The following lists events that happened during 1920 in South Africa.

Incumbents

Monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...

: King

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. Born duri ...

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

and High Commissioner for Southern Africa: ** The Viscount Buxton (until 19 November).Archontology.org: A Guide for Study of Historical Offices: South Africa: Governors-General: 1910-1961
(Accessed on 14 April 2017) **

Prince Arthur of Connaught Prince Arthur of Connaught (Arthur Frederick Patrick Albert; 13 January 1883 – 12 September 1938) was a British military officer and a grandson of Queen Victoria. He served as Governor-General of the Union of South Africa from 20 November 1920 ...

(from 20 November). *

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

: Jan Smuts. * Chief Justice: James Rose Innes.

Events

;January * 10 – The League of Nations is established as the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...

goes into effect. ;February * 1 – The South African Air Force (SAAF) is established, the second autonomous Air Force in the world after the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

(RAF).Nöthling, Kol C.J., Martins, Maj du P. (1990). ''Kroniek van die Suid-Afrikaanse Lugmag (1920-1990)'', (1st ed.). Direktoraat Openbare Betrekkinge, SAW. Uitgewer: Staatsdrukkery, Pretoria. Gedruk deur Promedia Drukkers, Posbus 255, Silverton, 0127. ;November * 20 –

is appointed the 3rd Governor-General of the Union of South Africa. ;December * 17 – South Africa is granted a League of Nations Class C mandate over South West Africa.

Births

* 12 February – Raymond Mhlaba, anti-apartheid activist and politician. (d. 2005) * 20 February –

Zoe Gail Zoe Gail (20 February 1920 – 20 February 2020) was a South African-born British-American actress. Early life Gail was born Zoe Margaret Stapelton in Cape Town, Cape Province, Union of South Africa. She was an actress known for Tonight at th ...

, singer and actress. (d. 2020) * 9 March –

Robert Resha Robert Resha (1920-1974) was a South African journalist and political dissident. He served in the African National Congress as a member of the Youth League and the National Executive Committee. Early life Robert Resha was born in Bolotwe in ...

, journalist and political dissident. (d. 1974) * 20 March –

Lionel Bernstein Lionel "Rusty" Bernstein (20 March 1920 – 23 June 2002) was a Jewish South African anti-apartheid activist and political prisoner. He played a key role in political organizations such as the South African Communist Party (SACP) and the Africa ...

, anti-apartheid activist and political prisoner (d. 2002) * 8 April –

Vuyisile Mini Vuyisile Mini (8 April 1920 – 6 November 1964) was a unionist, Umkhonto we Sizwe activist, singer and one of the first African National Congress members to be executed by apartheid South Africa. Early life Mini was born in 1920 in Tsomo i ...

, anti-apartheid activist and politician. (d. 1964) * 12 May –

Gerald Stapleton Basil Gerald "Stapme" Stapleton, (12 May 1920 – 13 April 2010) was a Royal Air Force (RAF) officer and fighter ace who flew Spitfires and Typhoons during the Second World War. He preferred the name Gerald and was nicknamed "Stapme" after a ...

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

fighter pilot. (d. 2010) * 11 June –

David Millin David Millin (11 June 1920 - 26 May 1999) was a South African film director, cinematographer and film producer. He has produced various Afrikaans and English films about his career. He has been a member of the American Society of Cinematographers ...

, movie director, producer, and cinematographer. (d. 1999) * 11 July – Edison Ntsanwisi, politician and Chief Minister of Gazankulu. (d. 1993) * 30 July – Harry Gwala, anti-apartheid activist and politician. (d. 1995) * 8 August –

Nimrod Sejake Nimrod Sejake (8 August 1920 – 27 May 2004) was a labour leader in South Africa in the 1950s. He was a leading member of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, initially as secretary of the Iron Steel Workers, and became active in the Afr ...

, labour leader and activist. (d. 2004) * 11 September – Hymie Barsel, political activist. (d. 1987) * 12 September – Michiel Daniel Overbeek,

amateur astronomer Amateur astronomy is a hobby where participants enjoy observing or imaging celestial objects in the sky using the unaided eye, binoculars, or telescopes. Even though scientific research may not be their primary goal, some amateur astronomers m ...

and prolific

variable star A variable star is a star whose brightness as seen from Earth (its apparent magnitude) changes with time. This variation may be caused by a change in emitted light or by something partly blocking the light, so variable stars are classified as ...

observers. (d. 2001) * 24 December –

Richard Maponya Richard John Pelwana Maponya, GCOB, (24 December 1920 – 6 January 2020) was a South African entrepreneur and property developer best known for building a business empire despite the restrictions of apartheid and his determination to see the ...

, entrepreneur and property developer. (d. 2020)

Deaths

* 11 December – Olive Schreiner, author and feminist, in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

. (b. 1855) Class 12B no

Railways

Locomotives

* The South African Railways places thirty Class 12B

4-8-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels, eight powered and coupled driving wheels and two trailing wheels. This type of steam locomotive is commonly known as t ...

Mountain type steam locomotives in mainline service.

References

{{Africa topic, 1920 in, state=collapsed

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Years in South Africa History of South Africa