Download or read book Best Black Troops in the World written by Channa Wickremesekera and published by Manohar Publishers and Distributors. This book was released on 2002 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The eighteenth century was a time when British were just beginning to find their way in the cultural landscape of India. The early Orientalists were the pioneers who mapped out this landscape, the knowledge generated by them represented India as not only different but also inferior to the West. This perception of Indian inferiority extended to the military sphere as well. The inability of vast, yet undisciplined Indian armies to stand up to miniscule forces of drilled European infantry and field artillery convinced many in the British camp of an invincible timidity' in Indian soldiers.
Download or read book Harlem s Rattlers and the Great War written by Jeffrey T. Sammons and published by University Press of Kansas. This book was released on 2015-09-26 with total page 630 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When on May 15, 1918 a French lieutenant warned Henry Johnson of the 369th to move back because of a possible enemy raid, Johnson reportedly replied: "I'm an American, and I never retreat." The story, even if apocryphal, captures the mythic status of the Harlem Rattlers, the African-American combat unit that grew out of the 15th New York National Guard, who were said to have never lost a man to capture or a foot of ground that had been taken. It also, in its insistence on American identity, points to a truth at the heart of this book--more than fighting to make the world safe for democracy, the black men of the 369th fought to convince America to live up to its democratic promise. It is this aspect of the storied regiment's history--its place within the larger movement of African Americans for full citizenship in the face of virulent racism--that Harlem's Rattlers and the Great War brings to the fore. With sweeping vision, historical precision, and unparalleled research, this book will stand as the definitive study of the 369th. Though discussed in numerous histories and featured in popular culture (most famously the film Stormy Weather and the novel Jazz), the 369th has become more a matter of mythology than grounded, factually accurate history--a situation that authors Jeffrey T. Sammons and John H. Morrow, Jr. set out to right. Their book--which eschews the regiment's famous nickname, the "Harlem Hellfighters," a name never embraced by the unit itself--tells the full story of the self-proclaimed Harlem Rattlers. Combining the "fighting focus" of military history with the insights of social commentary, Harlem's Rattlers and the Great War reveals the centrality of military service and war to the quest for equality as it details the origins, evolution, combat exploits, and postwar struggles of the 369th. The authors take up the internal dynamics of the regiment as well as external pressures, paying particular attention to the environment created by the presence of both black and white officers in the unit. They also explore the role of women--in particular, the Women's Auxiliary of the 369th--as partners in the struggle for full citizenship. From its beginnings in the 15th New York National Guard through its training in the explosive atmosphere in the South, its singular performance in the French army during World War I, and the pathos of postwar adjustment--this book reveals as never before the details of the Harlem Rattlers' experience, the poignant history of some of its heroes, its place in the story of both World War I and the African American campaign for equality--and its full i
Download or read book Freedom Struggles written by Adriane Lentz-Smith and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2010-03-01 with total page 331 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For many of the 200,000 black soldiers sent to Europe with the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I, encounters with French civilians and colonial African troops led them to imagine a world beyond Jim Crow. They returned home to join activists working to make that world real. In narrating the efforts of African American soldiers and activists to gain full citizenship rights as recompense for military service, Adriane Lentz-Smith illuminates how World War I mobilized a generation. Black and white soldiers clashed as much with one another as they did with external enemies. Race wars within the military and riots across the United States demonstrated the lengths to which white Americans would go to protect a carefully constructed caste system. Inspired by Woodrow Wilson’s rhetoric of self-determination but battered by the harsh realities of segregation, African Americans fought their own “war for democracy,” from the rebellions of black draftees in French and American ports to the mutiny of Army Regulars in Houston, and from the lonely stances of stubborn individuals to organized national campaigns. African Americans abroad and at home reworked notions of nation and belonging, empire and diaspora, manhood and citizenship. By war’s end, they ceased trying to earn equal rights and resolved to demand them. This beautifully written book reclaims World War I as a critical moment in the freedom struggle and places African Americans at the crossroads of social, military, and international history.
