1
History 508:327:01
Wed 9:50-12:50
Murray Hall 213
[email protected]
Phone: 848-932-8522
Dr. C. A. Brown
Spring 2014
Off. Hrs: 1:30-3:30 pm
Office: Van Dyck Hall 110
World War II and Africa
Course Description
Although largely ignored in most histories of World War II African civilians and military forces
played a major role in the success of the Allied nations in their victory over the Axis powers. From
Cape to Cairo colonial African communities were deeply affected by the military, economic and
social dimensions of the war. The strategic value of Africa has been noted in terms of the battles
for the control of North Africa. However, few scholars have noted the role that West African ports
of call played in allowing Roosevelt to evade the neutrality laws of the U. S. Congress and supply
a Great Britain with airplanes and material for the battle in North Africa. Additionally, thousands of
West African troops from the British colonies fought heroically in Burma against seasoned
Japanese troops seeking to invade India. The French recruited over 200,000 from her colonies
and they played a pivotal role until the armistice, in the colonies under Vichy command and later,
as the backbone of the ‘Free France’ army of General Charles De Gaulle. Moreover the
headquarters of the Free French government was in Brazzaville in the Congo. The experiences
that African combatants had in Europe during the war as well as the hardship suffered by civilians
at home are often cited as key factors in transforming the nationalist movement into a massbased movement. The political significance of the war was clear early on when the Italian
invasion of Ethiopia galvanized the Black diaspora throughout the world to run to her aid and to
shape a discourse of sharpened nationalist critiques of colonial rule.
This course has several goals:
1. To recover the history of the role that African combatants, civilians and
resources played in the war. This involves a reinterpretation of World War II.
2. To familiarize students with the debates in the historiography of World War II
most especially those that focus specifically on Africa.;
3. To train students to read critically and analyze both primary and secondary
sources
4. To develop the critical skills of identifying and summarizing the main
arguments of a text and the use of primary and secondary sources to
support this argument;
5. To develop command of the writing skills, research methodologies and
correct citation systems necessary for a successful college research paper.
Required Texts [Ordered at Rutgers Bookstore]


Richard Osborne, World War II in Colonial Africa, Indianapolis: Rierbel-Roque, 2001
{ISBN13-978-0962832451] this will be delayed in delivery through bookstore
R.A.C. Parker, The Second World War: A Short History (Revised Edition) New York:
Oxford University Press [ISBN13:978-0-19-280207-1]

David Killingray with Martin Plaut, Fighting for Britain: African Soldiers in the Second
World War, James Currey; Reprint edition (April 19, 2012) (ISBN 978-1847010476

Mary Lynn Rampolla, A Pocket Guide to Writing in History (7 Edition) Boston:
Bedford Marti, 2012 [ISBN-13: 978-0312610418]
th
2
A Note About Readings: There are two books that function as text books: World War II in
Colonial Africa and World War II a Short History . You may use the Parker book as a type of
reference book to keep you aware of the events outside of Africa with emphasis on Europe. The
second text by Osborne, is somewhat problematic, as it is written by a non-Africanist and has a
number of rather severe errors, including the use of the term ‘native’, a derogatory term and a set
of assumptions about ‘prosperity’ in Africa during the war. On the contrary the war was a period of
rampant inflation, restrictions on the right to strike and great suffering in Africa. Nonetheless, you
should use these books to fill in the ‘gaps’ in the reading. I have assigned sections of them for
particular weeks, however, you may find them to be useful more extensively.
Reserve Readings: The bulk of the readings for the class will be available on SAKAI. You
should download them and put them in a loose leaf notebook so that you can keep them in order.
You will receive email messages when new readings or materials are added.
Academic Integrity
All students are expected to abide by the Rutgers University Code of Academic Integrity found at
on the University’s web site below. Students may study together and give or receive ‘consulting’
help from other students. However one student should never copy or use the work of another.
