Charles Robberts Swart (5 December 1894 – 16 July 1982), nicknamed "Blackie",
was a South African politician who served as the last
governor-general of the Union of South Africa from 1959 to 1961 and the
first state president of the
Republic of South Africa from 1961 to 1967.
Early life
Swart was born on 5 December 1894 on the Morgenzon farm, in the
Winburg district, part of the
Boer republic of the
Orange Free State
The Orange Free State ( ; ) was an independent Boer-ruled sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Em ...
(which became a British colony in 1902 and a province of the
Union of South Africa
The Union of South Africa (; , ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day South Africa, Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the British Cape Colony, Cape, Colony of Natal, Natal, Tra ...
in 1910).
[''Current Biography Yearbook''](_blank)
H. W. Wilson Company, 1960, page 420
He was the third of six children, born to Hermanus Bernardus Swart (1866–1949) and Aletta Catharina Robberts (1871–1927). The Anglo-Boer War (
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...
) broke out when he was five years old. During the war, his mother and the children were interned at the
Winburg concentration camp. Out of the three boys, one died while in the concentration camp. His father was wounded and captured by the British during the
Battle of Paardeberg
The Battle of Paardeberg or Perdeberg ("Horse Mountain", 18–27 February 1900) was a major battle during the Second Anglo-Boer War. It was fought near ''Paardeberg Ford (crossing), Drift'' on the banks of the Modder River in the Orange Free St ...
. He became a prisoner-of-war and stayed in Groenpunt and
Simonstad until the end of the war.
Aged seven, Swart went to the government school in Winburg. He later went to a CNO (''Christelike Nasionale Onderwys'' or "Christian National Education") school, set up by the Afrikaners in response to
Lord Milner's anglicisation policy at the government-sponsored schools.
He established himself as a
barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
in 1914. He spent a brief period in
Hollywood acting in silent films, before embarking on his public career. He practised law in Bloemfontein from 1919–1948, with the exception of the time spent earning a degree in journalism from
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
in New York in 1921–22. He reported briefly from Washington for the ''
Die Burger'' newspaper.
He was married to Cornelia Wilhelmina (Nellie) de Klerk and had three children. He was a tall man at .
Public life
In 1923, he was elected to the
House of Assembly
House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level.
Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible g ...
as the Member of Parliament for
Ladybrand.
until he was defeated in 1938. Swart was a member of the
Ossewabrandwag. He became leader of the
National Party in the
Orange Free State
The Orange Free State ( ; ) was an independent Boer-ruled sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Em ...
and MP for
Winburg in 1941. After the end of the Second World War, he was appointed Minister of Justice when the
National Party came to power in 1948, and was responsible for legislation to strengthen the powers of the
South African Police to suppress anti-apartheid activity.
Between 1949 and 1950 he held the portfolio for Education, Arts and Science and served as Deputy Prime Minister between 1954 and 1959.
In 1959, Swart was appointed Governor-General, but like his predecessor
Ernest George Jansen, he was a staunch republican.
[''Politics in the Republic of South Africa''](_blank)
Leonard Monteath Thompson, Little, Brown, 196, page 60 Despite this, he had earlier kneeled before Queen
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
and kissed her hand. In a
referendum
A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...
the following year, a small majority of White voters endorsed a government proposal to become a republic. In 1961, after signing the new republican constitution passed by Parliament into law, he asked the Queen to release him from office, and Parliament then elected him as State President, the new post which replaced the monarch and the Governor-General as ceremonial head of state.
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...
and other underground Black resistance leaders tried to protest against the change to the new system by planning a three-day
general strike of non-White workers, but the government preemptively averted most of these plans through an extensive use of police force to persecute the dissenters.
Although elected for a seven-year term in office, Swart served as state president for only six years, and retired in 1967. After his retirement, Swart was awarded the
Decoration for Meritorious Services
The Decoration for Meritorious Services was an honour conferred until 1987 by the Government of the Republic of South Africa, usually for political services to the country. The appointments were made by the State President of South Africa.
Pos ...
by State President
Jim Fouché. He died on 16 July 1982, aged 87. Swart was popularly known as "Blackie" (''Swart'' is
Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...
for "black")
["Blackie and the Blacks"](_blank)
''Newsweek
''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...
'', 1961, Volume 57, Part 2, page 46 or as "Oom Blackie", ''oom'' being Afrikaans for "uncle", but used as a sign of respect towards an older male.
Legacy
The tallest building in
Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein ( ; ), also known as Bloem, is the capital and the largest city of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa. It is often, and has been traditionally, referred to as the country's "judicial capital", alongsi ...
, which housed various governmental departments and the Law Faculty of the University of the Orange Free State, was named the President CR Swart Building in his honour. In 2015, the ANC government renamed the popular CR Swart Building the
Fidel Castro Building.
A statue of CR Swart at the
University of the Free State
The University of the Free State (; Sotho language, Sesotho: ''Yunivesithi ya Freistata'') is a multi-campus public university in Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State (province), Free State and the judicial capital of South Africa. It wa ...
was destroyed by protesting students in late-February 2016.
The highest peak in the remote
Prince Edward Islands was called State President Swart Peak, before it was renamed Mascarin Peak in 2003.
Swart's portrait is depicted on the obverses of the
coins of the South African rand – from 1 to 50 Cents dated 1968, which was struck to commemorate him as the first
State President of South Africa
The State President of the Republic of South Africa () was the head of state of South Africa from 1961 to 1994. The office was established when the country 1960 South African republic referendum, became a republic on 31 May 1961, outside the ...
.
50 Cents Charles Swart; Afrikaans Legend - SUID AFRIKA
/ref>
References
Generally:
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swart, Charles Roberts
1894 births
Afrikaner people
1982 deaths
Apartheid government
Afrikaner Broederbond members
University of the Free State alumni
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni
Ministers of education of South Africa
Governors-general of South Africa
Herenigde Nasionale Party politicians
Justice ministers of South Africa
Members of the House of Assembly (South Africa)
National Party (South Africa) politicians
People from Masilonyana Local Municipality
Purified National Party politicians
South African people of Dutch descent
State Presidents of South Africa
South African prisoners and detainees
20th-century presidents in Africa
Ossewabrandwag members
Prisoners and detainees of the British military