Frans Erasmus
South African politician
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François Christiaan Erasmus (19 January 1896 – 1 July 1967) was a South African National Party politician and Minister of Defence from June 1948 to 1959 as well as Minister of Justice from 1959 to August 1961.
François Christiaan Erasmus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Minister of Justice | |
| In office 12 December 1959 – 10 August 1961 | |
| Prime Minister | Hendrik Verwoerd |
| Preceded by | Charles Robberts Swart |
| Succeeded by | B. J. Vorster |
| Minister of Defence | |
| In office 4 June 1948 – 12 December 1959 | |
| Prime Minister | |
| Preceded by | Jan Smuts |
| Succeeded by | Jacobus Johannes Fouché |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 19 January 1896 Houtenbeck, Merweville District, Cape Colony |
| Died | 1 July 1967 (aged 71) De Mond, Bredasdorp District, South Africa |
| Party | National |
| Spouses | |
Early life
He was born on 19 January 1896 at Houtenbeck in the Merweville district of the Cape Colony to Marthinus Frederik Erasmus and his wife Hester Maria Jacoba Maritz.[1] He was educated at the University of Cape Town and obtained a Bachelor of Laws degree.[2]
Career
In 1927 he was appointed Deputy Attorney-General of South West Africa.[2] In 1928, he returned to South Africa and became the assistant-secretary of the National Party in the Cape Province.[2] In 1930, he was appointed organising secretary of the same party.[2] Afterwards he entered politics and was elected to Parliament in 1933 as the member for Moorreesburg.[2][3] He joined D.F. Malan's cabinet as the Minister of Defence in 1948.[4] He modernised the South African Defence Force by establishing the training gymnasiums for officers in the army, navy and air force.[2] He was also involved in the establishment of the South African Military Academy.[2] He negotiated the Simonstown Agreement, the return of the naval base from Royal Navy control.[2]
During World War II, Erasmus became a general in the Ossewabrandwag.[5]
He was widely considered to be incompetent[6] and was very unpopular[6] because of his broad changes to the military to remove what he called the "British Influence".[6] This included the removal of items such as the Red Tabs (Rooi Luise)[7] and the retrenchment or firing of numerous English-speaking officers and the appointment of Afrikaner ones in their place.
He was appointed Minister of Justice in 1959, in the Hendrik Verwoerd cabinet.[2] After his term as Minister of Justice, which ended upon acceptance of his own request for retirement, he was appointed Ambassador to Italy from 1961 until 1965.[2] He retired from public service at that time due to his declining health.[2][3]
Marriage
Erasmus first married Christina Wiese of Melsetter in the then Southern Rhodesia. They had a son and a daughter. On 9 January 1946 he married Cornelia Margaretha (Corrie) Naudé of Lydenburg. They had three daughters.[1]
Honours
A Strike Craft SAS Frans Erasmus of the South African Navy was named after him.[8]