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Prime Minister of South Africa
Arms of South Africa
Incumbent Office Abolished Position succeeded by the Executive State President of South Africa
Style	The Right Honourable (1910–1961)
Appointer	Governor-General of South Africa (1910–1961) State President of South Africa (1961–1984)
Term length	Whilst commanding the confidence of the House of Assembly
Inaugural holder	Louis Botha
Formation	31 May 1910
Final holder	Pieter Willem Botha
Abolished	10 September 1984

The Prime Minister of South Africa (Afrikaans: Premier or Eerste Minister van Suid-Afrika) was the head of government in South Africa between 1910 and 1984, as the leader of the largest party in the House of Assembly.

History of the office

The position of Prime Minister was established in 1910, when the Union of South Africa was formed. The first Prime Minister was Louis Botha, a former Boer general and war hero during the Second Boer War.

The South African monarch, represented by the Governor-General was the head of state, until 1961, when the non-executive State President assumed that role, following South Africa's departure from the Commonwealth of Nations, and the establishment of a republic.

The position of Prime Minister was abolished in 1984, when the State President was given executive powers after a new constitution was adopted. The last Prime Minister, Pieter Willem Botha, become the first executive State President after the constitutional reform. After 1994, the President's position was infused with many of the dependencies of the former Prime Minister's position.

In post-Apartheid South Africa, the Inkatha Freedom Party has called for a return to Westminster-style split executive with a Prime Minister, as part of its overarching goal of avoiding a single party South African state.

List of Prime Ministers of South Africa (1910–1984)

Parties

  South African Party
  United Party
  National Party

#	Name (Birth–Death)	Picture	Took office	Left office	Elected (Parliament)	Political Party
style="background:Template:South African Party/meta/color; color:white;" rowspan="2"|1	Louis Botha (1862–1919)		31 May 1910	27 August 1919	1910 (1st) 1915 (2nd)	South African Party
First South African Prime Minister. Formation of the Union of South Africa. World War I. Conquest of the German South-West Africa. Crushed the Maritz Rebellion. Ratified the Treaty of Versailles. Died in office.
style="background:Template:South African Party/meta/color; color:white;" rowspan="2"|2	Jan Christiaan Smuts (1870–1950)		3 September 1919	30 June 1924	— (2nd) 1920 (3rd) 1921 (4th)	South African Party
Attended 1921 Imperial Conference. Attempted to broker an armistice and peace deal between the British and Irish nationalists in the Irish War of Independence. Crushed the Rand Rebellion, which caused a political backlash and he lost 1924 general election to National Party. Created coalition with National Party and returned as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice after the 1933 general election.
style="background:Template:National Party (South Africa)/meta/color;" height=60|	James Barry Munnik Hertzog (1866–1942)		30 June 1924	5 September 1939	1924 (5th) 1929 (6th) 1933 (7th) 1938 (8th)	National Party (until 1934) United Party (from 1934)
3
			Replaced Dutch as second official language by Afrikaans in 1925. Instated a new national flag in 1928. Approved women's suffrage for white women in 1930. Adoption of Statute of Westminster 1931. Removed Black voters from the common voters roll. Created coalition with South African Party to form the United Party. Resigned after the United Party caucus refused to accept his stance of neutrality in World War II.
style="background:Template:United Party (South Africa)/meta/color; color:white;" height=60|
style="background:Template:United Party (South Africa)/meta/color; color:white;" rowspan="2"|(2)	Jan Christiaan Smuts (1870–1950)		5 September 1939	4 June 1948	— (8th) 1943 (9th)	United Party
World War II. Ratified the United Nations Charter. Issued the Fagan Report, which stated that complete racial segregation in South Africa was not practical and that restrictions on African migration into urban areas should be abolished. Lost 1948 general elections to National Party.
style="background:Template:National Party (South Africa)/meta/color;" rowspan="2"|4	Daniel François Malan (1874–1959)		4 June 1948	30 November 1954	1948 (10th) 1953 (11th)	National Party
Came to power on the program of apartheid and began the comprehensive implementation of the segregationist policy.
style="background:Template:National Party (South Africa)/meta/color;" rowspan="2"|5	Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom (1893–1958)		30 November 1954	24 August 1958	— (11th) 1958 (12th)	National Party
Tried to cut ties with United Kingdom. Removal of Coloured voters from the common voters roll. Extended 'treason trial' of 156 activists (including Nelson Mandela) involved in the Freedom Charter. Severed diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union. Died in office.
style="background:Template:National Party (South Africa)/meta/color;" rowspan="2"|6	Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd (1901–1966)	File:Hendrik Verwoerd-official-1958.jpg	2 September 1958	6 September 1966	— (12th) 1961 (13th) 1966 (14th)	National Party
Start of the South African Border War. The Wind of Change speech by British PM Harold Macmillan. Proclaimed South Africa a Republic after 1960 referendum. Abolished the separate Black voters roll. Launched the bantustan programme. Assassinated.
style="background:Template:National Party (South Africa)/meta/color;" rowspan="2"|7	Balthazar Johannes Vorster (1915–1983)		13 September 1966	2 October 1978	— (14th) 1970 (15th) 1974 (16th) 1977 (17th)	National Party
Abolished the Coloured voters roll. South African Border War escalated into a full-scale conflict. He managed policy of détente with African countries, and accepted to let black African diplomats living in white areas. He alienated an extremist faction of his National Party when it accepted the presence of Māori players and spectators during the tour of New Zealand rugby union team in South Africa in 1970. He unofficially supported, but refused to recognise officially, the neighbouring state of Rhodesia, which was ruled by a white minority government that had declared independence from United Kingdom. In 1974, under pressure from US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger he pressured Ian Smith, the Prime Minister of Rhodesia, to accept in principle that white minority rule could not continue indefinitely. Resigned.
style="background:Template:National Party (South Africa)/meta/color;" rowspan="2"|8	Pieter Willem Botha (1916–2006)		9 October 1978	3 September 1984	— (17th) 1981 (18th) 1984 (19th)	National Party
Remained Minister of Defence until 1980. Improved relations with the West. Authorized radical constitutional reform in 1983, including the creation of the Tricameral Parliament, which give a limited political voice to the country's Coloured and Indian population groups. The majority Black population group was still excluded. Began a secret nuclear weapons program in collaboration with Israel, which culminated in the production of six nuclear bombs. Creation of police counter-insurgency unit, Koevoet. Resignation of Vorster as State-President in the wake of the Muldergate Scandal. Abolished the position of Prime Minister in 1984 and became Executive State President.

References

1. IFP: Statement by Mangosuthu Buthelezi, Inkatha Freedom Party Leader, welcomes Constitutional Court judgment on regulation of introduction of bills

See also

• State President of South Africa
• President of South Africa
• Governor-General of the Union of South Africa

External links

v t e Prime ministers of South Africa
Union of South Africa (1910–1961) (under Apartheid from 1948)	Louis Botha Jan Smuts Barry Hertzog Jan Smuts D. F. Malan Hans Strijdom Hendrik Verwoerd
Republic of South Africa (1961–1984) (under Apartheid)	Hendrik Verwoerd John Vorster P. W. Botha

• Use dmy dates from May 2013
• Lists of prime ministers
• Prime Ministers of South Africa
• Government of South Africa
• Lists of political office-holders in South Africa