The Motherland Calls ― Britain's Black Servicemen & Women, 1939-45

Very little attention has been given to the thousands of black British, Caribbean and West African service men and women who supported the British war effort from 1939–45. Black volunteers from across the British Empire enthusiastically joined the armed forces and played their part in fighting Nazi Germany and its allies. The Motherland Calls complements Stephen Bourne’s previous book Mother Country, which told the story of the contribution made by black British, Caribbean and West African citizens on the home front. Drawing on the author’s expert knowledge of the subject, and many years of original research, it reveals the brave men and women who volunteered to fight the forces of Nazism, such as Ulric Cross and Peter Thomas, who came from Trinidad and Nigeria respectively to join the RAF, or Jamaican Connie Mark, who served in the ATS. The Motherland Calls tells the story of some of the forgotten Britons whose contribution to the war effort has been overlooked until now.

Stephen Bourne is a leading authority on black history, and has published 11 books on the subject, including A Ship and a Prayer, Black in the British Frame, and Speak of Me as I Am and Mother Country (THP, 2010). He lives in London and his website is www.stephenbourne.co.uk.