The Saints: The Rhodesian Light Infantry - Hardcover

Über die Autorinnen und Autoren

Chris Cocks was born in Salisbury, Rhodesia in 1957 and served three years and 28 days as a combat NCO with 3 Commando, the Rhodesian Light Infantry (the RLI, an airborne/airmobile unit), from 1976 to 1979. He was then offered a farming job in the country’s Lowveld; however, the army refused to countenance a waiver of call-ups, so he attested into the British South Africa Police and spent the remaining 14 months of the bush war as a PATU (Police Anti-Terrorist Unit) stick leader and avoiding the Military Police. He moved to Johannesburg in 1996 and stumbled into a publishing career, specializing in southern African military history. He has written four books: the bestselling Fireforce: One Man’s War in the Rhodesian Light Infantry, its sequel Out of Action, a steamy novel Cyclone Blues, and co-wrote The Saints, the RLI’s history. He is the historian for The Rhodesian Light Infantry Regimental Association and edits its magazine, The Cheetah.

Alexandre Binda was born in Beira, Mozambique in 1945. He joined the Rhodesian Army in 1965. Although he had attested into the Pay Corps, he was to get more operational and combat experience than any of his colleagues. Between 1968 and 1972 he took part in a dozen or so deployments with RLI and SAS combat-tracker teams in support of the Portuguese Army in the Tete Province of Mozambique, countering Frelimo and ZANLA guerrilla incursions from the north. During his 15 years in the Rhodesian Army, he did a four-year tour of duty with the Selous Scouts and was paymaster for the Grey's Scouts and other units such as POU (Psychological Operations Unit). He was awarded a Military Forces Commendation and was commissioned in 1979. Alex is a keen student of African military history and has written several articles for "Lion & Tusk", the magazine of the Rhodesian Army Association. In addition, he has undertaken a number of significant military history projects including "Masodja - A History of the Rhodesian African Rifles", "The Saints – A History of the Rhodesian Light Infantry" and most recently, his acclaimed work "The Rhodesia Regiment – From Boer War to Bush War: 1899-1980. " Married to Jane, Alex now resides in scenic Northumberland's Cheviot Hills near the Scottish border in the UK.