May 26, 1948: The Official Beginning of Apartheid In South Africa

Daniël Malan

May 26, 1948: South Africa holds a national election. The United Party and its leader, Prime Minister Jan Smuts, one of the victorious heads of government in both World Wars, are defeated by the Herenigde Nasionale Party and its leader, the Reverend Daniël François Malan.

Jan Christiaan Smuts was born in 1870. In the Second Boer War, Smuts led a Boer commando for the Transvaal against Britain. But during the First World War, with South Africa in the British Empire, he led its armies against Germany, capturing German South-West Africa, and commanding the British Army in East Africa. From 1917 to 1919, he was also one of the members of the British Imperial War Cabinet, and he was instrumental in the founding of what became the Royal Air Force (RAF).

Jan Smuts

He was appointed as a Field Marshal in the British Army in 1941. He was the only person to sign the peace treaties ending both World Wars. He was his country's Prime Minister from 1939 until 1948 -- when he began to turn against racial segregation, and his country voted him out for it. He died in 1950.

Daniël Malan was born in 1874, and became a minister of the Dutch Reformed Church, though there was little about him that was reformed -- or Christian. He ran a campaign alleging that Smuts and his government weren't oppressing the nation's black majority enough. He preyed on white fears, and rode them to victory.

Though he only served 1 6-year term, he began 48 years of "apartheid" rule by the National Party, one of the ugliest "democratic" political organizations in human history. He died in 1959, long enough to see Nelson Mandela begin to agitate against apartheid.

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May 26, 1948 was a Wednesday. Singer Stevie Nicks and supermodel Dayle Haddon were born on that day. And these baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Detroit Tigers, 7-3 at Briggs Stadium (later Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. Paul "Dizzy" Trout outpitched Frank "Spec" Shea. Yogi Berra hit a home run. Joe DiMaggio went 0-for-4, but had an RBI on a groundout.

* The New York Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 10-7 at the Polo Grounds. The Giants scored 8 runs in the bottom of the 8th inning. Stan Musial went 3-for-5 with 2 home runs and 3 RBIs.

* The Brooklyn Dodgers lost to the Chicago Cubs, 4-1 at Ebbets Field. Gil Hodges hit a home run, and Jackie Robinson went 1-for-4.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Boston Braves, 8-5 at Braves Field in Boston.

* The Philadelphia Athletics beat the Chicago White Sox, 7-1 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

* The Washington Senators beat the Cleveland Indians, 2-0 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Sid Hudson pitched 8 innings of 3-hit shutout ball, and Tom Ferrick pitched a perfect 9th.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the St. Louis Browns, 5-3 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. In the top of the 10th inning, Dom DiMaggio bunted, and Browns catcher Les Moss fielded it, and threw the ball away, allowing Sam Mele to score the go-ahead run. Ted Williams went 1-for-5.

* And the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates were rained out at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on September 19. The Phils swept, 9-6 and 5-3.