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OverviewA new assessment of Jan Smuts's military leadership through examination of his World War I campaigning, demonstrating that he was a gifted general, conversant with the craft of manoeuvre warfare, and a command style steeped in the experiences of his time as a Boer general. World War I ushered in a renewed scramble for Africa. At its helm, Jan Smuts grabbed the opportunity to realise his ambition of a Greater South Africa. He set his sights upon the vast German colonies of South-West Africa and East Africa - the demise of which would end the Kaiser's grandiose schemes for Mittelafrika. As part of his strategy to shift South Africa's borders inexorably northward, Smuts even cast an eye toward Portuguese and Belgian African possessions. Smuts, his abilities as a general much denigrated by both his contemporary and then later modern historians, was no armchair soldier. This cabinet minister and statesman donned a uniform and led his men into battle. He learned his soldiery craft under General Koos De la Rey's tutelage, and another soldier-statesman, General Louis Botha during the South African War 1899-1902. He emerged from that war, immersed in the Boer manoeuvre doctrine he devastatingly waged in the guerrilla phase of that conflict. His daring and epic invasion of the Cape at the head of his commando remains legendary. The first phase of the German South West African campaign and the Afrikaner Rebellion in 1914 placed his abilities as a sound strategic thinker and a bold operational planner on display. Champing at the bit, he finally had the opportunity to command the Southern Forces in the second phase of the German South West African campaign. Placed in command of the Allied forces in East Africa in 1916, he led a mixed bag of South Africans and Imperial troops against the legendary Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck and his Shutztruppe. Using his penchant for Boer manoeuvre warfare together with mounted infantry led and manned by Boer Republican veterans, he proceeded to free the vast German territory from Lettow-Vorbeck's grip. Often leading from the front, his operational concepts were an enigma to the British under his command, remaining so to modern-day historians. Although unable to bring the elusive and wily Lettow-Vorbeck to a final decisive battle, Smuts conquered most of the territory by the end of his tenure in February 1917. General Jan Smuts and his Great War in Africa makes use of multiple archival sources and the official accounts of all the participants to provide a long-overdue reassessment of Smuts's generalship and his role in furthering the strategic aims of South Africa and the British Empire in Africa during World War I. AUTHOR: David Brock Katz is a lecturer at the South African National Defence Force Army and Defence Colleges and is an active member of the Andrew Mlangeni Regiment (formerly the South African Irish Regiment). He completed his Masters degree (cum laude) and PhD in Military History at Stellenbosch University. He has published extensively on South African military history and doctrine. Full Product DetailsAuthor: David Brock KatzPublisher: Casemate Publishers Imprint: Casemate Publishers ISBN: 9781636240176ISBN 10: 1636240178 Pages: 288 Publication Date: 25 April 2022 Audience: General/trade , General Format: Hardback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: In Print  This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us. Table of ContentsIntroduction_x000D_ _x000D_ Acknowledgements_x000D_ _x000D_ 1: Smuts Emerges: From Scholar to Intellectual—From Adversity to Reconciliation (1870–1910)_x000D_ _x000D_ 2: South Africa’s entry into the First World War 1910–1914_x000D_ _x000D_ 3: The German South West African Campaign and The Afrikaner Rebellion 1914_x000D_ _x000D_ 4: The German South West African Campaign 1915 (Phase II)_x000D_ _x000D_ 5: Smuts and the Kilimanjaro Operation in East Africa March 1916_x000D_ _x000D_ 6: Smuts and the Kilimanjaro Operation in East Africa March 1916_x000D_ _x000D_ Conclusion_x000D_ _x000D_ Endnotes_x000D_ _x000D_ Bibliography_x000D_ _x000D_ IndexReviewsKatz succeeds in his goal of producing an objective analysis of Smuts as a military leader; indeed, Katz succeeds in rehabilitating Smuts in the historiography. The book stands alone in the historiography; there is no other thoughtful examination of Smuts as a World War I military leader. -- Roads to the Great War ... another meticulously researched, definitive study of a storied life. -- ARGunners.com Scholars interested in the First World War in Africa and South African History will find an engaging and well-researched examination of a controversial figure in this book. -- Journal of Military History An fully impressive work of exhaustive research and meticulous scholarship... highly recommended for inclusion into community, college, and university library World War I History & Biography collections. -- Midwest Book Review Katz succeeds in his goal of producing an objective analysis of Smuts as a military leader; indeed, Katz succeeds in rehabilitating Smuts in the historiography. The book stands alone in the historiography; there is no other thoughtful examination of Smuts as a World War I military leader. -- Roads to the Great War ... another meticulously researched, definitive study of a storied life. -- ARGunners.com ... another meticulously researched, definitive study of a storied life. -- ARGunners.com Author InformationDavid Brock Katz is a lecturer at the South African National Defence Force Army and Defence Colleges and is an active member of the Andrew Mlangeni Regiment (formerly the South African Irish Regiment). He completed his Masters degree (cum laude) and PhD in Military History at Stellenbosch University. He has published extensively on South African military history and doctrine. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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