Forged in Battle?: Life in South Africa's 32 Battalion, 1975-1993

Forged in Battle? tells the story of black soldiers, led by white officers, fighting on the side of apartheid. It traces the history of the unit from the Angolan civil war in 1975 to its disbanding a year before the fall of apartheid in 1993.

As veterans of the Angolan civil war, many of the soldiers of 32 Battalion had no choice but to bring their families with them when they joined the army. Their dependents could not be left behind in Angola, against whom they were now, in part, fighting. The South African Defence Force, and the officers of 32 Battalion in particular, had to find ways in which to provide effective support to the soldiers as well as their families. All the former Angolans of 32 Battalion – both soldiers and civilians – depended on South Africa to provide accommodation, access to food, medical support, financial advice, and social structure.

The unit’s motto, Proelio Procusi, translates as Forged in Battle. By adding a question mark, Forged in Battle? examines the extent to which the unit was shaped not just by war, but also by its unique social circumstances.