Additionally you cannot use work purchased from outside sources and submit them under your
name.
http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu/academic-integrity-policy#I_AcademicIntegrity
Accommodations for students with disabilities
I am available to discuss appropriate academic accommodations that may be required oby
students with disabilities. Rutgers University welcomes students with disabilities into all of the
University's educational programs. In order to receive consideration for reasonable
accommodations, a student with a disability must contact the appropriate disability services office
at the campus where you are officially enrolled, participate in an intake interview, and provide
documentation: https://ods.rutgers.edu/students/documentation-guidelines. If the documentation
supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus’s disability services office
will provide you with a Letter of Accommodations. Please share this letter with your instructors
and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. To begin this
process, please complete the Registration form on the ODS web site at:
https://ods.rutgers.edu/students/registration-form.
Bibliographies: There are several bibliographies on SAKAI about Africa and World War II.
They can be used for your paper. There are also other bibliographies in the Alexander Library as
well as on-line that can be useful.
Web Sites: There are a number of web sites that include images and written material about
Africa(ans) and World War II. Below are a few of them:
http://africanhistory.about.com/od/wwiichronology/ss/WWIIJun40.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/13chapter11.shtml
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8344170.stm
http://london.iwm.org.uk/
http://www.worldwar1.com/france/tseng.htm
http://abagond.wordpress.com/2009/04/10/tirailleurs-senegalais/ You Tube – Senghor’s poem w/
images
3
http://www.3dpublishing.com/crgibbs/troops3.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/ny/ethiocrown/Haile.html
Photos and other images:
There are a number of images on the web that are relevant for this class. Some of them will be
available on SAKAI. As you conduct your research please put any images that you come across
with their URL in your drop box. They can be used for your final presentation in class.
FILMs
A number of FILMs will be shown throughout the course. You are expected to take notes
in these FILM and treat their material as equal to printed material. You will have a number of
writing assignments based on these FILMs. Additionally World War II was a war in which FILM
played an important role in propaganda, especially in colonial territories.. Several of these FILMs
are available for viewing on line as newsreels on the BBC site
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/13chapter11.shtml
Optional Readings: These are included on the syllabus but are useful for your essay and your
examinations. They are not required unless otherwise stated.
Course Requirements
Your grade will be based on
(1) Attendance: Only THREE unexcused absence
(2) Six short papers in preparation for a final paper
(3) Class participation – you must be current with the readings. This component of your
grade also includes quizzes and other in-class assignments.
(4) Completion of the various preliminary stages of the paper
(5) One 10 page research paper Topics to be distributed in class.
The Research Paper:
Be sure to avoid plagiarism. See the RU Libraries web site.
http://www.rutgers.edu/academics/libraries
Instructions for the paper are on SAKAI. /Paper Instructions/ WWII and Africa Paper
Instructions –3. This includes specific instructions and deadlines for the developement of the
paper and possible paper topics. The entire Paper Instructions section includes guides for your
writing the paper and you are to use the Mary Lynn Rampolla, A Pocket Guide to Writing in
History . You may also use any published guides for writing history papers. ALL PAPERS ARE
REQUIRED TO USE CORRECT END/FOOTNOTES(not those in parenthesis) AND CITATION
SYSTEMS. IF YOUR PAPER DOES NOT COMPLY WITH THIS SYSTEM (PAY SPECIAL
nd
ATTENTION TO 2 + REFERENCE) IT WILL NOT BE GRADED. THIS PAPER CONTRIBUTES
THE LARGEST PERCENTAGE (40%) OF YOUR GRADE.
Cell phones and lap top computers – Please be sure your phone are OFF during
class
You are not allowed to ‘text’ messages during your class on your cell phones. Students using lap
tops may be required to sit in the front rows if they are suspected of using their computers for
emailing or other on-line use during class.
Components of your final grade:
30% Essays
10% Abstract and annotated bibliography
20% Classroom participation: scheduled class discussions, etc.
4
40% One 10 page essay. This is the largest single component of your grade. You will
have intermediary deadlines prior to the due date of this assignment. There will be a
posting of possible topics on Sakai as well as instructions for your writing the paper. Any
purchase of papers or other forms of plagiarism will be severely punished.
SYLLABUS
(Required readings will be indicated in class)
NOTE: ANY READINGS NOT IN YOUR TEXTS ARE ON SAKAI. Be sure to check all listings on your
‘RESOURCES’ section of SAKAI. Some readings are not in the correct section.
