A Greater Share of Honour by Jack Greef
Highly Collectible first edition signed by the Author the legendary Major Jack Greeff on the Title page.
A Greater Share of Honour by Jack Greef
Condition: Good. Rubbing on covers. Content clean and binding tight.
Neat gift inscription on the first page.
Format: Medium softcover
Published: 2001 First edition Ntomeni
Pages: 172
ISBN: 9780620279994
A Bush War classic written by one of the most highly decorated officers in the SADF. The first personal account of Recce operations, by one of the top and most experienced Special Forces officers. Scarce first edition softcover printed by Ntomeni Publishers, 2001. 173 pages with lots of behind-the-scenes photographs. Silver embossed logo and characteristic rubbed boards, most copies seemed to have come "off the press" with some sort of wear.
Although we all served under the banner of Special Forces I prefer to refer to the Reconnaissance Regiments as Recces. Earning the parachute wings and laurel dagger was a personal achievement for every qualified Recce operator. It literally took blood, sweat and tears to achieve and is a far cry from the requirements to become intelligence operators operating from Special Forces Headquarters where in some cases all you had to be was a criminal. It made the men different and it made them special. I also feel that there are no “ex-Recces”. The achievements and sacrifices of the qualified Recce operator make all of them Recces, and are above anything else that can be achieved in civilian life.
There will never be a war like this again. Our experiences were unique to a particular time. Modern warfare and the lifting of sanctions have brought changes in equipment and concept. But for as long as man is in conflict, the principles of war will remain unchanged. Sophisticated equipment will fail causing frustration on the battlefield. Leaders will change concepts as they see fit. But ultimately the success of military operations will depend on the quality of the individual soldier, his training, his discipline, his religion and how well he studied the art of war.
Like many other soldiers, I believed in what I was doing just as much as our enemies believed in their cause. Both sides were prepared to die for it. I also make no excuses for the operations I was involved in. One obviously regrets the civilian lives lost during the conflict, but it happened in wars from the earliest times, it is still happening and will be an even greater factor in future wars. The South African bush war was by no means different from any other war. There were no victors in that war, we all lost in some way or the other.
