Description
| Product ID: | 9780750989169 |
| Product Form: | Paperback / softback |
| Country of Manufacture: | GB |
| Title: | Katanga 1960-63 |
| Subtitle: | Mercenaries, Spies and the African Nation that Waged War on the World |
| Authors: | Author: Christopher Othen |
| Subjects: | African history, African history, History, Military history: post-WW2 conflicts, Postwar 20th century history, from c 1945 to c 2000, Military history: post WW2 conflicts, Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire), c 1960 to c 1970 |
| Description: | Select Guide Rating The first full account of an African secession that introduced the modern mercenary - and killed the head of the United Nations In King Leopold II’s infamous Congo ‘Free’ State at the turn of the century, severed hands became a form of currency. But some in the Belgian government had no sense of historical shame, as they connived for an independent Katanga state in 1960 to protect Belgian mining interests. What happened next was extraordinary. It was an extremely uneven battle. The UN fielded soldiers from twenty nations, America paid the bills, and the Soviets intrigued behind the scenes. Yet to everyone’s surprise the new nation’s rag-tag army of local gendarmes, jungle tribesmen and, controversially, European mercenaries, refused to give in. For two and a half years Katanga, the scrawniest underdog ever to fight a war, held off the world with guerrilla warfare, two-faced diplomacy and some shady financial backing. It even looked as if the Katangese might win. Katanga 1960–63 tells, for the first time, the full story of the Congolese province that declared independence and found itself at war with the world. |
| Imprint Name: | The History Press Ltd |
| Publisher Name: | The History Press Ltd |
| Country of Publication: | GB |
| Publishing Date: | 2018-12-06 |
