Blog - News and Links
The real reason America backed the Congo mercenaries
Anyone with a suspicious mind might ask why such a big hammer to crack such a relatively small nut. I believe I gave the real reason for the huge force in my biography, 'Mad Mike' Hoare: The Legend ...
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When 'Mad Mike' met Che Guevara
What if 'Mad Mike' and Che Guevara had met in battle in the Congo? Perhaps they did! I asked an artificial intelligence website, ChatGPT, what a conversation between the two would have sounded like ...
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In defence of mercenary soldiering
War is a ghastly business, but so is the alternative. It was men like Mike Hoare and his Wild Geese, call them rough men if you like, who saved much of southern Africa from the communists at that time...
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A beer breakfast with Mobutu … and other Congo stories
Living in Durban, South Africa, you don't have to scratch very hard to find a link to 'Mad Mike' Hoare. Quizz Night encounters and an amusing tale...
Read MoreFascinating background to the bestselling book 'Congo Mercenary'
In this six-minute video interview Chris Hoare, son of Mike Hoare, eloquently answers some frequently asked questions about the Congo, the mercenaries, the CIA, the film 'The Wild Geese' and Mike Hoare.
For more info on the book, go to www.amazon.com or www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
Bestseller 'Congo Mercenary' republished
Written in 1966 immediately after the action, the book is THE authoritative source if you are interested in how the 'Wild Geese' put down the communist-inspired rebellion in 18 months...
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Mike Hoare and Lord Marmaduke Hussey - the British aristocracy loved Mike.
So here's the thing. Lord Marmaduke Hussey or Dukie, as he was known, was a friend of the Queen of England – and a friend of Mike Hoare!...
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Mike Hoare was a dangerous man: he was a 'dreamer of the day'
Mike Hoare was a dreamer of the day. He acted on his dream. His dream was that he would go to the Congo and stop the Reds there. No way was he going to sit and watch the communists come south...
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Collector's treasure now ON SPECIAL
Great news. The price of 'leatherbound' copies of 'Mad Mike' Hoare: The Legend has been reduced to $149, down from $249. Each book is signed by Mike Hoare and Chris Hoare and numbered.
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In defence of the Congo mercenaries
From time to time, I receive criticism of the Congo mercenaries. Some people describe them as "hired killers" and the like. This does not sit well with me, as the son and biographer of the leader of the Wild Geese in 1964 and 1965. This is how I see it:
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Mike Hoare was 'impossibly charming'
Mike Hoare was gifted with a sharp mind, quick wits, a wonderful sense of humour and much else besides. He was also charming and cultured ….
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How Mike Hoare found happiness in prison
Now, in November 2021, it is nearly two years since Mike set off on his last adventure. Politely, of course. He was 100 years old, even though he had lived dangerously. An extraordinary man, and extraordinary in so many ways ….
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Chris Hoare reflects on his father’s 100 years
It is more than a year now since Mike set off on his last adventure, and I still receive emails from people expressing their admiration for Mike.
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Mike Hoare fervently believed in the power of prayer
Mike Hoare was a Christian believer and was particularly strong on the power of prayer, and relates light-heartedly how 'God' spoke to the men during a Sunday service on the eve of a battle.
Read MoreMike Hoare fervently believed in the power of prayer
Here you can watch Mike Hoare himself, as a very old man, reading a short and light-hearted story from his book Congo Warriors about the attitude of many 5 Commando men toward prayer.
Watch on YouTubeIs it true the SA army supplied 'Mad Mike' Hoare with the weapons to do a coup in the Seychelles?
Now the problem was: how to get the weapons to the Seychelles safely and securely ....
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Mike Hoare and his 'Wild Geese' rescued missionaries in the Congo
... on the first day there were still two American families trapped in the suburbs. Mike personally led the raid to get them out!
Read MoreMike Hoare and his 'Wild Geese' rescued thousands of missionaries and civilians from barbarity ...
... but for some they were too late. Even some of the hardbitten mercenaries were overcome with emotion at the sight of the shockingly abused nuns.
Watch on YouTube
Mike Hoare held strong beliefs about leading his men
‘Mad Mike’ Hoare was always described as a brilliant leader of men. How did he do it? There is no single answer, rather a unique combination of tactics.
Read MoreWhat ‘Mad Mike’ Hoare believed about leading men
"When you get it right, it never fails to impress your men. Better than that, it gives them to understand, very rightly, that you intend to know them as individuals."
Watch on YouTubeHow Mike Hoare quit the Congo … and was then induced to return by his 'employer'.
But who was his 'employer'? What did they say to persuade Mike to return? And what did it cost them?
Watch on YouTubeMike Hoare’s mercenary soldiering days began with a drink at The Edward Hotel in Durban.
It was there that Mike met a man recruiting gendarmes to work in the breakaway province of Katanga. Mike saw it as an opportunity to get back into soldiering.
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Mike Hoare quit the mercenary scene, but was persuaded to return.
By December 1964, the horror of war had taken its toll, and Mike did not intend to renew his contract. What drew him back?
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The beginning of Mike Hoare’s mercenary soldiering days.
