Hostages in Congo

Amid the chaos of the Congo Crisis and the Simba Rebellion of 1964-1965, the world watched as thousands of civilians and Christian missionaries were swept behind rebel lines. Among them was the Dutch Montfortian priest, Father Harrie Tielemans. His memoir-published here for the first time in English-depicts the collapse of social order and the harrowing captivity endured by a devoted band of missionaries. In this account, four missionaries suffer brutal martyrdom: Sister Marie Antoinette of the United States; Sister Anne-Françoise of Belgium; and Brother Clemens and Father Leo Ammerlaan of the Netherlands. From the initial rebel expansion to the desperate rescue missions of 1964, this edition restores a nearly forgotten chapter of 20th-century history at the intersection of African decolonization and the Cold War. Enlivened by the evocative drawings of Dutch artist Huub Schimmer along with contemporary photographs, this book is a vital visual and textual record of a nation in upheaval. Tielemans' narrative offers an unvarnished look at the human cost of post-independence struggle and the resilience of a church under fire.