ONLINE SOURCES: Links on the syllabus indicate sources on line. Several of them are the BBC – Story of
Africa and contain interviews with African troops, songs sung or other materials. These are as important as
written materials.
Osborne book – the Book Store says they cannot get this book until the end of March. If you can get a used
copy you can do the readings on the syllabus. If not, please let me know.
WEEK I JANUARY 21 What does it mean to be a historian?
Mary Lynn Rampolla. “Why Study History?” A Pocket Guide to Writing in
History
Binyavanga Wainaina, “How to Write About Africa”, Granta 92, Winter, 2005, pp
92-95
FILM “A New Germany”, The World At War.
Martin Plaunt “The Africans who fought in World War II”, BBC News, 9 November 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8344170.stm
Essay 1 – Write a one page summary (250 words ONLY) of ‘The Africans who fought in
WWII’(Due in DropBox by Monday January 26).
WEEK II– JANUARY 28 Reading and Writing Like a Historian
Mary Lynn Rampolla. “ Working with Sources” , A Pocket Guide to Writing in History
Mussolini attacks Ethiopia: The First Salvo’s of Fascism - 1935
FILM : “Lion of Judah War with Ethiopia 1935 1936”
Check images of Ethiopia (CHECK SAKAI/RESOURCES/PHOTOS)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8201717.stm
The League of Nations and Italy in Ethiopia
R. Osborne World War II in Colonial Africa , Chapter 1
Aregawi Berhe, “Revisiting resistance in Italian-Occupied Ethiopia: The Patriots’
Movement (1936-1941) and the redefinition of post-war Ethiopia”, J. Abbink, M.E. de
Bruijn and K. van Walraven, eds., Rethinking Resistance: Revolt and Violence in
African History. Pp. 88-113, Leiden: Brill 2003. (Sakai)
Optional
Ayo Langley, ‘Pan Africanism in Paris, 1924-36, The Journal of Modern African
Studies, , Vol 1.7, No. 1 (Apr., 1969) pp 69-94
The Invasion of Ethiopia: Africa and the Diaspora React
5
William Scott. “The Harlem Revolt” (Chapt 11) and “Pan African Protest” (Chapter 12.
Sons of Sheba’s Race: African-Americans and the Italo-Ethiopian War, 1935-1941.
[Also see Endnotes-for these chapters}
William Scott, "Black Nationalism and the Italo-Ethiopian Conflict 1934-1936", Journal of
Negro History, Vol 63, No. 2 (April, 1978), pp. 118-134.
Optional
S.K.B. Asante, “The Catholic Missions, British West African Nationalists, and the Italian
Invasion of Ethiopia, 1935-36” African Affairs, Vol 73, No. 291 (Apr., 1974), pp. 204216.
Essay II: Coverage of the Invasion by the Press. Locate articles from the African
American or African and Mainstream U.S. and UK press. In a 3-page essay compare
th
and contrast the coverage of the invasion. (Essay Due in Drop Box February 4 )
WEEK III FEBRUARY4TH - Africa and Europe on the Eve of War
Mary Lynn Rampolla. “Reading and Writing in History ”, A Pocket Guide to Writing in
History
The ‘Rumblings’ of War in Europe – Germany and the Rise of Hitler
FILM: “ A New Germany 1922-1939”; The World At War
Parker, Chapter 1
Collingham, “Germany’s Quest for Empire”, (Chpt 2) and “Japan’s Quest for Empire”
(Chapt. 3) The Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food. (Sakai)
Africa on the Eve of War
Killingray, Fighting for Britain, Chapter 1
Osborne, World War II in Colonial Africa Chapter 2
Optional
Bill Freund, The Making of Contemporary Africa Chapter 5-7 [Sakai],
WEEK IV. FEBRUARY 11
TH
The Colony at War: the Draft, Forced labor and Resistance
The War Spreads
Film: TBA
Osborne Chapter 4
Judith A. Byfield, “Beyond Impact: Toward a New Historiography of Africa and World War
II”, in Thomas W. Zeiler and Daniel M. DuBois, eds., Companion to World War II
(Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell 2013)
A. N. Porter and A. J. Stockwell, “The Outbreak of the Second World War and the
Mobilization of Colonial Resources”, in British Imperial Policy and Decolonization,
1938-1965
Killingray , Chapter 2 (Recruitment)
Optional:
D. Killingray, ‘Military and Labour Recruitment in the Gold Coast During the Second
World War’, Journal of African History, 23 (1982).