Mike’s favourite hotel in Durban was called ‘The Edward’, it was here that Mike was recruited to bolster the cause of Katanga, a province of the Congo.
Read MoreWhat's with a 'leatherbound' edition of the Mike Hoare biography
Chris Hoare talks about the biography's leatherbound edition.
Watch on YouTubeSee what some famous people thought of the Mike Hoare biography
Chris Hoare reads reviews from a variety of well known authors and reviewers.
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What’s with the leatherbound edition?
Chris Hoare explains: “After I published my book in softcover, I came to realise that there was some demand for a leatherbound edition.
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See what some famous people thought of Chris Hoare’s book
“When you take 12 years, working between times, to research and write a book about your own father, you can reasonably hope for some good reviews. And in that regard, I have no complaints.”
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What was Mike Hoare really like? – Part 2
Hans Germani, one of Mike’s officers, wrote a book about his time as one of the ‘Wild Geese’. It is titled White Soldiers in Black Africa.
Read MoreWhat was 'Mad Mike' Hoare really like - Part 2
One of Mike's officers in the Congo wrote a book afterwards. Here, Mike himself reads a very accurate passage about himself.
Watch on YouTubeWhat was 'Mad Mike' Hoare really like - Part 1
One of Mike's officers in the Congo wrote a book afterwards. Here, Mike himself reads a very accurate passage about himself.
Watch on YouTube
What was Mike Hoare really like? – Part 1
The Congo attracted unusual types. One of Mike Hoare’s ‘Wild Geese’ was a German doctor who was then working as a journalist in Kenya, and who decided to join 5 Commando to get the inside story.
Read MoreMike Hoare himself reads a rivetting description of himself
In this second of two parts, we watch an elderly Mike give a deadpan reading from Anthony Mockler's book.
Watch on YouTubeMike Hoare reads a British writer's account of their meeting in the Congo in 1964
An elderly 'Mad Mike' gives a deadpan reading from Anthony Mockler's book, The New Mercenaries.
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Journalist tracks down 'Mad Mike' – Part 2
An extract from 'Mad Mike' Hoare: The Legend, in which the author, Chris Hoare, gives a British journalist's impressions on meeting Mike Hoare.
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Journalist tracks down 'Mad Mike' – Part 1
An extract from 'Mad Mike' Hoare: The Legend, in which the author, Chris Hoare, gives a British journalist's impressions on meeting Mike Hoare.
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How Mike Hoare recruited Rhodesians for his Seychelles coup bid.
In 1978, Mike Hoare was approached to overthrow the socialist government of the Seychelles. Over the next few years he secretly visited the islands three times, and ultimately it was time for action.
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'Mad Mike' Hoare: sailing was in his blood.
Mike Hoare's male forebears were all ship's captains. His own father, Thomas, did his sea apprenticeship on a four-masted barque sailing out of Dublin, Ireland, and was a ship's captain by the age of 27. Sometimes Mike said that saltwater ran in his veins.
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What kind of men signed up to become Wild Geese in the Congo?
The majority of the volunteers were men who at that moment were out of work, and who were attracted by the thought of 'big money'. Many of these, when they got to the Congo, realised it was going to be a real fighting war, so they got on the next plane back to Johannesburg.
Read MoreMike Hoare discovers blue-water sailing.
Visit the yacht basin and yacht club in Durban where Mike kept the 36-foot yacht that he loved so much in the 1960s.
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How did Mike Hoare get involved in the Congo?
This is a question I am often asked.
Mike did not reveal the answer in his book Congo Mercenary because it was all a bit hush-hush at the time. As is often the case in life, it was a question of who you know.
'Mad Mike' Hoare - What kind of men became Wild Geese in the Congo - and why?
Mercenary soldiering attracts unusual types. Here, Mike's son and biographer, Chris Hoare, talks about this.
Watch on YouTube'Mad Mike' Hoare - How he got to lead the Wild Geese in the Congo
As so often in life, it is WHO you know that is most important. Mike's best friend at that time was CIA. Here, Chris joins the dots ...
Watch on YouTubeThis is where 'Mad Mike' Hoare lived in Durban, South Africa
Mike Hoare spent many of his last 11 years in the 'paradise city' of Durban. Here, his son and biographer, Chris Hoare, tells you more about that – and about the biography.
Watch on YouTubeMike Hoare eulogy, by his son - Chris Hoare
Mike's son and biographer, Chris Hoare, gave the main eulogy at the funeral service for Mike Hoare on 10 February 2020.
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An extraordinary life
Lt Col 'Mad Mike' Hoare died in his sleep aged 100 years in Durban, South Africa, on 2 February 2020. Mike's biographer, Chris Hoare, said, "Mike Hoare lived by the philosophy that you get more out of life by living dangerously, so it is all the more remarkable that he lived more than 100 years.
Read MoreRecent Posts
When 'Mad Mike' met Che Guevara
Apr 2023
In defence of mercenary soldiering
Mar 2023
A beer breakfast with Mobutu.
Feb 2023
Collector's treasure now ON SPECIAL
Sep 2022
In defence of the Congo mercenaries
Aug 2022
Mike Hoare was 'impossibly charming'
Dec 2021