Thomas Boydell (15 December 1882 – 5 July 1966) was an English-born South African politician and supporter of apartheid. Born in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

, Boydell left school at an early age and completed an apprenticeship as a marine engineer. He emigrated to the

Colony of Natal The Colony of Natal was a British colony in south-eastern Africa. It was proclaimed a British colony on 4 May 1843 after the British government had annexed the Boer Republic of Natalia, and on 31 May 1910 combined with three other colonies t ...

in 1902, becoming a fitter in

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

. He joined the Labour Party and won election 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 ...

from the constituency of Durban Greyville. In 1924, he was appointed as Minister of Post and Telegraphs, then served as

Minister of Labour Minister of labour (in British English) or labor (in American English) is typically a cabinet-level position with portfolio responsibility for setting national labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, traini ...

from 1925 until 1929. Boydell later served as a senator. In later years, he toured internationally, promoting

apartheid in South Africa Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boydell, Tommy 1882 births 1966 deaths British emigrants to the Colony of Natal Labour Party (South Africa) politicians Politicians from Newcastle upon Tyne