Black Shame: African Soldiers in Europe, 1914–1922

Description

Black Shame offers a detailed analysis of the recruitment and deployment of – and reactions to – African soldiers in the WWI European theatre of war. In so doing, the book paints a vivid picture of the wider debates of race and national identity provoked by the use of African troops within the main actors on the WWI scene: France, Britain, Germany and even the US. Drawing on war-time attitudes, Dick van Galen Last explores the reality and long-term consequences of the participation of African regiments in the post-war occupation of the German territories. Wide-ranging, both geographically and thematically, the first publication of its kind, Black Shame adds a fresh, truly comparative perspective to the scholarship in the fields of imperial and military history, as well as war studies and postcolonial studies, and will appeal to academics and postgraduate students alike. Cover Half-title Title Copyright Contents Preface Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations Introduction The invention of black and white Encounters 1. From Barbarian to Soldier The black individual, the black man The Mangin plan German aversion British class consciousness American segregation Conclusion 2. Recruitment, Deployment and Controversy: 1914–1917 The First World War in Africa Black troops in Europe? The other Allies Propaganda and counter-propaganda Conclusion 3. Mass Recruitment: 1918 France: the recruitment of 1918 The Americans arrive The British keep their distance 4. At and Behind the Front The French on blacks Blacks on the French Americans in shock Love and sex Conclusion 5. The Road Back France: forgotten promises Empire out of balance Caribbean crisis American turmoil 6. Black Atlantic The lawsuit The Black Atlantic White fear Negrophilia 7. The ‘Black Shame’: Africans in the Rhineland The occupation The campaign against the ‘black shame’ The accusations Conclusion 8. Germany: Humiliation and Outrage Accusations The Notbund and the film Fear and failure Black Germans Conclusion 9. The World Beyond Germany: Amazement and Indignation The British The Americans The French Other countries The Netherlands Women’s movement Left-wing movements The international debate Conclusion Civilized, emancipated and disappointed – the black experience The fear Notes Index