The White Redoubt, the Great Powers and the Struggle for Southern Africa, 1960–1980

Robert McNamara author Filipe Ribeiro de Meneses author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Palgrave Macmillan

Published:18th Dec '17

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

The White Redoubt, the Great Powers and the Struggle for Southern Africa, 1960–1980 cover

This work examines the attempt by the governments of Portugal, Rhodesia and South Africa to defy the drive for African independence in the 1960s and 70s, and the international community’s response. From 1961 to 1974, Portugal, Rhodesia and South Africa collaborated in the attempt to preserve white minority rule in their respective territories. Hard-pressed by African nationalists, recently decolonized states, and many of the world’s Great Powers, they supported each other economically, politically and militarily, turning southern Africa into a major diplomatic concern which defied Cold War logic. This book examines how this collaboration came about and how the international community responded to it, paying close attention to the evolving situation in each country. The Portuguese Revolution of April 1974 undid this ‘white redoubt’, and the diplomatic policy subsequently adopted by apartheid South Africa – détente – led it to sacrifice Rhodesia in return for the illusion of permanent safety. A true work of transnational history, this book is based on the archival material of eight different countries, yet it serves as well as an introduction to the politics of southern Africa during the late colonial era.

“De Meneses and McNamara effectively provide the first rigorous study of regional state relations in Southern Africa between 1960 and 1980 … This book constitutes a very impressive feat of archival excavation. … a very important addition to the literature on Southern African decolonization and wars of liberation.” (Matthew J. Lord, Civil Wars, March, 28, 2019)

ISBN: 9781137447579

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 683g

401 pages

1st ed. 2018