a definitive history of a dramatic conflict by the author of Queen Victoria’s Little Wars, “a leading popular military historian” (Publishers Weekly).

This is the story of 500 Irish-American men and Irish men who fought the British in the Anglo-Boer war.

Søgeord: Transvaal; Kapstaden; Mafeking; Talana Hill; Elandslagte; Engelsk Kolonistyre i Afrika; Pepworth; Nicholsons Nek; Magersfontein; Ladysmith; Vryburg; Kuruman; Kimberley; de Wet; Botha's Pass; Pretoria; Kroonstadt; Rhodesia; Wepener; Reddersburg; Bloemfontein; Cronje; Paardeberg; Roberts; Buller, R.; Spion Kop; Joubert; Baden-Powell; Botha; Brabant; British Forces in South Africa; General Broadwood; Carrington, F.; Churchill; Kruger; Hamilton, I.; Hunter, A.; Gatacre; General French; Dundonald; Colenso; De Wet, C.; Slaapkranse; Smith-Dorrien; Methuen; Warren, C.; Steyn; Vaal Krantz;