Download or read book Torchbearers of Democracy written by Chad L. Williams and published by Univ of North Carolina Press. This book was released on 2010-09-20 with total page 469 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For the 380,000 African American soldiers who fought in World War I, Woodrow Wilson's charge to make the world "safe for democracy" carried life-or-death meaning. Chad L. Williams reveals the central role of African American soldiers in the global conflict and how they, along with race activists and ordinary citizens, committed to fighting for democracy at home and beyond. Using a diverse range of sources, Torchbearers of Democracy reclaims the legacy of African American soldiers and veterans and connects their history to issues such as the obligations of citizenship, combat and labor, diaspora and internationalism, homecoming and racial violence, "New Negro" militancy, and African American memories of the war.
Download or read book Black Soldiers White Wars written by William E. Alt and published by Praeger. This book was released on 2002-05-30 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Betty Alt teaches sociology at the U. of Southern Colorado; William Alt is a member of the Air Force Association and the Retired Officers Association. They provide an overview of the use of black soldiers in colonial European and U.S. armies. The text examines the history of military service as a major avenue for social and economic mobility for blacks, and the development of black equality from segregated noncombat roles to full membership in combat units. The authors also discuss the issue of disproportionate representation of blacks in the Vietnam War, and recent charges of discrimination in the military. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.
Download or read book History of the Fifty fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1863 1865 written by Luis F B 1844 Emilio and published by Legare Street Press. This book was released on 2023-07-18 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: History of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1863-1865 is a compelling account of the role of African American soldiers in the Civil War. Written by Luis F. Emilio, a veteran of the regiment, this book provides a firsthand perspective on the challenges faced by African American soldiers during the war. This book is an important contribution to the history of the Civil War and the ongoing struggle for social justice and equality in America. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
Download or read book African Kaiser written by Robert Gaudi and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2017-01-31 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The incredible true account of World War I in Africa and General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck, the last undefeated German commander. “Let me say straight out that if all military histories were as thrilling and well written as Robert Gaudi’s African Kaiser, I might give up reading fiction and literary biography… Gaudi writes with the flair of a latter-day Macaulay. He sets his scenes carefully and describes naval and military action like a novelist.”—Michael Dirda, The Washington Post As World War I ravaged the European continent, a completely different theater of war was being contested in Africa. And from this very different kind of war, there emerged a very different kind of military leader.... At the beginning of the twentieth century, the continent of Africa was a hotbed of international trade, colonialism, and political gamesmanship. So when World War I broke out, the European powers were forced to contend with one another not just in the bloody trenches, but in the treacherous jungle. And it was in that unforgiving land that General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck would make history. With the now-legendary Schutztruppe (Defensive Force), von Lettow-Vorbeck and a small cadre of hardened German officers fought alongside their fanatically devoted native African allies as equals, creating the first truly integrated army of the modern age. African Kaiser is the fascinating story of a forgotten guerrilla campaign in a remote corner of Equatorial Africa in World War I; of a small army of ultraloyal African troops led by a smaller cadre of rugged German officers—of white men and black who fought side by side. But mostly it is the story of von Lettow-Vorbeck—the only undefeated German commmander in the field during World War I and the last to surrender his arms.
Download or read book Half American written by Matthew F. Delmont and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2024-01-09 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The definitive history of World War II from the African American perspective, by award-winning historian and civil rights expert Winner of the 2023 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award in Nonfiction A New York Times Notable Book of 2022 A 2022 Book of the Year from TIME, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and more More than one million Black soldiers served in World War II. Black troops were at Normandy, Iwo Jima, and the Battle of the Bulge, serving in segregated units while waging a dual battle against inequality in the very country for which they were laying down their lives. The stories of these Black veterans have long been ignored, cast aside in favor of the myth of the “Good War” fought by the “Greatest Generation.” And yet without their sacrifices, the United States could not have won the war. Half American is World War II history as you’ve likely never read it before. In these pages are stories of Black military heroes and civil rights icons such as Benjamin O. Davis Jr., the leader of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen, who fought to open the Air Force to Black pilots; Thurgood Marshall, the chief lawyer for the NAACP, who investigated and publicized violence against Black troops and veterans; poet Langston Hughes, who worked as a war correspondent for the Black press; Ella Baker, the civil rights leader who advocated on the home front for Black soldiers, veterans, and their families; and James G. Thompson, the twenty-six-year-old whose letter to a newspaper laying bare the hypocrisy of fighting against fascism abroad when racism still reigned at home set in motion the Double Victory campaign. Their bravery and patriotism in the face of unfathomable racism is both inspiring and galvanizing. An essential and meticulously researched retelling of the war, Half American honors the men and women who dared to fight not just for democracy abroad but for their dreams of a freer and more equal America.