6
Essay III: In a 5-page essay, critique the films. Use information or insights from the
readings to support your critique and/or raise questions. Use Rampolla, Chapter 3 on
films. (Due in Drop Box Feb. 25)
WEEK V. FEBRUARY 18
in Africa
TH
The Collapse of France and the Vichy - Free French Governments
FILM: “France Falls: May – June 1940” The World At War
Raffael Scheck, Hitler's African Victims: The German Army Massacres of Black French
Soldiers in 1940 (17-67)
The Security Question in West Africa; The Vichy Government In West Africa
Nancy Lawler, ‘The Battle of France’, pp 65-91, in Soldiers of Misfortune: Ivoirien
Tirailleurs of World War II, Ohio U. Press, 1992.
Osborne, Chapter 7
Parker, Chapter 3
Michael Crowder, ‘ The 1939-45 War and West Africa ‘ in West African History.
Contemporary Document: Paul M. Atkins, ‘Dakar and the Strategy of West Africa’, in
Foreign Affairs, v. XX, (1942), no. 2.
African soldiers in Occupied France
M. Echenberg, “ ‘Morts pour la France’: The Tirailleurs Senegalais and the Second World
War”, The Journal of African History, Vol. 26, No. 4, World War II and Africa. (1985),
pp. 363-380.
Osborne, Chapter 15
Essay IV: Write a 3 page summary of the experiences of French African troops when
France was defeated. Develop an analysis based on the readings above. (Due in Drop
th
Box February 25 )
WEEK VI. FEBRUARY 25
TH
Africa’s Role in World War II Strategic and Economic Importance
The Strategic Importance of Africa during the war – Pan Am & Takoradi Route
FILM: “The Desert: North Africa 1940-1943”, The World At War
Parker, Chapter 5 & 6
Osborne, World War II in Colonial Africa, Chapter 8
D.W. Ray, ‘The Takoradi Route: Roosevelt’s pre-war venture beyond the Western
Hemisphere’, Journal of American History, LXII, 2 ( Sept. 1975)
Raymond Dumett , “Africa's Strategic Minerals During the Second World War”
The Journal of African History, Vol. 26, No. 4, World War II and Africa. (1985), pp. 381408.
Emad Ahmed Helal, “Egypt’s overlooked contribution to World War II”, in Heike Liebau et
al. The World in World Wars: Experiences, Perceptions and Perspectives from Africa and
Asia (Boston: Brill 2010)
Army Life : African Troops: Using Oral Sources
ONLINE SOURCES:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/06/africa_africa0s_world_war
_ii_veterans/html/1.stm
7
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/13chapter11.shtml
Killingray, “Army Life”, Chapter 3
R.H. Kakembo, An African Soldier Speaks.
Or
Bildad Kaggia, Roots of Freedom 1921-1963
D. Kiyaga-Mulindwa, ‘The Bechuanaland Protectorate and the Second World War”,
Journal of Commonwealth and Imperial History, , XII, 3 (May 1984)
R.A.R.Bent, Ten Thousand Men of Africa: The Story of the Bechuanaland Pioneers,
1941-1946. [ Selections]
WEEK VII. –MARCH 4
Front
TH
Africa’s Role in the War - Combatants and Sacrifice on the Home
FILM - Burma Boy
Osborne, Chapter 18,
Africa’s Role in the War – Provisioning of Supplies Food and Warfare
ONLINE Source:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/storyofafrica/13chapter10.shtml
David Johnson, ‘Settler Farmers and Coerced African Labour in Southern Rhodesia,
1936-1946’, Journal of African History, 33 (1992).
Collingham, “Mobilizing the British Empire”, [Chapter 7] (SAKAI)
Michael Cowen and Nicholas Westcott, ‘British Imperial Economic Policy During the War’,
Africa and the Second World War, ed, David Killingray and Richard Rathbone.
