Frans Erasmus
South African politician
title: "Frans Erasmus" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1896-births", "1967-deaths", "afrikaner-people", "defence-ministers-of-south-africa", "justice-ministers-of-south-africa", "national-party-(south-africa)-politicians", "ambassadors-of-south-africa-to-italy", "20th-century-south-african-lawyers", "ossewabrandwag-members"] description: "South African politician" topic_path: "law" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frans_Erasmus" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary South African politician ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox officeholder"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | François Christiaan Erasmus |
| image | FC Erasmus.jpg |
| office | Minister of Justice |
| term_start | |
| term_end | |
| primeminister | Hendrik Verwoerd |
| predecessor | Charles Robberts Swart |
| successor | B. J. Vorster |
| order2 | |
| office2 | Minister of Defence |
| term_start2 | |
| term_end2 | |
| primeminister2 | {{plainlist |
| predecessor2 | Jan Smuts |
| successor2 | Jacobus Johannes Fouché |
| birth_date | |
| birth_place | Houtenbeck, Merweville District, Cape Colony |
| death_date | |
| death_place | De Mond, Bredasdorp District, South Africa |
| nationality | South African |
| party | National |
| otherparty | |
| spouse | {{ plainlist |
| * <ref name | "DSAB" / |
| partner | |
| :: |
|honorific-prefix = |name = François Christiaan Erasmus |honorific-suffix = |image = FC Erasmus.jpg |imagesize = |caption = |order = |office = Minister of Justice |term_start = |term_end = |deputy = |president = |primeminister = Hendrik Verwoerd |governor = |predecessor = Charles Robberts Swart |successor = B. J. Vorster |constituency = |order2 = |office2 = Minister of Defence |term_start2 = |term_end2 = |alongside2 = |vicepresident2 = |viceprimeminister2 = |deputy2 = |lieutenant2 = |monarch2 = |president2 = |primeminister2 = {{plainlist|
- D. F. Malan
- J. G. Strijdom
- Hendrik Verwoerd |governor2 = |predecessor2 = Jan Smuts |successor2 = Jacobus Johannes Fouché | birth_name = | birth_date = | birth_place = Houtenbeck, Merweville District, Cape Colony | death_date = | death_place = De Mond, Bredasdorp District, South Africa |restingplace = |restingplacecoordinates = |birthname = |citizenship = |nationality = South African |party = National |otherparty = |spouse = {{ plainlist|
- Christina Wiese
|partner = |relations = |children = |residence = |alma_mater = |occupation = |profession = |cabinet = |committees = |portfolio = |religion = |signature = |website = |footnotes = |blank1 = |data1 = |blank2 = |data2 = |blank3 = |data3 =
François Christiaan Erasmus (19 January 18961 July 1967) was a South African National Party politician and Minister of Defence from June 1948 to 1959 as well as Minister of Justice from 1959 to August 1961.
Early life
He was born on 19 January 1896 at Houtenbeck in the Merweville district of the Cape Colony to Marthinus Frederik Erasmus and his wife Hester Maria Jacoba Maritz. He was educated at the University of Cape Town and obtained a Bachelor of Laws degree.
Career
In 1927 he was appointed Deputy Attorney-General of South West Africa. He modernised the South African Defence Force by establishing the training gymnasiums for officers in the army, navy and air force. He was also involved in the establishment of the South African Military Academy. He negotiated the Simonstown Agreement, the return of the naval base from Royal Navy control.
During World War II, Erasmus became a general in the Ossewabrandwag.
He was widely considered to be incompetent This included the removal of items such as the Red Tabs (Rooi Luise) and the retrenchment or firing of numerous English-speaking officers and the appointment of Afrikaner ones in their place.
He was appointed Minister of Justice in 1959, in the Hendrik Verwoerd cabinet.
Marriage
Erasmus first married Christina Wiese of Melsetter in the then Southern Rhodesia. They had a son and a daughter. On 9 January 1946 he married Cornelia Margaretha (Corrie) Naudé of Lydenburg. They had three daughters.
Honours
A Strike Craft of the South African Navy was named after him.
References
References
- (1987). "Erasmus, François Christiaan". Human Sciences Research Council.
- (1971). "Standard encyclopaedia of Southern Africa / 4 Dev - For". Nasou.
- C.J. Nöthling. (1982). "Leaders through the years (1912-1982)". Scientaria Militaria.
- Dickens, Peter. (2024-01-02). "Hitler’s Spies and the Ossewabrandwag".
- (5 December 2014). "Let's not forget SA's role in WW2".
- Dickens, Peter. (2016-04-06). "The Red Oath".
- "FLAG-SHOWING CRUISES BY SOUTH AFRICAN WARSHIPS, 1922-2002". SA Navy.
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