32 Battalion: The Terrible Ones

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 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.
Now, for the first time, the story of 32 Battalion can be told in full, with neither adornment nor apology, by one of its longest-serving members.
The book draws from top secret documents, revealing information that has never been made public before. Also included are rare photographs that evoke the colourful, and often controversial, history of 32 Battalion, as well as detailed maps depicting specific operations and deployments.

32 Battalion: The Terrible Ones
Random House Struik
30 August 2012


A new and comprehensive two-volume work by Piet Nortje chronicles the unit's explosive history


THE MILITARY HISTORY PUBLISHING EVENT OF THE DECADE

Two volumes. 1400 pages. 80 maps. 600 photographs. Based on 10 000 pages of previously classified documents. Draws from over 200 interviews with former 32 Battalion members as well as Portuguese, SWAPO, Angolan, Cuban and Russian soldiers. A must for collectors.

The Terrible Ones

The Complete History of 32 Battalion (two volumes)

Piet Nortje

The soldiers of 32 Battalion were so feared by their enemies that they were called ‘Os Terriveis' - ‘The Terrible Ones'. Founded in utmost secrecy from the vanquished remnants of an Angolan rebel movement, they were forged into an effective fighting machine that took on guerrilla forces and conventional armies alike. Undefeated in 12 years of frontline battle, the ‘Buffalo Soldiers' became the South African Army's best combat unit since World War II.

This comprehensive two-volume work chronicles the unit's explosive history. Starting in the early 1960s, it covers events in Angola that would eventually result in the formation of 32 Battalion, and it ends in the 2000s, when the soldiers of the unit unknowingly betrayed themselves. It describes in detail the 117 documented military operations that 32 Battalion took part in from 1976 to 1993, explaining how they were planned and executed, and illustrating them with maps. It also provides personal recollections from former 32 Battalion members and their allies and enemies, vividly recreating the experience of what happened on the ground.

The Terrible Ones provides a complete picture with new insights, drawing from thousands of pages of documents in the Department of Defence Documentation Centre that have only recently been declassified. Definitive and magisterial, this is one of the most impressive military histories ever written.

SPECIAL OFFER

Pre-order your copy now and get 20% discount and free delivery!

Normal price R850, you will get it for R700 including delivery.

Delivery to a street address in South Africa only. Delivery charges will be quoted for international orders. Not applicable for Europe and USA.

Offer ends 30th September 2012

Download the special order form here and email antheab@randomstruik.co.za to place your order or order on-line at www.randomstruik.co.za/terribleones

Available for sale as two volumes in a slipcase. The two volumes are not for sale separately.

Visit www.randomstruik.co.za for more information.