Osborne, Chapter 13
Oyemakinde, ‘The Pullen Marketing Scheme: A Trial in Food Price Control in Nigeria,
1941-47’, Journal of the historical Society of Nigeria.
Toyin Falola, “Salt is Gold”: The Management of Salt Scarcity in Nigeria During World
War II”, Canadian Journal of African Studies, Vol 26, No. 3 (1992) pp. 412-436.
Essay V: In a 3-page essay, analyze one of these first person accounts of WWII. Use
th
insights or evidence from our readings to support your analysis (Due March 11 )
TH
WEEK VIII. MARCH 11 Early victories, new challenges -– Recapturing Ethiopia and hardship
in Africa
Assignment: Using Primary Documents
FILM: TBA
Captives of War: African Prisoners in Europe
Osborne, World War II and Colonial Africa, Chapter 9
Nancy Lawler, ‘The Tirailleur as Prisoner”, in Soldiers of Misfortune: Ivoirien
Tirailleurs of World War II, Ohio U. Press, 1992. pp. 93-116.
David Killingray, “Africans and African Americans in Enemy Hands’, in Bob Moore and K.
Fedorowich. Prisoners of War and their Captors in World War II.
The East African Front ;
8
Sir. Arnold W. Hodson, ’An Account of the Part Played by the Gold Coast Brigade in
the East African Campaign, August 1940 to May 1941’.
Enugu Archives Documents: 82
nd
West Africa Division (SAKAI)
Reread relevant sections of Berhe
Essay VI. Analyzing a Primary Document: Using one of the primary documents and the
guidance of the Rampolla, write a 3 page analysis, drawing in your readings. (Due March
th
25 ).
SPRING BREAK MARCH 18TH
TH
WEEK IX MARCH 25
Debate
FILM: TBA
The Atlantic Charter
The Battle for African Loyalties: The Atlantic Charter and Ideological
Rosaleen Smyth, ‘Britain’s African Colonies and British Propaganda during the Second
World War”, Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History
Wendell Holbrook, ‘British Propaganda and the Mobilization of the Gold Coast for the
War Effort’, Journal of African History
Document: ‘The Atlantic Charter’ SAKAI See SAKAI/Resources/
Cedric J. Robinson, ‘Black Intellectuals at the British core: 1920’s-1940’s’ ,in Jagdish S.
Gundara (Editor), Ian Duffield (Editor) , Essays on the History of Blacks in Britain
Osborne, 197-198
Hakim Adi, ‘Pan Africanism and West African Nationalism in Britain”, African Studies
Review, Volume 43, Number 1 ( April 2000), pp. 69-82.
Propaganda Primary Documents: Samples of British Propaganda in Yoruba,
newspapers, and posters. SAKAI
Propaganda
Rosaleen Smyth, ‘The British Colonial FILM Unit and Sub-Saharan Africa, 1939-1945”,
In Historical Journal of Flim, Radio and Television, Vol 8, no. 3 (1988)
“FILMs for African Audiences”, Colonial Cinema Vol I. No. 4 (June 1943
Fay Gadsden, “Wartime Propaganda in Kenya: The Kenya Information Office, 19391945”, In International Journal of African Historical Studies, v. 19, no. 3 1956.
ST
WEEK X APRIL 1 Stresses of African Life During the War – Settler Colonies
FILM; TBA
Kenyan Settlers and African urban women
Luise White, ‘ Prostitution, Identity and Class Consciousness in Nairobi during World War
II’, in Signs, 1986, v. 11, no. 21.
John Lonsdale, ‘The Depression and the Second World War in the Transformation of
Kenya’, in Killingray and Rathbone, The Second World War and Africa.
The challenge of settler colonies
9
Louis Grundlingh, “ Non-Europeans Should Be Kept Away from the Temptations of
Towns: Controlling Black South African Soldiers During the Second World War”, in
International Journal of African Historical Studies, Vol. 25, No. 3 (1992).
Optional
Kenneth P. Vickery, ‘The Second World War Revival of Forced Labor in the Rhodesias’,
in International Journal of African Historical Studies, 22, 3 (1989)
Hamilton Simelane, ‘Labor Mobilization for the War Effort in Swaziland, 1940-1942”,
International Journal of African Historical Studies, , V. 26 (1993), no. 3.
