Strength and Goodness (Force-Bonté) by Bakary Diallo is one of the
only memoirs of World War I ever written or published by an
African. It remains a pioneering work of African literature as well
as a unique and invaluable historical document about colonialism
and Africa's role in the Great War. Lamine Senghor's The Rape
of a Country (La Violation d'un pays) is another pioneering French
work by a Senegalese veteran of World War I, but one that offers a
stark contrast to Strength and Goodness. Both are made
available for the first time in English in this edition, complete
with a glossary of terms and a general historical introduction. The
centennial of World War I is an ideal moment to present Strength
and Goodness and The Rape of a Country to a wider, English-reading
public. Until recently, Africa's role in the war has been neglected
by historians and largely forgotten by the general public.
Euro-centric versions of the war still predominate in popular
culture, Many historians, however, now insist that African
participation in the 1914-18 War is a large part of what made that
conflict a world war.