Download or read book Black Cloud Rising written by David Wright Falade and published by Grove Press. This book was released on 2022-02-15 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Already excerpted in the New Yorker, Black Cloud Rising is a compelling and important historical novel that takes us back to an extraordinary moment when enslaved men and women were shedding their bonds and embracing freedom By fall of 1863, Union forces had taken control of Tidewater Virginia, and established a toehold in eastern North Carolina, including along the Outer Banks. Thousands of freed slaves and runaways flooded the Union lines, but Confederate irregulars still roamed the region. In December, the newly formed African Brigade, a unit of these former slaves led by General Edward Augustus Wild—a one-armed, impassioned Abolitionist—set out from Portsmouth to hunt down the rebel guerillas and extinguish the threat. From this little-known historical episode comes Black Cloud Rising, a dramatic, moving account of these soldiers—men who only weeks earlier had been enslaved, but were now Union infantrymen setting out to fight their former owners. At the heart of the narrative is Sergeant Richard Etheridge, the son of a slave and her master, raised with some privileges but constantly reminded of his place. Deeply conflicted about his past, Richard is eager to show himself to be a credit to his race. As the African Brigade conducts raids through the areas occupied by the Confederate Partisan Rangers, he and his comrades recognize that they are fighting for more than territory. Wild’s mission is to prove that his troops can be trusted as soldiers in combat. And because many of the men have fled from the very plantations in their path, each raid is also an opportunity to free loved ones left behind. For Richard, this means the possibility of reuniting with Fanny, the woman he hopes to marry one day. With powerful depictions of the bonds formed between fighting men and heartrending scenes of sacrifice and courage, Black Cloud Rising offers a compelling and nuanced portrait of enslaved men and women crossing the threshold to freedom.
Download or read book Fighting in the Jim Crow Army written by Maggi M. Morehouse and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2006-12-28 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fighting in the Jim Crow Army is filled with first-hand accounts of everyday life in 1940s America. The soldiers of the 92nd and 93rd Infantry Divisions speak of segregation in the military and racial attitudes in army facilities stateside and abroad. The individual battles of black soldiers reveal a compelling tale of discrimination, triumph, resistance, and camaraderie. What emerges from the multitude of voices is a complex and powerful story of individuals who served their country and subsequently made demands to be recognized as full-fledged citizens. Morehouse, whose father served in the 93rd Infantry Division, has built a rich historical account around personal interviews and correspondence with soldiers, National Archive documents, and military archive materials. Augmented with historical and recent photographs, Fighting in the Jim Crow Army combines individual recollections with official histories to form a vivid picture of life in the segregated Army. In the historiography of World War II very little has emerged from the perspective of the black foot soldier. Morehouse allows the participants to tell the tale of the watershed event of their participation in World War II as well as the ongoing black freedom struggle.
Download or read book The Harlem Hellfighters written by Max Brooks and published by Crown/Archetype. This book was released on 2014-04-01 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From bestselling author Max Brooks, the riveting story of the highly decorated, barrier-breaking, historic black regiment—the Harlem Hellfighters In 1919, the 369th infantry regiment marched home triumphantly from World War I. They had spent more time in combat than any other American unit, never losing a foot of ground to the enemy, or a man to capture, and winning countless decorations. Though they returned as heroes, this African American unit faced tremendous discrimination, even from their own government. The Harlem Hellfighters, as the Germans called them, fought courageously on—and off—the battlefield to make Europe, and America, safe for democracy. In THE HARLEM HELLFIGHTERS, bestselling author Max Brooks and acclaimed illustrator Caanan White bring this history to life. From the enlistment lines in Harlem to the training camp at Spartanburg, South Carolina, to the trenches in France, they tell the heroic story of the 369th in an action-packed and powerful tale of honor and heart.
