A referendum on becoming a republic was held in South Africa on 5 October 1960. The Afrikaner-dominated right-wing National Party, which had come to power in 1948, was avowedly republican and regarded the position of Queen Elizabeth II as the South African monarch as a relic of British imperialism. The National Party government subsequently organised the referendum on whether the then Union of South Africa should become a republic. The vote, which was restricted to whites—the first such national election in the union—was narrowly approved by 52.29% of the voters.The Statesman's Year-Book 1975-76, J. Paxton, 1976, Macmillan, page 1289 The Republic of South Africa was constituted on 31 May 1961.
Background
Afrikaner republicanism Despite the defeat of the two Boer Republics, the South African Republic (also known as the Transvaal) and the Orange Free State, republican sentiment remained strong in the Union of South Africa among Afrikaners.South Africa, Department of Information, 1986, page 131 D. F. Malan broke with the National Party of Prime Minister J. B. M. Hertzog when it merged with the South African Party of Jan Smuts to form the Gesuiwerde Nasionale Party (or "Purified National Party") which advocated a South African republic under Afrikaner control. This had the support of the secretive Afrikaner Broederbond organisation, whose chairman, Lodewicus du Plessis declared:
National culture and national welfare cannot unfold fully if the people of South Africa do not also constitutionally sever all foreign ties. After the cultural and economic needs, the Afrikaner will have to devote his attention to the constitutional needs of our people. Added to that objective must be an entirely independent genuine, Afrikaans form of government for South Africa... a form of government which through its embodiment in our own personal head of state, bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh, will inspire us to irresistible unity and strength.Ethnic Nationalism and State Power: The Rise of Irish Nationalism, Afrikaner Nationalism and Zionism, M. Suzman, Macmillan, 2016, page 151
In 1940, Malan, along with Hertzog, founded the Herenigde Nasionale Party (or "Reunited National Party") which pledged to fight for "a free independent republic, separated from the British Crown and Empire", and "to remove, step by step, all anomalies which hamper the fullest expression of our national freedom".Christian Nationalism and the Rise of the Afrikaner Broederbond in South Africa, 1918-48, Charles Bloomberg, Macmillan, page 159
That year, a Commission appointed by the Broederbond, met to draft a constitution for a republic; this included future National Party ministers, such as Hendrik Verwoerd, Albert Hertzog and Eben Dönges.Oxwagon Sentinel: Radical Afrikaner Nationalism and the History of the 'Ossewabrandwag, Christoph Marx, LIT Verlag Münster, 2009, page 405
In 1942, details of a draft republican constitution were published in Afrikaans-language newspapers Die Burger and Die Transvaler, which provided for a State President, elected by white citizens known as Burgers only, who would be "only responsible to God... for his deeds in the fulfilment of his duties", aided by a Community Council with exclusively advisory powers, while Afrikaans would be the first official language, with English as a supplemental language.Afrikaner Politics in South Africa, 1934-1948, Newell M Stultz, University of California Press, 1974, page 82
On the matter of continued Commonwealth membership, the Broederbond's view was that "departure from the Commonwealth as soon as possible remains a cardinal aspect of our republican aim".The Diplomacy of Isolation: South African Foreign Policy Making, Deon Geldenhuys, South African Institute of International Affairs, Macmillan, 1984, page 31
During the visit to South Africa by King George VI and his family in 1947, the Afrikaans-language newspaper Die Transvaler, of which Verwoerd was editor, ignored the royal tour, making reference only to "busy streets" in Johannesburg.Afrikaners: Their Last Great Trek, Graham Leach, Macmillan London, 1989, page 37 By contrast, the newspaper of the far-right Ossewa Brandwag openly denounced the tour, proclaiming that "in the name of this monarchy, 27 000 Boer women and children were murdered for the sake of gold and their fatherland".The Lion and the Springbok: Britain and South Africa Since the Boer War, Ronald Hyam, Peter Henshaw, Cambridge University Press, 2003, page 280
National Party in government In 1948, the National Party, now led by D. F. Malan, came to power, although it did not campaign for a republic during the election, instead favouring remaining in the Commonwealth, thereby appealing to Afrikaners who otherwise might have voted for the United Party of Jan Smuts.Turning Points in History, Book 4, Bill Nasson, Rob Siebörger, Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, 2004 This decision to downplay the republic question and focus on race issues was influenced by N C Havenga, the leader of the Afrikaner Party, which was in alliance with the National Party in the election.
