1946 in South Africa

← 1945 1944 1943 1946 in South Africa → 1947 1948 1949
Decades:	1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s
See also:	List of years in South Africa

The following lists events that happened during 1946 in South Africa.

Incumbents

• Monarch: King George VI.
• Governor-General: Gideon Brand van Zyl (starting 1 January).
• Prime Minister: Jan Christiaan Smuts.
• Chief Justice: Ernest Frederick Watermeyer.

Events

January

• 1 – Gideon Brand van Zyl is appointed the 7th Governor-General of the Union of South Africa.

March

• 12 – The South African Indian Congress delegation is received by the Viceroy, Lord Wavell, in Delhi, India, and submits a petition drafted in consultation with Mohandas Gandhi.
• 12 – The Indian Representative Act is repealed.
• 12 – India terminates the trade agreement with South Africa.
• 15 – The Asiatic Land Tenure Act, the "Ghetto Act", is amended to state that Indians may only live where Indians had resided in non-proclaimed areas.
• 31 – 6,000 Indians march in Durban in protest to the Asiatic Land Tenure Act.

April

• 16 – The Eureka Diamond, the first diamond discovered in South Africa, is sold in London for £5,700.

June

• 11 – India recalls its High Commissioner from South Africa.
• 22 – During a prayer meeting in New Delhi, India, Mahatma Gandhi calls for South Africa to stop hooliganism by whites.
• 23 – A group of white men attack and assault a group of Indian Passive Resisters. ^[1]

July

• 8 – Indian protests against government legislation lead to the arrest of hundreds of Indians.

Births

• 8 January – Whitey Basson, businessman and billionaire, former CEO of Shoprite
• 18 January – Jakes Gerwel, academic and politician. (d. 2012)
• 19 July – Lucas Malan, Afrikaans poet, author and academic
• 15 September – Mike Procter, cricketer (d. 2024)
• 5 December – Sarel van der Merwe, former rally and racing driver
• 18 December – Steve Biko, anti-apartheid activist. (d. 1977)

Deaths

• 24 January – Morris Alexander, politician (b. 1877) ^[2]
• 13 April – William Henry Bell, musician, composer and first director of the South African College of Music. (b. 1873)

Railways

Class GEA

Railway lines opened

• 1 June – Transvaal: Ogies to Vandyksdrif, 21 miles 30 chains (34.4 kilometres). ^[3]

Locomotives

• The South African Railways places the first of fifty Class GEA 4-8-2+2-8-4 Garratt locomotives in service. ^{[4] [5] [6]}

References

1. Indian passive resistance in South Africa: 1946 – 1948 (Accessed on 4 April 2017)
2. Abrahams, Israel (1968). "Alexander, Morris". In De Kock, W. J. (ed.). Dictionary of South African Biography. Vol. 1 (1st ed.). p. 10. OCLC   85921202.
3. Statement Showing, in Chronological Order, the Date of Opening and the Mileage of Each Section of Railway, Statement No. 19, p. 191, ref. no. 200954-13
4. Holland, D. F. (1972). Steam Locomotives of the South African Railways. Vol. 2: 1910-1955 (1st ed.). Newton Abbott, England: David & Charles. pp. 103–105. ISBN   978-0-7153-5427-8.
5. Hamilton, Gavin N., The Garratt Locomotive - Garratt Locomotives produced by Beyer, Peacock , retrieved 10 November 2012
6. Paxton, Leith; Bourne, David (1985). Locomotives of the South African Railways (1st ed.). Cape Town: Struik. ISBN   0869772112.