[Forum Game] Union is Strength - Kaiserreich South Africa in Civil War

[99KingHigh]

Union is Strength: A South Africa Kaiserreich Game

Hello and welcome to Union is Strength. In this game, players will take on the role of the actors in South Africa’s Civil War as featured in Kaiserreich. Each participant will create their own character, or use an historical character, and occupy them in the corridors of civilian and military power. Characters may be political veterans (or newbies), renown military generals (or guerilla warriors), and any other variety of occupation that fits into the political or military characterization. The game will take place in the context of the wider Kaiserreich environment, and will be subject to the events and external influences that occur through the KR timeline.

Rules and Procedures

Each character will receive a single order, and this may be used for anything. It is highly advisable to keep your orders specific and reasonable; a prominent Minister attempting to attract Canadian support should probably also not order a campaign against Praetoria, and individual commanders acting without coordination will not fare well. The political and the military are not segregated in game. Both sides will have to figure out how their civil-military relations will operate and who has the supremacy on the battlefield; civilian leadership or commanders, and to what degree. This will also depend on how you shape your individual governments. The aim is having a coordinated plan of action, although this will be easier said than done.

All orders should be sent through a PM conversation with "UiS_Player Name."

All players are expected to have consistent ICs if they desire success in their orders. I take the quality and quantity of ICs into account when determining the outcome of any order. Declaring “I have raised X amount of troops” will not suffice: if you want to raise a militia you need to order it and IC the background behind such recruitment. Secret actions obviously do not require corresponding IC, but the player will need to IC nonetheless to supplement.

Orders can be multiple actions, but must be related into a single-chain: for example, raising a militia of Boers and then marching to a settlement for next turn’s attack is acceptable. However, a civilian player could not increase military production and then order an army to attack a town.

Stick to your proficiency; clear planning and coordinating will win the day. And ICs, obviously.

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The game will begin immediately before the 1938 election; you have no control over the election or the rapid-fire events that precede the Civil War. This is to give everyone time to make their character and start ICing background. South Africa’s KR lore, for the purposes of this game, has been written below.

Below is a list of political factions throughout the country before the Civil War. You may associate your character with any of these factions if you want. Players may hail from any of the areas shown below on the map (NOTE: that includes Rhodesia).

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The National Party [Orange]
Leader: James Hertzog
Ideological Stance: Afrikaner Interests, Pro-apartheid
Factions: Market Liberalism, Social Liberalism
Bio: The pro-Afrikaner party of the Union of South Africa, the National Party supports a strong and independent republic. Primary policies of the National Party include firm support for the Afrikaans language and its distinctive ethnonational culture, formalized racial segregation, and political centralization. Diverse in economic policy, the party emphasizes identitarian politics over economic doctrine. This affords the faction a modicum of flexibility, but also induces sub-surface conflict.


The Purified National Party (Gesuiwerde) [Orange, Grey]
Leader: Daniel Malan
Ideological Stance: Afrikaner Supremacism, Pro-Apartheid, Anti-Imperial, Pro-German, South African Unionism Factions: Economic Nationalism, Mitteleuropa integration.
Bio: The Purified National Party takes the Afrikaner nature of the National Party to the political extreme—Afrikaner culture and language is desired above other competitors and tied to a system of racial superiority. Gesuiwerde leaders favour a racially segregated system of government known as apartheid, divided into self-secluded areas and spheres of influence that divide the races of South Africa. These extreme pro-Afrikaners favour solidarity with the German Empire, and argue for closer ties with Mittelafrika, although there is some debate if cordial relations should include economic integration with the Mitteleuropa system.


The Dominion Party [Light Blue]
Leader: Jan Smuts
Ideological Stance: Pro-Imperial, Monarchist, Federationist
Factions: Progressivism, One Nation Conservatism
Bio: Born from the English-speaking population in South Africa, the Dominionists are the imperial party of South Africa, actively campaigning for reintegration with the British Commonwealth. Consequently, the Dominionist Party is monarchical and supportive of reconquest attempts of Great Britain from syndicalism. Bolstered by the emigrés from the British Revolution, the Dominionist Party enjoys wide demographic support, but is also diverse in ideological beliefs. Not unlike the National Party, there is a plurality of economic modes of thought for South Africa. However, most dominionists place the anti-unitary federalization of South Africa and ties with Canada before economic considerations.

The Labour Party [Bright Red]
Leader: Walter Madeley
Ideological Stance: Democratic Socialism, White Working Class Interests, Trade Unionism
Factions: Pro-Apartheid, Anti-Apartheid
Bio: Inimical to the market liberalism and social corporatism of the National Party, the Labour Party represents the interests of South Africa’s working class. The movement is affiliated exclusively with the white proletariat and white trade unions, emphasizing the economic interests of the blue-collar classes above “cheap native labour.” Accordingly, Labour endorses an anti-black and anti-immigration agenda. Despite its racial underpinnings, it is a socialist party, defending for state coordination of much of the economy and the establishment of wide-ranging state services. It’s issue towards racial policy is borne more out of economic pragmatism than any ideological mission, although large elements of the party support the apartheid proposals of the National Party. Other pragmatists, constituting a smaller faction, seek to protect the rights of the unionized white minority and argue that if the natives were also unionized in such a manner, they would not be an economic threat to the white working class.

The International Socialist League [Dark Red]
Leader: Bill Andrews (ISL, ceremonial), James Calata (ANC), Rachel Simons (IWA)
Ideological Stance: Syndicalism, Native Republic, Impossibilism, De Leonism, Anti-Imperial, Anti-German, Pro-Internationale
Bio: Created in 1915, the ISL is the Third Internationale’s branch in South Africa. The league is primarily composed of affiliated organizations and coordinates the anti-racist movement in South Africa while promoting a syndicalist and native South Africa. Affiliated groups, including the political pressure group “ANC” (African National Congress) and trade union wing “IWA” (Industrial Workers of Africa), are the activist presence in the ISL that offsets its anti-electoral stance. The league enjoys growing support from the native, Indian, coloured, and immigrant sectors of the population, although it remains hindered by orthodox syndicalism. ISL operatives also operate in tandem with guerillas in Mittelafrika, and prepare to launch a proletariat revolution against the imperial colonialist governments.

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Current Government

The current constitution is an adaption of the 1909 South Africa Act. The Union of South Africa is a unitary state, rather than a federation, with each colony's parliaments abolished and replaced with provincial councils. The Parliaments consists of two parts; the Volksraad and Senate. The Volksaraad members are elected mostly by the country's white minority, although the franchise varies depending upon the province. In the Cape and Natal, a qualified franchise based upon property and education requirements is in place, while the vote is white-only almost everywhere else. The Senate is appointed by an electoral college consisting of members of each of the five Provincial Councils and the members of the Volksraad. Governments follows the Westminster model, although with an elected President as head of state. South Africa continues to administer Bechuanaland, Basotuland, and Swaziland as protectorates, and while considerable legislation is in place restricting the rights of the native population within the Union, it has not been fully implemented in these territories.

The ruling coalition is the National Party (non-Purified) and the Labour Party.

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Character Creation

All players should either be a person of political life or have a distinct military character. Obviously, characters that are written for power are more likely to receive positions when the Civil War breaks out, while characters that are more...idiosyncratic...will be given their due independence. If you want a historical character, you'll need to request it from me. Also, if you do choose to create a "veteran" character, please make sure you spell out what positions he held in the past. In simpler terms, I will allow players to have a backstory as a government minister so long as said post was not Prime Minister, President, or Minister of Foreign Affairs. If in doubt, ask me. There is much more flexibility with the type of position that a military character can have, although still use common sense.

A player biography should be as thus:

Name:
Province: Western Cape, Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, Natal, Oranje-Vrystaat, Transvaal, Bechuanaland, Rhodesia.
Ethnicity: English South African/Boer/etc, etc
Date of Birth:
Profession:
Faction (if applicable):
Biography:

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We have an IRC channel for usage; you can go to https://kiwiirc.com/client/irc.theairlock.net and joining the channel by typing "#WiR_Main" (no quotations).

 

[99KingHigh]

Character List​

 

[99KingHigh]

Nation Description

The Government of the Union of South Africa
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Form: Unitary Semi-Presidential Westminster Republic
Head of State: President J. B. M. Hertzog
Head of Government: Prime Minister Eric Louw
Legislature: Volksraad and Senate
Currency: South African Rand
Establishment: May 31 1910

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[99KingHigh]

History of Modern South Africa (Part 1)​

For the first quarter of the twentieth century, South Africa was the dusty firebrand of the British Empire. Disaffected in custom, tethered by force, and confused by race, the horn colony spewed incessant rebellion. Bitter-einders—zealous Boer nationalists who refused reconciliation with Westminster—thrice battled the khakis for their sovereignty. First failure was greeted in the Transvaal War, and later repeated, although with much martyrdom, in the Second Freedom War. Neither produced an agreeable conclusion. But these calamities still proved insufficient to the obstinate nationalist. Animated by the fabled deeds of the previous decade, the irreconcilables drew their arms amidst the Weltkrieg’s steel baptism. Quixotic aspirations, inspired by De La Rey’s legacy, and aggravated by Manie Maritz’s bellicism, drew battle against metal realities. The promised victory never arrived, and the British counteracted the irreconcilables with a decisive seizure of German territory. What remained of the irreconcilable motivation encountered an equally inflexible determination to safeguard the imperial arteries. The unanimity of zealotry that had glorified the Second Boer War was no longer discernible. British policy had co-opted the Afrikaner into collaboration and imperial benefit; an Afrikaner, Louis Botha, former commander-in-chief of the Transvaal insurrectionists, presided over the Commonwealth Dominion as Prime Minister. He was flanked by another Boer veteran, Lt. Gen Jan Smuts, who served as Botha’s deputy and Minister of Defense. The “South African Party” enabled Smuts and Botha to advance Afrikaner interests through the profitable mechanisms of the British Empire. Shielded from the conflict’s darker fronts, Botha’s ministry operated with little interruption, despite the inauspicious catastrophe on the Western Front.

John X. Merriman (center), Louis Botha (left) and Jan Smuts (right).​

Irish-born Sir Thomas William Smartt, the leader of the opposition Unionist Party, offered much of the concern that eluded the government. He warned that the abrupt capitulation of France might prelude German naval escalation and consequently endanger the relative security of the African front. Determined to reflect his growing concern in government, Smartt moved the Unionist Party towards coalition, and shortly thereafter joined Jan Smuts in government after the unexpected death of Prime Minister Botha. The sinking of HMS Furious and the U-Boat surge ensured that Smartt’s wartime apprehensions were not held in isolation. Consequently, Smartt and Smuts, desirous of wartime unity, unified the South African Party and the Unionist Party. The new political party, formed in 1920, retained the advocative position on Afrikaner interests, but also deepened South Africa’s commitment towards the Commonwealth. Political unification with the Unionist Party cost the South African Party the support of the more radical pro-Afrikaner factions that had remained loyal to the SAP throughout the Weltkrieg. There was a real belief in the country that the amalgamation would produce Afrikaner defections to South Africa’s largest party, J.B.M. Hertzog’s National Party. The crisis of security, however, worked towards the advantage of the Dominionists, who scored an absolute majority in the February 1921 general elections. The Nationalists and the Labour Party were unable to prevent the continuation of the Anglophile government. But the war was not long for the world. Extreme civilian exhaustion and resource depletion produced Anglo-German ceasefires, culminating in the “Ludendorff Proposition.” Smutts left for London in September and was a signatory of the instruments that concluded the so-called “Peace with Honour.” For now, South Africa was safe from German expeditions, although many extreme Afrikaner nationalists were disappointed by Ludendorff’s compromise.

The early Unionist and South African Party cabinet with Smuts and Smartt front-row and center. ​

Thousands of South Africans had fought in the Weltkrieg and the Irish War of Independence. The ultimate resolution of these destructive conflicts—stalemate and compromise—stained the wild idealism that had preceded the war. While the Germans lavished in triumph, and the French mourned in defeat, the Anglosphere was left in solemn contemplation. The terrible sense of disillusionment, aggravated by a lack of resolution, was pervasive in the returning veterans. Scorn from the nationalist neutralists or pro-German irreconcilables worsened the return. The government attempted to ameliorate the demographic change, but post-war economic troubles steered the veterans towards the extremes. Just a month after the cessation of hostilities, deteriorating economic conditions ignited these radical sentiments. The difficulties began when the post-war price of gold plummeted on the international exchange. In order to avoid unprofitability, the mining houses attempted cost reduction measures; proposals were adopted whereby half the white workforce would be replaced by cheaper black labor and white wages would be additionally reduced. These devaluations and wage cuts were unacceptable for workers because living costs had nearly doubled as a consequence of the war. The Chamber of Miners threatened to close certain mines that worked on profit margins, while the trade unions demanded that the government subsidize the mines to stabilize gold prices. But the government, cognizant of syndicalist developments in France and presupposed to market economics, sided with the mining companies. Afterwards, the Chamber of Mines threatened to close more mines if trade unions failed to agree to wage cuts. The trade unions, particularly the South African Industrial Federation (SAIF), continued to oppose concessions, and the mining houses enforced their wage cuts and labor replacement. The employment of native labor enraged the trade unions, and on January 2 1922, the coal mines went on strike. Further ballots confirmed the strike, and the action widened to include all workers of the South African Industrial Federation. Approximately twenty-four thousand workers refused to work and the economy of the Witwatersrand froze.

The strikes begin as crowds gather for social change.​

The Prime Minister, concerned that his intransigence had worsened the situation, moved to negotiation. But the discussions failed to produce any results. The mining houses responded to the breakdown in negotiation with further terminations of white South Africans. Visible moves towards native employment enraged the strikers—the dissidents swiftly organized and prepared for violent encounters with the police. Strengthened by the galvanizational potential of employment racialism, James Hertzog’s Nationalist Party, the partisan home for the nationalist Afrikaners, and Frederick Creswell’s Labour Party, closely affiliated with the trade unions, announced their support for the strikers and attempted to swing public opinion against the SAP. The unexpected extra-political alliance between the opposition parties awoke the ministry from its stupor. Smuts offered the miners the chance to return to work and provided police protection for those who crossed the picket. This move led militarized the conflict as the police, strikers, and defectors clashed; engagements throughout February and March drew blood and bodies. After the companies requested martial law, the strikers reacted with revolutionary action, and drove the government out from the Rand. The strikers prepared to march in protest to Johannesburg; the march afforded the Prime Minister the opportunity to call forth military reinforcements and declare martial law. Smuts, presuming that the strikers had revolutionary intentions, personally led the operation and commanded twenty-thousand South African troops in the crackdown. The strikers attempted to retaliate by occupying the policy stations of Forsburg, Auckland Park, and Cottesloe, but the army prevented the action with air assistance, and captured the commandos. The center of gravity shifted towards the strategically important Brixton Reeg, west of Johannesburg, nearby the striker residences. Government forces were driven from Brixton Reef and the strikers entrenched their position. When the military attempted to take the position, the strikers rebuffed them from defensive positions at the Cottesloe school. Artillery barrages and air assault followed the failed offensive. These pressures were too much for the strikers to endure, and the government retook the community and captured seventeen hundred strikers and killed many others. The fall of Brixton Reeg exposed the striker’s stronghold: Fordsburg. Around the market buildings, the strikers erected defensive hedges from sandbags, bricks, branches, and anything that was deemed useful. Government soldiers attacked from the north, from Auckland Park, from the West Rand, and from the city center to the east of Forsburg. Resistance to the West Rand offensive, in Krugersdorp and Roodepoort, was easily wiped away.

Military police units occupy a barricade beside a destroyed building.​

On March 14, military aircraft flew over Fordsburg and asked blacks, women, and non-participants to leave the area before 11:00. Many citizens then fled to Fordsburg, where the police were waiting, and were processed or arrested by state officials. Others were detained in austere camps at the fairgrounds. At 11:00, the guns from Brixton Reef attacked Fordsburg, while the infantry advanced to seize the city. Preliminary defensive measures proved effective and the soldiers were forced to abandon a direct assault. However, the firefight at the striker headquarters intensified, and afforded the Transvaal Scottish Regiment and Durban Light Infantry the window to advance into Fordsburg by means of the railway that run through Fordsburg. Smuts watched the battle from a lookout point and continued to give instructions, including the deployment of armored vehicles and tanks. The infantry regiments conquered streets block-by-block and slowly surrounded the market square. Strike trenches around the area, however, hindered the offensive but could not stop the eventual encirclement. Finally, after 2 PM, the Durban Light Infantry crossed the threshold and broke into the market building. The leadership committed suicide to avoid capture, and the strikers’ remnant swiftly fled the scene. The last forms of resistance were swept away and the state began an extensive crackdown on participants. On March 16, six days after the militarization of the action, the strike was canceled.

Depiction of the massacre produced in Le Petit Journal.​

The material consequences of government action were limited; two-hundred and fourteen citizens had perished, but the psychological aftermath was a public relations catastrophe. Relatives of the deceased strikers were not allowed to visit the graves of their loved ones for fear of police prosecution, and greater numbers of the fallen were thrown into mass graves. Eighteen of the strike leaders were sentenced to death, and four were executed soon afterwards. The mining companies increased goal production from 7,949,084 increased to 9,341,049 per annum, but average wages decreased from £485 to £375. After the strike, another fifteen thousand whites were fired. The workers who survived native employment endured deep salary cuts, and sunk into destitution. But there was a silver-lining for the defeated. Prime Minister Smut’s heavy-handed crackdown ruined his popularity and united his enemies. J.B.M Hertzog described Smuts in parliament as the South African Prime Minister who will be remembered as the leader with bloodied hands. The trade union movement, closely affiliated with the Labour Party, pushed the Labour leadership into political negotiations with the Nationalists. A mutual desire to protect white workers from native labour culminated in an electoral alliance with the National Party—the majority of the trade unions endorsed the new National-Labour Coalition against the liberal South African Party. The most radical elements of the labour movement, particularly representatives of the native population, backed the International Socialist League against the pro-Afrikaner Labour Party. William Andrews, the ISL’s leader, molded the movement into a syndicalist bulwark; African, coloured, and Indian populations were the primary benefactors of the anti-imperialist ISL. These new threats—syndicalist emergence and unified opposition—convinced the Prime Minister that drastic measures of placation were needed. Between the so-called “Rand Rebellion” and the 1924 general elections, Smuts tried to win back the Afrikaners through anti-Indian restrictions. The restrictive legislated included deprivation of voting rights, prohibition on land ownership sanctions, and imposition of trade sanctions.

J.B.M Hertzog, leader of the National Party.​

Smuts and the SAP were unable to overcome public repugnance with populist racial sanctions. The government reaction to the Rand Rebellion had damaged government credibility and stained the image of the SAP as the cautious party of incumbency. In the 1924 general elections, Hertzog's National Party and Creswell's Labour Party scored a clear victory over the SAP. The government lost twenty-six seats, including Smuts’ own seat in Pretoria West, and was swept out from power. Hertzog became the first nationalist Prime Minister of South Africa, and appointed Creswell as Minister of Defense, traditionally the second most powerful office in the South African cabinet. Creswell was also given the portfolio of Minister of Labour. His Labour colleague, the Hon. Thomas Boydell, served as Minister of Posts and Telegraphs and Minister of Public Works until 1925, when Boydell took Labour and gave his previous positions to the Hon. Walter Madeley, another Labour politician. The National Party, new to government, took the majority of positions. Hertzog's radical colleague and deputy, D. F. Malan, served as Minister of Education, Minister of Interior Affairs, and Minister of Public Health. Former Boer general Jan Kemp was given the Ministry of Agriculture. Hertzog’s former private secretary, Nicolaas Havenga, was made Minister of Finance. Tielman Roose, an outspoken defender of the miner strike and Labour Party pact, became Minister of Justice. For the first time in recent history, an anti-British ministry came to preside over a Commonwealth Dominion.

 

[99KingHigh]

History of Modern South Africa Part #2
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The new ministry, inexperienced and divided, was to confront the greatest constitutional and diplomatic crisis in South African history. Hertzog, who had risen to prominence through the memorable deeds of the second war, was the undisputed master of his party. A moderate in the ranks, Hertzog was a defender of Anglo-Dutch bilingualism and linguistic equality. Although Hertzog was fiercely opposed to native voting rights and supported the theory of apartheid, the old general also defended the sustained rights of colored South Africans. During the Weltkrieg, Hertzog maintained his moderacy and refused participation in the Maritz rebellion, leading the nationalist argument for South African neutrality. But the Rand Rebellion had reformed his intellectual constituency, and the hyper-elitist Prime Minister was abruptly charged with the defense of the working-class. He henceforth acted as the sentinel of the rights of poor laborers. Cognizant of this electoral responsibility, Hertzog and Creswell hurried to legislate working-class protections and interventions. A wage act, the coalition’s reaction to the rebellion, empowered the government to fix the wages of certain industries. Three pieces of anti-Indian statute—Transvaal Dealers (Control) Ordinance, Minimum Wages Act, Class Areas Bill—sanctioned Indian ability to obtain licenses, earmarked certain jobs for whites, and expanded informal segregation codes. The ministry also refused round-talks with the Viceroy of India when the conditions of repatriation were rejected by the Indian Government. Unsatisfied with progressive reform, Labour proposed the nationalisation of various strategic industries, but the proposals were rejected by National Party hardliners. These propositions were mundane compared to the extreme economic measures that were temporarily enforced after the thunderous revolution in world affairs.

The greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the twentieth century was not the First Weltkrieg. Despite Berlin’s victory, German hegemony over Europe remained incomplete after the successful syndicalist revolution in France, and the colonial continents remained subjugated to the imperial powers. But the disintegration of the British Empire convulsed every region and disrupted the incumbent international system of exchange and trade. Africa and Asia were thrust into the most terrible confusion, aggravated by power vacuums and regional territorial desires. When the first signs of dissent brewed in England, Hertzog and Creswell paid little attention. The lethargy was perpetuated by the assurances of the Governor-General of South Africa, the Earl of Athone, who advised without belief in danger. After March 15 1925, and the infamous speech of Philip Snowden, Athone’s tone turned to caution. He feared that the disruptions in Westminster would empower Hertzog’s republicanism or Creswell’s socialism. Athone’s premonitions were not without accuracy. The extreme right of the National Party, personified in D. F. Malan, stoked the nationalist sentiments of the leadership. Republican vehemence intensified as the British Revolution advanced throughout the Home Isles. After the encirclement of London on March 20 1925, Hertzog informed Athone that it was his intention to proclaim independence from the British Commonwealth. The Governor-General, eager to join his countrymen in Canada, emigrated South Africa and moved to Ottawa. Despite opposition from the South African Party, Hertzog received permission from the Volksraad to exercise exceptional powers. In his March 25 address to the nation, Hertzog invalidated dominion status and declared the Union of South Africa a republic. Parliament, accordingly, voted Hertzog as President of the Union of South Africa, and charged him with a seven-year executive term. Hertzog was inclined to appoint Malan as Prime Minister, but the Labour Party privately denounced Malan’s extremism and refused to serve under him. Tielman Roos, the incumbent Minister of Justice, was the Labour Party’s first choice. He had orchestrated the compromise between the National Party and the Labour Party, and was closely affiliated with trade unions. Determined to maintain the coalition agreement, Hertzog appointed Roos as Prime Minister against the advice of Malan.

Unshackled by British policy, Herzog appointed Malan as Foreign Minister. The radical nationalist immediately advocated drastic action to stave off potential confusion in the post-imperial scenario. Grand Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz, the Kaiser’s Reichskanzler, moved to stabilize the British colonies before the British syndicalists organized the African possessions for their internationalist cause. German military forces moved through British Africa with remarkable ease, and disarmed the local colonial administrators. Statthalter Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck’s mobile units moved to seize every English colony on the continent. The South African Government, shaken by the rapid amalgamation of Mittelafrika, hurried to safeguard economic and political assets throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. Vorbeck warned South Africa and Portugal that regional intervention against the British Empire was an act of aggression, but the hypocrisy inherit in the situation, and the lack of an official statement from Berlin, was assumed to be a blank cheque. Portuguese and South African subsequently troops moved into Nyasaland and Bechuanaland. The South Rhodesian colonial administration, more apprehensive of German occupation than South African assimilation, voted to join South Africa on April 15 as a member state of the union. After the occupation, Reichskanzler von Tirpitz presented King Manuel II of Portugal with the Second Ultimatum, and demanded that Nyasaland be passed to German jurisdiction. The imminent creation of the Union of Britain persuaded Portugal that any potential British assistance was highly unlikely, and consequently, the Portuguese folded. Tirpitz spared the South African administration the same humiliation; the Afrikaner administration was the least inimical to the German presence and Vorbeck was in no mood to endanger the only sympathetic government on the continent. He envisioned economic and political ties with the South African administration and was devoted to the sustained empowerment of the Afrikaner nationalists.

The British Revolution inaugurated South Rhodesia, Bechuanaland, Basutoland, and Swaziland to South Africa. These incorporated administrations, excluding South Rhodesia, resisted complete political assimilation, and Hertzog allowed the protectorates to maintain their former political structures within the framework of the Union of South Africa. Native populations enjoyed their exceptional privileges that were denied in “metropolitan” South Africa. This proved to the benefit of the International Socialist League, which was eager to assume the cause of the downtrodden native for the syndicalist movement. Shortly after the annexation, ISL and its affiliates in the ANC campaign for political reform expanded their purview from South African liberation to resistance against colonial oppression in the Freistaat. But mainstream South African life was less disturbed by the annexations than by the Commonwealth’s admonishment of the National Government. The loyal British strongholds—Canada, Delhi, and Australasia—agreed to sustain economic interdependence with each other, but sanctioned the new republic for independence and German association. Anglophobia in the Labour Party allowed Malan room to maneuver new economic partnerships. But in the intermission economic catastrophe was proximate; the sudden severance from the Commonwealth market caused widespread shortages and inflation. Finance Minister Nicolaas Havenga dumped the National Treasury on extraordinary interventionist measures, but the depletion of domestic assets threatened to aggravate the crisis. The government agreed to temporary nationalizations and extreme protection measures in order to prevent a complete breakdown of economic order. The crisis came to a sudden resolution when Malan and the German government agreed to an emergency bailout. Reichsbank President Karl von Helferrich, who later became famous for his 1928 assassination, supplied South Africa with the necessary injection of funds. The agreement inaugurated South Africa’s economic dependence on Germany; the stimulus provision afforded private and public companies the flexibility to procure new contracts with German export industries. Raw materials from South Africa flowed almost uniformly towards Mittelafrika, Mitteleuropa, and German dependencies in Asia. Economic stabilization followed and economic growth returned in 1927 after fourteen months of market adjustment.

The exceptional measures and nationalizations remained after the normalization. Certain personages within the National Party were eager to stave off condemnations from Smuts and the South Africa Party and revoke the controversial economic interventions. Hertzog’s faction was amicable to the proposed liberalization, but the program encountered fierce resistance from the Labour Party and their associates in the trade unions. Although not necessarily opposed to expansive state involvement, the extremists, known as the Gesuiwerde (Purified), balked at continued political submission to socialists. The faction, led by Malan, proved troublesome for pro-Labour Prime Minister Tielman Roos. Hertzog and Roos, eager not to play into the Gesuiwerde, agreed to delay further discussion of the coalition until the next general election. Fortunately for the moderate caucus, Malan was distracted by negotiations with the Delhi Government and Hyderabad Congress over Indian status in South Africa. These negotiations, which concluded in the agreement to promote voluntary repatriation, were succeeded by further restrictions on the immigrant population. The successful outcome of the agreements gave the National Party a political boost—Hertzog planned to use the so-called “Cape Agreements” and a newfound policy called Swart gevaar (Black danger) in order to procure victory for the National Party in the next election. The swart gevaar campaign was boosted by native protests against the Municipal Beer Halls and their beer monopoly, along with other local grievances. Hertzog’s racial campaign gave his party another decisive victory; the National Party was boosted in an absolute majority in the 1929 general election. The South African Party garnered more votes than the National Party, and gained eight seats, but remained behind the National Party. The Labour Party, suffered a severe setback; the party had been split between Walter Madeley (Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Public Works), who recognized the non-white members within the Industrial and Commercial Workers' Union, and the anti-white leadership. Labour split between “Creswell Labour” and “National Council Labour” with Madeley as its leader. The loss of eight seats, mostly from National Council Labour against the National Party, wiped out the majority of the party’s parliamentary leadership. Malan demanded that the National Party abandon the Labour Party and govern as the majority party. Hertzog concurred and replaced Prime Minister Roos with Nicolaas Havenga.

The National Government, buffed by the election, embarked afterwards on the disassemblage of the state’s economic apparatus. German prosperity and domination of the export market allowed the incumbent government to preside over a smooth transition away from the exceptional economic measures imposed in the post-revolution confusion and towards normalcy. Dependence on Germany, however, was not without its parliamentary critics. Smuts and his colleagues remained devoted to market connectivity with the Entente, and reformed the SAP into the United South African Party, colloquially called the “Dominionist Party.” The opposition was strengthened by the defection of Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr, former Administrator of Transvaal, to the Dominionist Party. Hofmeyr opposed the Afrikaner supremacism of the National Party and found the administration’s overdependence on Germany to be unsustainable economics. But these defections were relatively frivolour to the popular National Party. Havenga and Hertzog presided over the introduction of women's suffrage for white women in 1930, thus hardening the dominance of the white minority. Property and education requirements for Whites were abandoned in the next year, with those for non-Whites being severely tightened. Hertzog’s government also replaced Dutch as the second official language with Afrikaans in 1931, and changed the national flag to the Oranje, Blanje, Blou. Havenga formed the South African Iron and Steel Industrial Corp in 1932 to stimulate economic progress, and withdrew duties on imported raw materials for industrial usage. The developments drove employment opportunities but also increased the cost of living. Various forms of assistance to agriculture were also introduced. Dairy farmers, for instance, were supported by a levy imposed on all butter sales, while an increase in import taxes protected farmers from international competition. Farmers benefited from preferential railway tariffs and from the widening availability of loans from the Land Bank, supported by Berlin capital. The government also assisted farmers by guaranteeing prices for farm produce, while work colonies were established for those in need of social salvage. Secondary industries were established to improve employment opportunities, which did much to reduce white poverty and enabled many whites to join the ranks of both semi-skilled and skilled labour. Economic growth sustained the National Party, which triumphed again in the 1933 general election, albeit with Germanophobia in certain parts of the electorate slashing the majority as the Dominionist Party gained ground.

Elements within the National Party now feared that the party’s grip on power was provisional. Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr, popular among almost every demographic, was assumed to be Smuts’ choice for Prime Minister. The need for suffrage and social restrictions on non-White personages became the primary concern for incumbent MPs, particularly those who presided over marginal constituencies with enfranchised minorities in Natal and Cape. This bubbling concern, combined with the nationalists’ slashed majority, reinforced the political power of the Gesuiwerde. In August 1934, Malan and his allies in the Volksraad and the Senate made a play for power, and threatened to sink Havenga’s development plans for the minority-dominated protectorates. The maelstrom of confusion and opposition that succeeded the intra-party rebellion forced Hertzog to demote Havenga back to the Finance ministry. Malan was promoted to Prime Minister and the Gesuiwerde fell back into line. It was not sustainable politics for the National Party. Malan aroused suspicion and discontent among the non-Afrikaners and moderate Afrikaners. Apartheid—the proposed system of racial segregation—received serious consideration from the Malan ministry. Meanwhile, the militarization of the syndicalist states bred disquiet towards the International Socialist League. There was an uneasy sense that the radicalization of the government and the underground opposition would provoke racial warfare. The troubling loss of security that had sustained the party during the Havenga Ministry redoubled Malan’s crackdowns on dissent.

 

[99KingHigh]

History of Modern South Africa (Part 3)
​

The real danger was not from transcontinental networks of syndicalist activists. Neither the government nor private citizens expected the disruptive force to originate from the dependent entity. Instead, it was overconfidence from German investors, and crosscurrent policies from the Reichsbank that sparked the South African catastrophe. Kerensky’s assassination and the destabilization of Russia sparked a market correction at the Berliner Börse that morphed into a rout. Overvaluation of investments and exodus of domestic capital towards saturated investments in Mitteleuropa, Mittelafrika, and Asia thrust capital markets into disarray as countless foreign projects were exposed as precarious enterprises. The resulting disequilibrium in balance of payments crushed German exporters as interest rates fluctuate across Europe. A week after “Black Monday” the ramifications of the depression reached Johannesburg. The crisis smashed into South Africa—German export bankruptcies and production austerity meant that the demand for raw materials from South Africa vanished overnight. South African companies that depended upon the Mitteleuropa export market either liquidated their assets or laid off expensive white workers em masse in favour of the cheaper native workforce. The sudden lack of demand destroyed prices on commodities that were profitable to many Afrikaner farmers. For example, the price of wool fell 45% between 1936 and 1937. A large portion of the agricultural industry were unable to repay mortgages on their over-capitalized farms. Thus, the National Party found itself losing favour with one of its largest constituencies—conservative, rural Boers. Unlike Russia, South Africa was saved from a complete collapse by the gold mining industry—one of the largest and most advanced at the time—as the price of gold rose rapidly as investors sought a haven from the dead securities market. Growing gold exports compensated somewhat for the loss of other trade revenue. However, like the situation with the Boers, the National party lost support as the weak economy forced the gold corporations to replace white labourers with lower-paid blacks. Hertzog foresaw catastrophe in the 1938 elections if exceptional political and economic measures were not assimilated.

Despite the causes of the crisis—overdependence on the European export market—cheap native labour became widely viewed as the cause of unemployment. While the Dominionist Party relished in the cause célèbre of the economic crash, the National Party pivoted towards an anti-native approach, and endorsed ambitious work programs and exploitation of the protectorates. The Labour Party also called for restrictions on native employment, but added that socio-economic reforms, presumably on the basis of socialism, were necessary for resolution. Elements within the National Party swiftly called for renewed coalition with the Labour Party to formulate an interventionist and anti-native program for the economy. Prime Minister Malan and the Gesuiwerde scornfully rebuked reconciliation with the socialists, and magnified apartheid as the correct antiseptic to South Africa’s woes. Smuts and the Dominionists persistently attacked this perspective, and demanded rapprochement with the Entente to access Commonwealth trade and capital. Desperate for a scapegoat and concerned about the Dominionist punch, Hertzog prepared to oust the Prime Minister. He was averse to a direct replacement, and preferred to drive Malan away from the position on his own terms. On June 8 1936, Hertzog disseminated to his colleagues that he intended to negotiate with the Labour Party. When Havenga repeated this claim and proposed to enter discussions with the Labour leadership, Malan realized that Hertzog was moving against him. The next day, Malan resigned from office and the National Party. Alongside several National Party legislators, Malan formed the Gesuiwerde Nasionale Party (Purified National Party), and entered opposition. The defections denied the National Party its majority and the party was driven into coalition with Labour, which provided it with a bare majority.

Wildcat strike action and riots destabilized the country. Dominionists and non-whites protested the government’s economic policy, while populists and white workers clamored for restrictions on native employment and new opportunities. Eric H. Louw was appointed as the new Prime Minister, and the formed coalition government hurriedly crafted work programs. A general work program for the unemployed was established as the “National Labour Administration” in August 1936. The NLA employed thousands of unemployed urban white workers, and proved instrumental in the development of the transport links between the Natal, Transvaal, and Cape provinces. Between November and December, the transport network centralized around Hopetown, where the Orange River Mines were exploited by the NLA to extract Alluvial diamonds for the government. But the economic troubles were not resolved by these work programs. Reichskanzler von Papen’s adoption of Wilhelm Groener’s proposed “black zero” austerity policy further reduced German consumption and the industrial demand for South African goods. Both the National Party and Labour Party were grasping for some political victory to alleviate social pressures. Hertzog and Louw agreed to revive the Representation of Natives Act. Originally planned before the economic crisis, the Representation of Natives Act was meant to further solidify white political control in South Africa by repealing the acts in the Cape and Natal provinces which allow a small section of the native population to take part in elections. The disenfranchisement was intended by removing natives from the electoral rolls, and reducing their votes to the election of five whites to the Senate through a system of block voting. However, in the new climate, the Gesuiwerde demanded that the National Party appease the Afrikaners by proscribing coloureds as well as natives from the franchise. Hertzog and Louw managed to procure limited “purified” support through the establishment of the Native Representative Council, which was designed to separate natives politically in addition to the act’s amendments, and also leave coloured rights alone. Elsewhere, the coalition government moved to contain the spread of native labour. Autonomy was granted to the local rulers of the former High Commission Territories, and their authority was delineated at defined borders. Certain native labour was forcibly redirected to the development of the protectorates with the ultimate intention of sustaining that workforce in the confined protectorate economy.

Government investments and nationalizations gradually shifted from mineral exploitation to armament production. The militarization of NLA was decisive in the alleviation of the crisis in Transvaal, where artillery and arms factories were nationalized by the government for weapon exportation to the American Union State. Labor mobilization, native restrictions, and nationalist rhetoric were the natural recourse for the coalition government. For example, C.F. Clarkson, the Minister for Public Works, accelerated the pace of construction for the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria; the structure was intended to celebrate the Voortrekkers of the early 19th century who founded the interior republic and to appease dissident Afrikaners. These nationalist emblems conveniently coincided with the end of the recession in December 1937, but growth remained sluggish and expensive for the government. The weakened government of von Papen refused to repeat the capital access that the late Karl von Helferrich had provided almost a decade before, and the rejection fueled concern that devaluations would be imminent. Canadian Prime Minister R. B. Bennett, sensing opportunity, sent an unofficial emissary to Berlin in order to meet with Ernest George Jansen, the South African Foreign Secretary. Jansen was a stubborn republican, and rebuked Canadian offers of capital assistance, but the Earl of Athone informed Smuts through a furtive communication that the Canadian proposal was legitimate. When the debates in the Volksraad confirmed the legitimacy of the proposal, the Dominionist Party feigned outrage and convened a special congress in Port Elizabeth ahead of the election. On March 8 1938 the leading figures of the Dominion Party, General Jan Smuts and Jan Hofmeyer, along with the provisional governors of the Cape, Natal, and Rhodesia met to discuss the coming elections in May. In light of the diplomatic revelations, and wider disaffection with the government program for reconstruction, the Dominion Party proclaimed the “Port Elizabeth Declaration,” which asserted their intent to reform the Union of South Africa into a more liberal Federation and to pursue a reconciliation with the British Empire. The National Party assailed the declaration as a national betrayal, while the Gesuiwerde warned that it would not remain idle if the Dominion Party maneuvered for constitutional reform and imperial reunion….

 

[99KingHigh]

Game is open. I'll be adding and editing the first page throughout the day so keep checking in to see new stuff.

 

[Ab Ovo]

Sir Adriaan Van der Knaap, Baronet of Hemington Grey
Administrator of the Natal Colony
​

Date of Birth: January 27th, 1901
Political Affiliation: Dominionist

Sir Adriaan Van der Knaap, Bt, is the latest in a long line of traitors -- should you ask any of his Afrikaner detractors. His grandfather, Gerhardus Van der Knaap, was one of the original settlers of the city of Durban and was furthermore a man of deeply pro-British sympathies; assisting in the governance of the Natal Colony upon its proclamation and even converting to Anglicanism upon his deathbed. Gerhardus' son Maximiliaan shared the convictions of his father and fought for Queen and Country during the First Boer War. Maximiliaan Van der Knaap's service in the war was highly meritorious and in recognition of his service to the Crown (and the injuries which he had sustained, losing his right arm in the conflict) he was created a Baronet, with the territorial designation of 'Hemington Grey' after a small village in Huntingdonshire.

Following his father's death in 1905 Adriaan Van der Knaap was raised by his uncle Andries and was, from that young age, "raised up in the way he should go." Graduating in 1923 from Grey University College in Bloemfontein he entered the civil service shortly thereafter. A staunch supporter of South Africa's status within the Empire, Adriaan allied himself with Jan Smuts even after the latter was practically booted from government after the humiliating 1924 elections. In 1930 Adriaan managed -- mainly through the influence of Smuts, who was warmly disposed to the sycophantic young firebrand -- to attain the position of Administrator of Natal Province, which had a large Anglo and pro-Entente population. He has managed to hold onto that position even in light of recent instability and was one of the signatories of the Port Elizabeth Declaration.

 

[sealy300]

Newly enlisted Richard with his comrades during the start of the East Africa campaign, c.December 1914​

Name: Col Richard Miles Smith
Province: Rhodesia.
Ethnicity: English: British-African, Rhodesian resident.
Date of Birth: 4th May1896
Profession: Colonel in the 1st South Rhodesian Division; commander of The "Northern Guard" Regiment.
Faction: Domionists
Biography: Born in Shimla, Northern India; his parents were colonial administrators. They moved to Salisbury when he was only three, and he was raised in the city. They continued their work in teh civil service and Smith was raised to be an immense believer in the "Imperial Vision"; that the enlightenment influence of Great Britain could bring any man, as long as they were under its tutelage, unto civilisation. As such with the start of The Great War in 1914, he signed up as a part of Her Majesty's 2nd Rhodesia Regiment: tasked with occupying German Tanganyika. While the occupation of the colony was easy enough, defeating the commander of the German Askari regiments; Paul Von Lettow-Vorbeck would prove an immensely more difficult task. For the entire course of the war, Jan Smuts and the forces under him (including Smith's) tried to deal a final, decisive blow to the forces of Von Lettow-Vorbeck, however to no avail. This taught Richard on valuable lesson; that even a native could fight and die for the motherland, despite it being miles away; as as the Askari had for the Kaiserreich. While there was respect for Von Lettow-Vorbeck himself, Richard grew to hate the German adversary that he had fought for over 7 years. With the end of the war came a sense of defeat: none of the German territories they had occupied had joined the Empire nor had Von Lettow-Vorbeck been defeated, yet the Empire Remained strong and stood tall in the world. That was until the Revolution. It wasn't the overthrowal of the heart of the Empire that hit Richard the most, but the subsequent German occupation of British Colonies in Africa. All he had fought to defend, 7 years of his life, wasted in one single blow. It was as such in 1925, he vowed he would reclaim all of Rhodesia & Nyasaland, and Punish the Germans for what they had done. He remained in the army, a part of the surprisingly autonomous Rhodesian forces; unlike most other branches of the armed forces Rhodesians units would use English as their command language, often operation independent of command in Pretoria and even used royalist symbolism in various affairs. The South African government toloranted this due to the almost entirely English nature of the white minority in Rhodesia, and knew that its control over the province without the pro-Imperial white minority would be impossible. Smith was appointed to be in charge of border patrol with Mittelafrika in 1932: mostly dealing with smugglers, run-away "interns" in Georings "labour and industry units" and ISL guerillas. He let a degree of anti-Mittelafrikanisch units operated through the border, as his own way of messing with their government; although often had to crack down hard when the ISL did not do as agreed. He is a member of the Dominionist Party, and agrees with his old commander Smuts' plans for the restoration of Federalism with one exception: that Rhodesia must be a sovereign Dominion of the Empire once more.

He keeps to his imperialist ideals; it is not race that decides a man but his loyalty to the right ideals. He believes the native as inferior at present, however they can be civilised; much in accordance with his observation of the German Askari. However, he does foster hatred of the boers; seeing as nothing more than Germanic lowlives content with nothing more than to care for themselves. There is a quote his subordinates repeat to emphasise this: "I have seen a native who is a good imperial, I have seen many more that are not: but I have never seen a Boer be a good Imperial."

 

[Dadarian]

Dixley ka Duba Serne
​

Date of Birth: May 4th, 1894
Political Affiliation: None

Born in a Christian mission in the Colony of Natal, Dixley has lived a relatively prosperous life. Educated by the missionaries to carry the word of Christ into the hinterland, Serne could read, write, and wield arithmetic. Serne was dispatched to the Bush at the tender age of 15. Among the Zulu, he found his calling. He became a preacher of sorts (having lost his Bible in 1910), quickly leaving Anglican orthodoxy to take on a more Black-centric take on the word of the Lord.

Dixley returned to Natal in 1924 a completely changed man, at the head of a strange congregation. However, the racism he had not felt in years returned with a vengeance, and his appreciation for the actions "of too few white men for too many black men" brought about a second spiritual awakening in Dixley. The words of Jesus soon spoke of a graced people, not the Jew but the Negro, would would bring salvation onto themselves through the Lord's Mercy.

Unsurprisingly, this politically charged message was driven off from Natal, leaving Dixley and his flock dispossessed. Leaving the Colony, Dixley (in his mind a modern Moses) led his people on a pilgrimage to Rhodesia. After many twists and turns, too interesting to write about now, Dixley arrived in Rhodesia just in time for the 1938 elections.

 

[Luftwafer]

​

Name: Sir Hesperus Andrias van Ryneveld
Date of Birth: 2 May 1891
Profession: CGS of the Union Defence force
Biography:
A Flying ace from the great war, he received his knighthood for the first trans-continental flight over all of Africa. He was the founder of the South African air force, leading it directly until 1933, when he became Chief of the General Staff, since his promotion he set out to guide a reform of the armed forces

 

[aedan777]

Name: Charles E. Post
Province: Western Cape
Ethnicity: English
Date of Birth: July 6, 1895
Profession: Politician, member of the Volksraad
Faction: Labor Party, Pro-Apartheid
Biography: A middle class family hailing from Bristol, the Posts emigrated to Cape Town in 1905. When the Great War broke out with Germany in 1914, Charles Post would volunteer for the army, joining the Cape regiment in the South African 1st Infantry Brigade. Fighting in Egypt and France, Post came to greatly resent and dread the horrors of war. His experience fighting against the Senussi in Egypt in particular led him to develop a severe hatred of African tribalism, denouncing it as barbaric and intractably backwards. The horrific casualty rates suffered by the South africans in France did not spare Post, and he was twice wounded in combat, the second time proving darkly fortuitous, as the collapse of France occurred while he was recovering in England.

Charles Post returned from the war a changed man, blaming the war on callous imperialism, both from Britain and Germany, who sent a generation to die for a contest of global prestige. Post entered into politics, hoping to support his fellow men in preventing such a tragedy from ever occurring again, as well as freeing his adopted homeland from the ruinous rule of London. Yet, Post's bitter experiences led him to reject radicalism in all forms, so he found no joy in the overthrow of the British monarchy by red mobs. A dictatorship of the proletariat was no better than a dictatorship of the monarchy. Post had joined the Labour Party to protect the workers, not see them butcher their previous oppressors.

South Africa's declaration of independence did receive Post's full support, and the Pact between the Nationalists and Labour seemed strongly desirable to Post. Though wary of the pro-German sympathies of the Afrikaners, Post had great opposition to seeing more of his adopted countrymen being drawn in to die for some foolhardy cause by distant monarchs. And Post did find common cause with the belief of the Nationalists that Africans were unsuited to governance, remaining a supporter of Creswell after the split with Madeley.

Economically Post favored nationalization and careful government planning to solve South Africa's economic woes that occured during every international crisis. In particular, Post believes that South Africa has the resources to support a much greater industrialization, to make the nation more self-sufficient and less reliant on foreign trade. Diversification of trading partners also has been considered by Post, particularly after Black Monday, even potentially with the Entente, to prevent reliance on Germany and its precarious economy. Recent events caused a swift change in opinion of Post against ties with the Entente however.

Post is a firm opponent of the traitorous Port Elizabeth declaration, which he denounces as "an imperialist endeavour to bring ruinous war and division to the people of South Africa." Seeing it as the action of agents of the British crown to bring down the lawfully elected South African government, Post urges his party to support their coalition partners in cracking down hard against the declaration.

 

[Noco19]

Piet van Kan​

Province: Oranje-Vrystaat
Ethnicity: Boer
Date of Birth: February 3rd, 1890

Profession: Member of Parliament
Faction (if applicable): National Party

Biography:

Born in the Orange Free State during the early days of the Second Boer War, Piet van Kan came from a family of Voertrekkers turned successful-farmers. His own father, Paul van Kan, was especially prominent in Piet's childhood; Paul van Kan utilized his good standing among his fellow Boers to raise a volunteer militia in the small town of Ladybrand, lashing out at the British in cooperation with the general ongoings of the war.

When the British seized Ladybrand in 1900, Piet, his mother, and his two sisters were captured for fear of collaboration with Boer guerrillas, a charge that had merit, as Piet himself spied for his father's group. Rather than allow his family to suffer alone, Paul van Kan surrendered himself soon after. Paul and Piet, considered prisoners of war, were deported from South Africa, passing through Saint Helena, and then on to Bermuda. For just shy of two years, the two lived in a prison camp before being allowed parole, though neither intended to respect their oath of peace. By the time they returned, however, the war had concluded and the fight was out of the Boers.

Upon returning, the nature of the British's occupation began woefully aware. It was discovered that in their absence, the family farm had been burned and his family had been taken away to a concentration camp. There, both his eldest sister and his mother had died of disease. Many of his uncles and cousins had died during the war, and thus that remained found themselves homeless. While others moved on to work within the mines, Piet and his father, supported by what could be scrounged and recovered, moved to Bloemfontein. Paul van Kan eventually became a clerk and then manager at the Bloemfontein branch of the Bank of Africa.

Piet himself would, with his father's backing, pursue higher education at Victoria College in Cape Town, studying law. At the time, his intentions had been to thenafter pursue a position within the self-governing Orange River Colony, supporting the aims of the Orange Union Party. However, as the Union of South Africa was born, his sights grew broader, seeing the need to assist in Afrikaner rights across the entire nation. To that end, Piet closely followed the political career of J. B. M. Hertzog.

Proving himself able, Piet van Kan would assist in the formation of the National Party, helping create the provincial branch of the party in the Orange Free State alongside Hertzog. Van Kan was among those backing Hertzog, both in independence and in allying with Labour to achieve their nationalist aims. Acting as a party agent in 1915, it was the 1920 general election when van Kan first ran, and was subsequently seated. His position was among those maintained in the wake of the 1921 Dominionist resurgence.

During the bloody Rand Rebellion, van Kan fiercely denounced Prime Minister Smuts and supported the striker's movement. Both due to his statements during the strike and his appointment as Undersecretary to the Ministry of Justice, van Kan developed a close partnership with Tielman Roos. After Roos' rise as prime minister, van Kan served briefly as Undersecretary for the foreign ministry under Malan. While generally supportive of the man's nationalist aims, van Kan privately thought the man was obnoxious.

When Roos was ousted in favor of Malan, van Kan privately expressed his disagreement to President Hertzog, but his objection did little to stop the National Party's shift. His reasons were less revolving around ideology, but were instead predominantly centered around his fear that such a coalition would be weaker, and allow the likes of Smuts to return into power. Van Kan thereafter felt vindicated when Malan served to weaken the National Party.

Since then, van Kan has been serving within the Volksraad, being one of the numerous assistants towards the current economic and social policies. But van Kan seeks more, to usher in a strong alliance that transcends party lines, to establish a solid government that would steer South African towards internal strength and not fall to foreign imperialists. And van Kan finds himself the only one not bound too rigidly by party lines to accomplish such a necessary feat.

 

[Terraferma]

​

Name: Caspar Theron
Province: Northern Cape
Ethnicity: Boer
Date of Birth: February 13, 1910
Profession: Soldier (Corporal)
Faction (if applicable): Gesuiwerde
Biography: The youngest of four to a family of farmers and agricultural interests, the wealth of the household was accrued near the Orange River via their modest vineyard. As fierce nationalists, Caspar heard of the many stories of the Second Freedom War as his father and late uncle witnessed many of the atrocities committed against them by the hated British imperialists. While his old man escaped the war with shrapnel scars on his right leg and back, his uncle was not so lucky. The patriarch passed on his bitterness at both the defeat in the struggle and the loss of his brother to his progeny, resonating the most with the younger of the flock. Now a rather fresh enlistee into the armed forces, Caspar, though officially independent, is a closet lover of the Purified National Party believing that the true threats to his homeland were the Reds (Specifically the I.S.L), non-Afrikaners (The natives more so on economic grounds) and the Imperials. In that order. While certainly Pro-German, he is an ardent patriot and is vehemently against any sort of Mittleafrikan integration, magnified thrice with the occurrence of Black Monday.

 

[Jackbollda]

​

Name: Dr. Theodolphus Gerhardus Cronjé
Province: Transvaal
Ethnicity: Afrikaner
Date of Birth: July 24, 1893
Profession: Politician and Professor of Sociology
Faction: Purified National Party

Biography:
Theodolphus Cronjé, born in the Netherlands, was the second child of Lucie Strik and Wilhelmus Cronjé. His father was a shopkeeper and a deeply religious man who moved to South Africa in 1903 because of his sympathy towards the Afrikaner nation in the aftermath of the Second Boer War.

Cronjé attended a Lutheran primary school in Cape Town, before his family moved to Bulawayo (previously Rhodesia), where his father became an assistant evangelist in the Dutch Reformed Church. Theodolphus was awarded the Beit Scholarship, established by the generosity of Alfred Beit. The family moved back to South africa in 1990 because the congregation was appointed a second minister of religion. His father took up a position in Brandfort, while Cronjé took his matriculation exams in February 1911 with impressively high marks.

After his schooling, Theodolphus went to study theology at the University of Stellenbosch. He was regarded as a brilliant student known to possess a photographic memory. He was also a member of the debating club. In 1913 he graduated with honours (BA). He next went to study psychology and philosophy. Afterwards, he went to study psychology and philosophy, and was awarded a master’s degree cum laude the next year. The title of his thesis was “Thought Processes and the Problem of Values.”

He was awarded two scholarships—one by the Abe Bailey Trust to study at the University of Oxford, England, and another one to continue his studies in Germany. He opted for the latter, although it was not financially generous, because he wanted to study under a number of famous German professors of the time. Theodolphus left for Germany in 1918 and proceeded to study psychology at the universities of Hamburg, Berlin and Leipzig each for one semester. In Hamburg he studied under William Stern, in Berlin under Wolfgang Köhler and Otto Lipmann, and in Leipzig under Felix Krueger.

He returned to South Africa with his wife in 1920 and was appointed to the chair of Applied Psychology and Psycho Technique at the University of Stellenbosch where, six years later, he became Professor of Sociology and Social Work. Cronjé became active in social work among poor white South Africans. He devoted much attention to welfare work and was often consulted by welfare organisations, while he served on numerous committees. His teaching position continued until 1929 when he was elected into parliament as a National Party member. In the Volksraad, Cronjé advocated white control over South Africa and believed that this could could only continue if the races lived apart. Additionally he was a strong advocate of the Afrikaner volk, language, culture, and Christian religion.

Theodolphus is generally considered a member of the Gesuiwerde, but remains skeptical of German dependence, despite his previous association with the Kaiserreich. Although pro-German, he fears subjugation, and wishes for South Africa to advance its racial program to secure the sovereignty of the white administration.

 

[baboushreturns]

Name: Mattheus Uys Krige
Province: Rhodesia
Ethnicity: Afrikaan
Date of Birth: February 4, 1910
Profession: Writer, Political Activist, and ISL Militia Officer
Faction (if applicable): ISL
Biography: Born in 1910 on a small farmstead thirty miles outside Cape Town, Mattheus came from a well-off family. His father had gained great fame in his youth as a prominent rugby player and had later found work as a local magistrate while his mother was a well-known writer. The second son in a family of eight, he enjoyed a happy home life yet, the family was moving around constantly mirroring his father's postings. At age 7 the family moved to Cape Town where Mattheus attended the Tamboerskloof Primary School and soon became fluent in English. He enjoyed school and went on to graduate high school in 1927. Following this, he went on to attend college at Stellenbosch University achieving a bachelors degree in law after several years there. During this time period, Krige became well acquainted with the labor movement and syndicalism and soon devoted much of his energy to supporting local unions. Yet, upon graduating he moved abroad.

Traveling first to syndicalist Britain and then to France he found work writing articles for several South African newspapers both English and Afrikaans. Throughout the early 30's he deeply studied the revolutions going on across Europe, moving first to London for a time and then to Calais and Toulon. There he would become fluent in French and would continue to write, publishing several collections of poetry inspired by his life. Yet, times were hard in France in the years following the revolution and Krige also spent time in Germany and Spain before returning back to South Africa for a brief stint during 1935. During his first visit to Europe Krige fell in love with the syndicalist system and in many ways became a true believer in the movement. However, news from his friends about the rise of totalists in Italy, Georgia and elsewhere made him wary of authoritarians, leaving him more supportive of anarchist strains of the movement. In 1936 when the Spanish Civil War broke out, Krige would make his way back to Europe. First journeying to Toulon and then trucking across the border to Barcelona he would enlist in the international brigades and experienced the horrors of war there for the first time.

Immediately promoted to major for his grasp of Spanish, French and English Krige proved himself during the first months of the war. However, after suffering serious injuries during the Siege of Bilbao he would be sent home. Upon his return to South Africa, Krige continued his writings and would go on a speaking tour on behalf of the ISL to encourage young South Africans to support the Spanish war effort. Yet, as the wars in Spain and America wound down and the party began escalating its operations along the border zone Krige was once again called into action. As the party greatly lacked for men with practical military experience in modern warfare Krige was put in charge of a training camp just south of the border close to Kasane. Under his stead, several hundred militants were trained and by 1938 the 28-year-old poet had gained a reputation for competence.

 

[Firehound15]

Bg. Gen. Alexander van den Broek
Commander of the South African Field Artillery Corps

A Boer Officer,
b. January 23rd, 1881
in Bloemfontein, Oranje-Vrystaat.

Residence:
Cape Town, Western Cape

Faction:
National Party

Biography:​

While he was by birth a burgher of the Oranje Free State, to assume Van den Broek cleanly fit the general portrait of a Boer would be unwise. He was a hardened man who made his name not by fighting in defense of the Republic where he was born, but in service to the British Crown. While it is a matter of debate as to what Van den Broek's specific motivations were, it is known that he left home at sixteen, fleeing an abusive father. He arrived in Kimberley, where he found work in the diamond mining industry of the town. He gradually learned English and settled into life there, but his fledgling attempt at stability was ended by the outbreak of the Second Boer War. Suddenly, Van den Broek was pitted against his fellow burghers. Preferring to stay with his acquaintances and friends rather than betray them, Van den Broek joined the hastily organized militia of the town.

During the ensuing Siege of Kimberley, Van den Broek distinguished himself and caught the eye of a British officer. Upon his recommendation, Van den Broek formally enlisted, marking the beginning to his military career. By the conclusion of the war he had risen to corporal. He remained active, joining the garrison in Cape Town, and gradually increasing in rank. He became a sergeant before receiving his commission. By 1912, when the Union Defense Force was organized, it was clear that Van den Broek had the potential to suit both its need for experienced officers and Afrikaners. This was when he first joined the artillery section, marking the formal beginning of his service with the branch. As an ambitious officer in a then-Afrikaner-dominated society, he ascended the ladder of command and became a brigadier general in 1935.

Alexander van den Broek was a pragmatist of the highest order, supporting the National Party out of an almost purely practical motivation. His actual politics were substantially cloudier, although it was suspected that he was softer on apartheid and racial issues than his party. As of 1938, relatively secure in his position, his interests were rapidly shifting toward modernizing and expanding the South African Army. His perspective was relatively simple - that an archaic, undermanned military would be unable to ensure the continued stability and independence of the Union of South Africa.

 

[Mikkel Glahder]

Photo of Lodewijk, dated 1937
​

Lodewijk Schedeler
Province: Transvaal
Ethnicity: Boer

Date of Birth: 9th of July, 1897
Profession: Trade Unionist, writer etc.
Faction: Labour Party

Biography: Born in urban Johannesburg in the Winter of 1897 as the third child to a working class family. While he was only a child during the Second Freedom War, he has a deep hatred of the British ever since. In 1916 he joined the Labour Party and the SAIF. From that point he began to advocate for the betterment of workers, most notably the white ones, and the advocating against the obvious anti-white policy the employers held. After the Weltkrieg, he acted as a demagogue, telling the (white) workers to strike in protest against the large scale redundancies of white workers. During the Rand Rebellion proper, Lodewjik was more or less passive in the acts of violence, but active when it came to rabble rousing against the "anti-white" establishment. As the rebellion was suppressed Lodewjik was arrested for inciting violence.

During his roughly four years in jail he began writing his ideas on how an ideal state should be structured and run. His radical socialistic, authoritarian, and somewhat pro-segregation/nationalistic stance is acording to Lodewjik the way forward if a state has to prosper and grow. After his release in 1926 he took on a trip to the newly established Union of Britain to see how the revolutionaries fared and how they built their state after the revolution. While thinking their thoughts and ideals were something to be inspired by, he disliked the democracy that was forming around the TUC, as he percieved democracy as a flawed idea, believing a socialist state needing a strong central government to build a classless utopia.

After his return to South Africa in late 1926, he worked with the Labour Party and trade unions to help those unemployed and advocating for better working conditions and so on and so forth. The Market Crash in 1936 only increased his work with the unions to provide help to those unemployed and protesting loudly against the redundancies of white workers in the gold mines. In 1938 he was ready to propose his so-called socialist nationalist platform, with Black Monday only further radicalizing his ideas for a strong, socialist state.

The revolutionary archive:

Speeches, literature etc.
Lodewijk Schedeler's five points
A call to all workers

Correspondences:
To Minister Van Kan, concerning Labour and the government

 

[99KingHigh]

Election of 1938

​

The election campaign throughout the country has been all consuming—both sides are gripped by the social distress that has succeeded Black Monday. Neither family nor friend can disassociate each other from allegiance or opposition; there is indeed a growing sense that two South Africas have been offered at the election and only one can triumph.

British South Africans and Rhodesians are arrested by their desire for federation after almost fifteen years of Afrikaner republicanism. Their ambition for imperial inclusion is palpable within the hearts of many Englishmen and assimilated Africans. But for many Afrikaners, never oblivious to the old monarchial injustices, the republic is the resolution of a long struggle for independence. They have not lightly suffered for their republic, and nor will they happily forfeit it.

On 8 May 1938, the white and enfranchised coloured population of South Africa lumbered through the heavy rain to cast their votes. The results, publicized on 10 May after many local recounts and treks from isolated regions in South Africa, produced a razor-thin victory for the opposition. The National Party split had damaged the confidence of the party, and Hertzog was left seriously wounded. What had constituted the governing coalition of South Africa—nationalist moderates and radicals in occasional concert with the Labour Party—had completely disintegrated into internal confusion and infighting. Nonetheless, the Dominionist Party were just four seats above the threshold, and confronting a viscerally hostile new opposition.

Hertzog has been ejected from power and now General J.C Smuts serves as President with Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr as his Prime Minister. There is looming anticipation over whether the Port Elizabeth Declaration will be enforced in the Volksraad.

Dominionist: 79 seats
National Party: 33 seats
Purified National Party: 30 seats
Labour Party: 9 seats

​

 

[99KingHigh]

The Militant Ascendancy

​

Between the election and the opening of the Volksraad, public speculation grew that the Port Elizabeth Manifesto's legalization was imminent. Concerned Afrikaners throughout South Africa prepared political resistance and demanded that the National Party stand united against the new government. Malan and Hertzog refused reunification of the parties but agreed to exert every possible legal instrument to protect the 1925 South African Constitution from revision as the British prepared federalization. Privately, Malan and his confidant, Johannes Gerhardus Strijdom, conspired with military officers and prepped for drastic action in the event that the doctrines of the Port Elizabeth Manifesto were accepted before the assimilation of the manifesto's legal consequences. But in general, the mainstream National Party and the affiliate groups adhered to the constraints of the political system.

The peripheries were not so pacifist. Johannes Van Rensburg, the former Minister of Justice, returned from Dar-es-Salaam, the capital of Deutsch-Mittelafrika soon after the election. Purportedly acting with logistical assistance from the Statthalter of Mittelafrika, Hermann von Göring, the former Justice Minister formed an extreme anti-British pro-German militant organization in Bloemfontein. Known as Ossewabrandwag, the new organization forged alleged connections with Afrikaner Broederbond, and formed an armed wing called the "Stormjaers." Van Rensburg vowed publicly to defend the Republic from Anglophilic designs and vocalized the need for militant resistance against any constitutional change.