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The following lists events that happened during 1959 in South Africa.
Incumbents
- Monarch: Queen Elizabeth II.
- Governor-General:
- until 25 November: Ernest George Jansen.
- 25 November – 11 December: Lucas Cornelius Steyn.
- starting 11 December: Charles Robberts Swart.
- Prime Minister: Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd.
- Chief Justice: Henry Allan Fagan then Lucas Cornelius Steyn.
Events
- April
- 5 – The Pan-Africanist Congress led by Robert Sobukwe secedes from the African National Congress.
- July
- 9 – Wing Commander Michael Beetham flying a Royal Air Force Vickers Valiant sets a record of 11 hours 27 minutes for a non-stop London-Cape Town flight.[1]
- August
- 11 – Members of the United Party led by Helen Suzman secede and form the Progressive Party.
- December
- 1 – Twelve countries, including South Africa, the United States and the Soviet Union, sign the Antarctic Treaty.
- 11 – Charles Robberts Swart is appointed the 11th Governor-General of the Union of South Africa.
- 12 – The 47th Annual Conference of the African National Congress takes place in Durban.
- Unknown date
- Papwa Sewgolum, a South African Indian golfer, wins the Dutch Open tournament.
Births
- 1 January – Thulas Nxesi, national minister
- 7 January – Peter Mokaba, member of the South African parliament,deputy minister in the government of Nelson Mandela (d. 2002)
- 14 March – Tertius Bosch, cricketer.
- 16 March – Tito Mboweni, politician.
- 16 September – Dave Richardson (cricketer), cricketer.
Railways
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Class 1-DH (DH-1420)
Locomotives
Three new Cape gauge locomotive types enter service on the South African Railways.
- May–July – Seven Class 1-DH Henschel type DH 1420 diesel-hydraulic locomotives.[2]
- November – The first of 115 Class 32-000 General Electric type U18C1 diesel-electric locomotives in South West Africa.[3]
- The first of 135 Class 5E1, Series 1 electric locomotives, an upgraded and more powerful version of the Class 5E.[3][4]
References
- ^ "Records set by the RAF". Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation. Archived from the original on 12 August 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
- ^ Paxton, Leith; Bourne, David (1985). Locomotives of the South African Railways (1st ed.). Cape Town: Struik. pp. 143–144. ISBN 0869772112.
- ^ a b South African Railways Index and Diagrams Electric and Diesel Locomotives, 610mm and 1065mm Gauges, Ref LXD 14/1/100/20, 28 January 1975, as amended
- ^ Dulez, Jean A. (2012). Railways of Southern Africa 150 Years (Commemorating One Hundred and Fifty Years of Railways on the Sub-Continent – Complete Motive Power Classifications and Famous Trains – 1860–2011) (1st ed.). Garden View, Johannesburg, South Africa: Vidrail Productions. p. 293. ISBN 9 780620 512282.