Louis le Grange (16 August 1928 – 25 October 1991) was a lawyer, a South African politician and a member of the National Party.

Early life

Le Grange was born to Elizabeth Raats and Johannes Jacobus Le Grange in

Ladybrand Ladybrand is a small agricultural town in the Free State province of South Africa, situated 18 km from Maseru, the capital of Lesotho. Ladybrand is one of five towns that forms the Mantsopa Local Municipality. Founded in 1867 following th ...

in the

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( nl, Oranje Vrijstaat; af, Oranje-Vrystaat;) was an independent Boer sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeat ...

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

. He attended primary school in Fochville and Potchefstroom and matriculated Potchefstroom Hoer Volkskool in 1946. After matriculating, he joined the Department of Interior and Justice in 1947 as clerk while studying for a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

from the

University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA), known colloquially as Unisa, is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, U ...

, obtaining it in 1953. He left to become an attorney in partnership, obtaining his Attorneys' Admission Diploma in 1955 and an

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

in 1956. He received a BA Honours in Political Science in 1964 from the University of Potchefstroom.

Political career

His came from a politically active family, his mother a secretary of the National Party's Kimberley branch in 1915, while his father had stood as an independent in Losberg in 1938. He was a member of the National Party, Member of Parliament for the constituency of Potchefstroom (1966-1991), Deputy Minister of Information (1975-1978), Interior (1975-1978), Immigration (1978), and Public Works (1978), in governments of

John Vorster Balthazar Johannes "B. J." Vorster (; also known as John Vorster; 13 December 1915 – 10 September 1983) was a South African apartheid politician who served as the prime minister of South Africa from 1966 to 1978 and the fourth state presiden ...

. He then served as Minister of Tourism and Public Works (1978-1979), Prisons (1979-1980), Police (1979-1982) and Law and Order (1982-1986) in the cabinets of P.W. Botha, before he became the 13th Speaker of the

House of Assembly of South Africa The House of Assembly (known in Afrikaans as the ''Volksraad'', or "People's Council") was the lower house of the Parliament of South Africa from 1910 to 1981, the sole parliamentary chamber between 1981 and 1984, and latterly the white rep ...

(1987-1991).

Marriage

He married Jessie Ortlepp-Marais in May 1952, and had two sons and two daughters.

Death

He died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

in Potchefstroom, aged 63.

References

Beeld newspaper, 28 October 1991, title: "Louis le Grange het gesterf soos hy geleef het tussen vriende"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Le Grange, Louis 1928 births 1991 deaths Afrikaner people National Party (South Africa) politicians Speakers of the House of Assembly (South Africa) People from Potchefstroom South African lawyers South African politicians