Black Yanks : defending Leroy Henry in D-Day Britain / Kate Werran ; [foreword by J. Robert Lilly].

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Werran, Kate, author.

Lilly, J. Robert, author of foreword.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

African American soldiers--Great Britain.

World War, 1939-1945--Great Britain--Participation, African American.

World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--France--Normandy.

Trials (Military offenses)--United States--History--20th century.

Physical Description:

287 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Cheltenham ; Chicago : The History Press Ltd., 2024.

Summary:

"Black Yanks is the story of how an African American soldier from Missouri ended up on death row in D-Day Britain - and the extraordinary campaign that set him free. The drama plays out over a tumultuous six weeks, set against a backdrop of the most audacious sea-borne invasion ever attempted. As the build-up to D-Day escalates, Leroy Henry's story unfolds, allowing us to view a pivotal point in history with an entirely new perspective: making race, the 'special relationship' and the British peoples' collective powerful key considerations. This fascinating, alternative timeline reveals an edgier wartime society, hidden tensions in Anglo-American relations and the moment the British tabloid press learned to roar. Ultimately, Leroy Henry's court martial - and everything it stood for - provoked mind-blowing decision-making at the highest military level. Kate Werran unearths a wealth of archival material to help disclose the story behind the first significant, if uncelebrated, win in the civil rights movement; a story that has been overlooked for nearly eight decades. Until now." -- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Foreword / J. Robert Lilly

Dramatis personae

Introduction

Prologue: 26 May 1944

5 May 1944: The state of Britain

5 May 1944: The arrest of Leroy Henry

10 May 1944: Act I: Anglo-American relations

10 May 1944: Act II: America's race relations

10 May 1944: Act III: The second statements of Leroy Henry

11-24 May 1944: 'The razor's edge'

25 May 1944: Prelude

25 May 1944: Cherchez la Femme

25 May 1944: The interrogation of Leroy Henry

25 May 1944: The prosecution rests its case

25 May 1944: In defense of Leroy Henry

25 May 1944: Awaiting the verdict

26-28 May 1944: A pause for thought

29-30 May 1944: Rumblings in the city

31 May-2 June 1944: 'A coiled spring'

3-5 June 1944: 'The longest day'

6 June 1944: 'A giant factory in the sky'

7-11 June 1944: 'I have prayed and wept for this fellow'

10-13 June 1944: 'The old man himself'

14-17 June 1944: 'The purported confession'

18-22 June 1944: Returned to duty.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1803993529

9781803993522

OCLC:

1419059689