Black Tommies

British Soldiers of African Descent in the First World War

Ray Costello

Liverpool University Press

This is the first book entirely dedicated to a world-wide view of the part played by black soldiers in the First World War, the few others dealing with only part of the Black Diaspora.
The book adopts a prosopographical approach aimed at giving a face to soldiers of African descent and drawing attention to the interest and importance of their previously under-researched history.
As well as more recent sources, this book is packed with new material from primary sources and information gleaned from very rare secondary sources.
This study corrects the long held belief of Second Lieutenant Walter Tull being the first black officer in the British Army in a way that has not been seen in previous publications.

Black Tommies

British Soldiers of African Descent in the First World War

Ray Costello

Liverpool University Press

Description

Black Tommies is the first book entirely dedicated to the part played by soldiers of African descent in the British regular army during the First World War. If African colonial troops have been ignored by historians, the existence of any substantial narrative around Black British soldiers enlisting in the United Kingdom during the First World War is equally unknown, even in military circles. Much more material is now coming to light, such as the oral testimony of veterans, and the author has researched widely to gather fresh and original material for this fascinating book from primary documentary sources in archives to private material kept in the metaphorical (and actual) shoe boxes of descendants of black Tommies. Reflecting the global nature of the conflict, Black Tommies takes us on a journey from Africa to the Caribbean and North America to the streets of British port cities such as Cardiff, Liverpool and those of North Eastern England. This exciting book also explodes the myth of Second Lieutenant Walter Tull being the first, or only, black officer in the British Army and endeavours to give the narrative of black soldiers a firm basis for future scholars to build upon by tackling an area of British history previously ignored.

Black Tommies

British Soldiers of African Descent in the First World War

Ray Costello

Liverpool University Press

Acknowledgements
List of illustrations
Introduction
Chapter One: Whose War?
Chapter Two: The Invisible Army-The Search
Chapter Three: Black Volunteers-The Empire and Beyond
Chapter Four: Black Officers, White Soldiers
Chapter Five: The Empire Arrives-Conscription
Chapter Six: The Return of the Heroes
Epilogue
Notes and References

Black Tommies

British Soldiers of African Descent in the First World War

Ray Costello

Liverpool University Press

Author Information

Ray Costello is an independent historian and writer and an honorary research fellow of the School of Sociology and Social Science, University of Liverpool.

Black Tommies

British Soldiers of African Descent in the First World War

Ray Costello

Liverpool University Press

Reviews and Awards

'Costello's well-researched and engagingly written study shows clearly how, while small in numbers, British born or naturalised black soldiers contributed to the war itself, as well as to life in British ports, and British officers' perceptions of race during the war years ... Costello's book is engagingly written and will appeal to a wide readership, both inside and outside the academy.' Oliver Coates, Journal of African Military History