1939 in South Africa.html



See also: 1938 in South Africa, other events of 1939, 1940 in South Africa and the Timeline of South African history.

Events

September

• 2 September - James Hertzog puts his case to the National Assembly for South Africa to remain neutral in the Second World War against Jan Smuts who supports a Commonwealth alliance
• 4 September - Jan Smuts becomes the 4th Prime Minister of South Africa for the second time
• 5 September - The National Assembly votes on a motion whether or not to join the war and Jan Smuts wins by 13 votes
• 6 September - The Union of South Africa declares war on Germany

Births

Deaths

• 16 October - Charlotte Maxeke, religious leader and political activist, dies in Johannesburg at the age of 65