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The following lists events that happened during 1919 in South Africa.
Incumbents
- Monarch: King George V.
- Governor-General and High Commissioner for Southern Africa: The Viscount Buxton.[1]
- Prime Minister:
- Louis Botha (until 27 August).
- Jan Smuts (from 3 September).
- Chief Justice: James Rose Innes
Events
- April
- 23 – The Potchefstroom Teachers' College opens.
- August
- 27 – Prime Minister Louis Botha dies in office.
- September
- 3 – Jan Smuts becomes the 2nd Prime Minister of South Africa.
- 17 – German South West Africa is placed under South African administration.
- November
- 7 – Inspired by Cape Town's daily Noon Gun Three Minute Pause, King George V institutes the Two Minute Silence following a suggestion by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick, to be observed annually at the Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month.[2]
- 7 – The first Remembrance Day is observed in the British Empire with a two-minute silence at 11:00 hours.[2]
Births
- 1 January – Eustace Fannin, tennis player
- 3 March – Peter Abrahams, South African-born Jamaican novelist and journalist. (d. 2017)
- 8 December – Mary Benson, activist and author. (d. 2000)
Deaths
- 19 March – Jack Hindon, Boer soldier. (b. 1874)
- 27 August – Louis Botha, Boer general, statesman, first Prime Minister. (b. 1862)
Railways
Railway lines opened
- 9 January – Natal – Deviation from Umlaas Road to Pentrich, 19 miles 19 chains (31.0 kilometres).[3]
Locomotives
Two new Cape gauge and one narrow gauge locomotive types enter service on the South African Railways (SAR):
- The first of sixty-seven Class 12A 4-8-2 Mountain type locomotives.[4]
- The first ten Class 16C 4-6-2 Pacific type passenger steam locomotives.[5]
- Three Class NG G11 2-6-0+0-6-2 Garratt locomotives on the Avontuur narrow gauge line through the Langkloof, the first Garratt locomotives to enter service in South Africa.[4][5]
References
- ^ Archontology.org: A Guide for Study of Historical Offices: South Africa: Governors-General: 1910-1961 (Accessed on 14 April 2017)
- ^ a b Royal Canadian Legion Branch # 138."2-Minute Wave of Silence" Revives a Time-honoured Tradition. Accessed on 5 June 2014.
- ^ Statement Showing, in Chronological Order, the Date of Opening and the Mileage of Each Section of Railway, Statement No. 19, p. 188, ref. no. 200954-13
- ^ a b Paxton, Leith; Bourne, David (1985). Locomotives of the South African Railways (1st ed.). Cape Town: Struik. pp. 55, 105–106. ISBN 0869772112.
- ^ a b Durrant, AE (1989). Twilight of South African Steam (1st ed.). Newton Abbott: David & Charles. pp. 92–93, 123. ISBN 0715386387.
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