Download or read book History of the Fifty Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1863 1865 written by Luis Fenollosa Emilio and published by . This book was released on 1894 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The 761st Black Panther Tank Battalion in World War II written by Joe Wilson and published by McFarland. This book was released on 1999-01-01 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Their motto was "Come Out Fighting," and that they did without fail. The 761st Tank Battalion - the famed "Black Panthers" - was the first African American armored unit to enter combat, and in World War II they fought in four major Allied campaigns and inflicted 130,000 casualties on the German army. And the fighting was intense - only one out of every two Black Panthers made it home alive. This is the complete history of the 761st, told in large part through the words of the surviving members of the unit. Richly illustrated, this work recounts how the unit was given long overdue recognition - the Presidential Unit Citation and the Medal of Honor - in recent years.
Download or read book Harlem s Hell Fighters written by Stephen L. Harris and published by Potomac Books, Inc.. This book was released on 2003-06-30 with total page 414 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When the United States entered World War I in 1917, thousands of African-American men volunteered to fight for a country that granted them only limited civil rights. Many from New York City joined the 15th N.Y. Infantry, a National Guard regiment later designated the 369th U.S. Infantry. Led by mostly inexperienced white and black officers, these men not only received little instruction at their training camp in South Carolina but were frequent victims of racial harassment from both civilians and their white comrades. Once in France, they initially served as laborers, all while chafing to prove their worth as American soldiers. Then they got their chance. The 369th became one of the few U.S. units that American commanding general John J. Pershing agreed to let serve under French command. Donning French uniforms and taking up French rifles, the men of the 369th fought valiantly alongside French Moroccans and held one of the widest sectors on the Western Front. The entire regiment was awarded the Croix de Guerre, the French government s highest military honor. Stephen L. Harris s accounts of the valor of a number of individual soldiers make for exciting reading, especially that of Henry Johnson, who defended himself against an entire German squad with a large knife. After reading this book, you will know why the Germans feared the black men of the 369th and why the French called them hell fighters. "
Download or read book Teaching with Documents written by and published by . This book was released on 1989 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Forgotten written by Linda Hervieux and published by . This book was released on 2019-02-15 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The tale of an all-black battalion whose crucial contributions at D-Day have gone unrecognised to this day.
Download or read book A More Unbending Battle The Harlem Hellfighters Struggle for Freedom in Wwi and Equality at Home written by Peter N. Nelson and published by ReadHowYouWant.com. This book was released on 2010-03 with total page 454 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The 369th Infantry Regiment was the first African American regiment mustered to fight in World War I. In a war where the vast majority of black soldiers served in the Service of Supply, unloading ships and building roads and railroads, the men of the 369th trained and fought side by side with the French at the front and ultimately spent more days in the trenches than any other American unit. They went toward in defense of a country afflicted by segregation, Jim Crow laws, lyn chings, and racial violence, but a country they believed in all the same. In A More Unbending Battle, journalist and author Peter Nelson chronicles the little-known story of the 369th. Recruited from all walks of Harlem life, the regiment fought alongside the French, since they were prohibited by Americas segregation policy from working together with white U.S. soldiers. Despite extraordinary odds, the 369th became one of the most successful and fear edregiments of the war. The Harlem Hell fighters, as their enemies named them, showed Extra ordinary valor on the battlefield, with many soldiers winning the Croix de Guerre and the Legion of Honor, and were the first Allied unit to reach the Rhine River. A riveting depiction of both social triumph and battlefield heroism, A More Unbending Battle is the thrilling story of the dauntless Harlem Hell fighters.