Malan's successor as Prime Minister, J G Strijdom, also downplayed the republic issue, stating that no steps would be taken towards that end before 1958.STRIJDOM ABATES ZEAL FOR REPUBLIC; Premier Says He Will Not Try to Change South Africa's Status Before 1958, The New York Times, 15 September 1955 However, he later reaffirmed his party's commitment to a republic, as well as a single national flag.STRIJDOM DETAILS REPUBLIC POLICY; South African Chief Pledges One Flag, One People, but Will Retain Race Laws, The New York Times, 20 December 1955 Strijdom stated that the matter of whether South Africa would be a republic inside or outside the Commonwealth would be decided "with a view to circumstances then prevailing".South Africa and the World: The Foreign Policy of Apartheid, Amry Vandenbosch, University Press of Kentucky, 2015, page 180 Like his precessor, Strijdom declared the party's belief that a republic could only be proclaimed on the basis "of the broad will of the people".South African Republicanism, Toledo Blade, 30 January 1958
On becoming Prime Minister in 1958, Verwoerd gave a speech to Parliament in which he declared that:
This has indeed been the basis of our struggle all these years: nationalism against imperialism. This has been the struggle since 1910: a republic as opposed to the monarchical connection... We stand unequivocally and clearly for the establishment of the republic in the correct manner and at the appropriate time. The Rise of Afrikanerdom: Power, Apartheid, and the Afrikaner Civil Religion, T. Dunbar Moodie, University of California Press, 1975, page 283
In 1960, Verwoerd announced plans to hold a whites-only referendum on the establishment of a republic, with a bill to that effect being introduced in Parliament on 23 April of that year. White Laager: The Rise of Afrikaner Nationalism, William Henry Vatcher, Praeger, 1965, pages 171-172 The Referendum Act received assent on 3 June 1960.Statutes of the Union of South Africa, Government Print. and Stationery Office, 1960, page xi He stated that a simple majority in favour of the change would be decisive, although minimal changes would be made to the existing constitutional structures.Parliaments of South Africa, J J N Cloete, J.L. van Schaik, 1985, page 49
Before he was succeeded by Verwoerd as Prime Minister in 1958, Strijdom had lowered the voting age for whites from 21 to 18.Nationalism and New States in Africa: From about 1935 to the Present, Ali AlʼAmin Mazrui, Michael Tidy, Heinemann Educational Books, 1984, page 162 Afrikaners, who were more likely to favour the National Party than English-speaking whites, were also on average younger than them, with a higher birth rate. Also included on the electoral roll were white voters in South West Africa, now Namibia. As in South Africa, the Afrikaners and ethnic Germans in the territory outnumbered English-speaking whites, and were strong supporters of the National Party.Afrikaner Politics in South Africa, 1934-1948, Newell M. Stultz, University of California Press, 1974, pp. 160-1 161 In addition, Coloureds were no longer enfranchised as voters and were not eligible to vote in the referendum.General Elections in South Africa: 1943-1970, Kenneth A. Heard, Oxford University Press, 1974, ages 102-115
In hopes of winning the support of those opposed to a republic, not only English-speaking whites but Afrikaners still supporting the United Party, Verwoerd proposed that constitutional changes would be minimal, with the Queen simply being replaced as head of state by a State President, the office of which would be a ceremonial post rather than an executive one.The White Tribe of Africa, David Harrison, University of California Press, 1983, pp. 160-161
Wind of Change speech Earlier, in February of that year, British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan had given a speech to the Parliament in Cape Town, in which he spoke of the inevitability of decolonisation in Africa, and appeared critical of South Africa's apartheid policies.Winds of Change secrets revealed, Independent Online, 5 October 2012 This prompted Verwoerd to declare in the House of Assembly:
It was not the Republic of South Africa that was told, 'We are not going to support you in this respect.' Those words were addressed to the monarchy of South Africa, and yet we have the same monarch as this person from Britain who addressed these words to us. It was a warning given to all of us, English-speaking and Afrikaans-speaking, republican and anti-republican. It was clear to all of us that as far as these matters are concerned, we shall have to stand on our own feet.The White Tribe of Africa, David Harrison, University of California Press, 1983, page 163
Many English-speaking whites, who had regarded Britain as their spiritual home, felt disillusionment and a sense of loss, including Douglas Edgar Mitchell, the United Party's leader in Natal.Power, Pride & Prejudice: The Years of Afrikaner Nationalist Rule in South Africa, Henry Kenney J. Ball Publishers, 1991 Despite his opposition to Verwoerd's plans for a republic, Mitchell spoke in vehement opposition to many points of Macmillan's speech.The Bell Tolls In Africa , The Tablet, 5 March 1960
Opposition to republic in Natal
In Natal, the only province with an English-speaking majority of whites, there was strong anti-republican sentiment; in 1955, the small Federal Party issued a pamphlet The Case Against the Republic, while the Anti-Republican League organised public demonstrations.Natalians First: Separatism in South Africa, 1909-1961, Paul Singer Thompson, Southern Book Publishers, 1990, pages 154-156 The League, founded by Arthur Selby, the Federal Party's chairman, launched the Natal Covenant in opposition to the plans for a republic, signed by 33,000 Natalians. Drawing cheering crowds of 2,000 people in Durban and 1,500 in Pietermaritzburg, the League became the largest political organisation in Natal, with 28 branches across the province, with Selby calling for 80,000 signatories to the Covenant.South African Historical Journal, Issues 14-18, South African Historical Society, 1982, page 90 Inspired by the Ulster Covenant of 1912, the Natal Covenant read: