The United Party split when Britain declared war on Germany on September 3, 1939. Hertzog desired that South Africa remain neutral, but Smuts chose to join the British war effort. Smuts’ side narrowly won the critical parliamentary discussion, and Hertzog and his supporters quit the party, many of whom joined Malan’s National Party faction, which he had led since 1934. After Smuts became Prime Minister, South Africa declared war on Germany.
South Africa contributed significantly to the Allied war effort. Some 135,000 white South Africans participated in the conflicts in the East, North Africa, and Italy, while 70,000 Blacks and Coloureds worked as laborers and transport drivers. South African platinum, uranium, and steel became valuable resources, and Durban and Cape Town supplied a large number of ships en route from Britain to Suez during the period when the Mediterranean Sea was blocked to the Allies.
Although wartime inflation and lagging salaries contributed to social demonstrations and strikes after the war ended, the war proved to be an economic booster for South Africa. The manufacturing and service industries increased swiftly as a result of lower imports, and the migration of Blacks to the towns became a flood. By the end of the conflict, the towns had more Blacks than whites. They established enormous squatter camps on the edges of cities, improvising shelters out of whatever materials they could scavenge. They began to flex their political muscles as well. Blacks protested a Witwatersrand bus company’s attempt to raise fares, they organized trade unions, and more than 60,000 Black gold miners went on strike in 1946 demanding higher salaries and better living circumstances.
What was South Africa’s role in World War II?
South Africa’s contribution was mostly in the form of troops, airmen, and materiel for the North African campaign (the Desert War) and the Italian Campaign, as well as to Allied ships stationed at its vital ports on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, which converged at the tip of Southern Africa.
Which side was South Africa on during WWII?
South Africa joined the war on September 6, 1939, joining with Britain and the Allies and declaring war on Nazi Germany.
How effective was South Africa during WWII?
South Africa contributed significantly to the Allied war effort. Some 135,000 white South Africans participated in the conflicts in the East, North Africa, and Italy, while 70,000 Blacks and Coloureds worked as laborers and transport drivers.