Research Paper Due Date for one paragraph description of topic and Annotated
Bibliography of 3 books and 2 articles.
TH
WEEK XI APRIL 8 African Combatants in the Theatres of
FILM; TBA
African Troops in Asia – Part I
Osborne, World War II in Colonial Africa, 321-323, Chapter 18
E. E. Sabben-Clare, “African Troops in Asia’, African Affairs, V. 44 (1945), no. 177.
Rita Headrick, “African Soldiers in World War II”, Armed Forces and Society, Vol. 4
(May 1978), No. 3.
William Roger Louis, “India, Africa and World War II”, Ethnic and Racial Studies, 9, 3
(1986), 306-20.
Research Paper: Schedule meetings with the professor
African Troops in Asia – Part II
nd
Nigerian National Archives, ‘Report on a visit to the 82 West Africa Division in Burma,
Non-Divisional Units in India and West African Pioneer Groups in the Middle East’.
Optional
Bilad Kaggia, The Roots of Freedom: 1921-1963, Part I.
TH
WEEK XII APRIL 15 War Urban Life and War Time Exactions: African Women and the War
FILM: TBA
Struggles in South Africa - Urbanization in a Settler Colony
Freund, Chapter 8
Baruch, Hirson, “Umagebule- The Slicer’, in B. Hirson, Yours for the Union: Class
and Community Struggles in South Africa
Michael Crowder, ‘ The 1939-45 War and West Africa ‘ in West African History.
Political reactions in West Africa: Economic Stress and War Time
Wale Oyemakinde, ‘Michael Imodu and the Emergence of Militant Trade Unionism in
Nigeria, 1940-1942’, in Journal of the Historical Society of Nigeria, III, No. 3
(December 1974).
Reread: Cowen and Westcott from Week IV.
Freund, The Making of Contemp. Africa Chapter 9
Research Paper – Turn in the introductory paragraph to your paper.
ND
WEEK XIII APRIL 22 Ex Servicemen as a force in Nationalist Movements
FILM: “Camp Thiaroye”
10
The fate of former Francophone African soldiers
Myron J. Echenberg, ‘Tragedy at Thiaroye: The Senegalese Soldier’s Uprising of 1944’,
in Cohen et al, African Labor History
Greg Mann, “Ex-soldiers as Unruly clients’”, Native Sons: West African Veterans and
th
France in the 20 Century, Duke U. Press, 2005, pp 63-107
The Political Impact of the War: Britain’s Veterans
Killingray, “ Going Home and Demobilization” Chapter 6, “Ex-servicemen and Politics
Timothy Oberst, ‘Transport Workers, Strikes and the Imperial Response in Africa’
African Studies Review. Vol 31, No. 1 (Apr. 1988) pp. 117-113.
Olusanya , “ The Role of Ex-Servicemen in Nigerian Politics”, The Journal of Modern
African Studies, 6, 2 (1069) 221-32.
Osborne, Chapter 19
Optional:
Geoffrey Nwaka, ‘Rebellion in Umuahia: Ex-servicemen’s Revolt 1950-51’, Transafrican
Journal of History, Vol 16, 1987, 47-62.
TH
WEEK XIV APRIL 29 The Post War Political Conjuncture: World War II and African
Nationalism
FILM: Basil Davidson, ‘Towards Independence’
Richard Pankhurst, ‘Italian War Crimes in Ethiopia: A History of their Discussion, from the
League of Nations to the United Nations (1936-1949), Northeast African Studies, 6, 12, 1999 (New Series), pp. 83-140. (S)
Osborne, Chapter 20
Killingray, ‘The Social Impact of War Service”, Chapter 8
Michael Crowder,’ The Second World War: Prelude to Decolonization in Africa’, in M.
Crowder, Ed. The Cambridge History of Africa
Parker, Chapter 13 & 14
Hakim Adi, ‘Pan Africanism and West African Nationalism in Britain”, African Studies
Review, Volume 43, Number 1 ( April 2000), pp. 69-82.
Final Draft of Paper Due