Afrikaanse historici as politieke kritici en koers-aanduiders
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Date
2012
Authors
De Klerk, Pieter
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Faculty of Humanities, University of the Free State
Abstract
Although professional historians usually concentrate on specific areas of research, they sometimes
use their knowledge and understanding of history to give a perspective on contemporary events and
provide guidelines regarding the formulation and implementation of government policies. Since the
1950s Afrikaner historians have participated in intellectual debates on the future of the Afrikaners as a
minority group in South Africa. Three eminent Afrikaner historians, GD Scholtz, FA van Jaarsveld and
Hermann Giliomee, produced a number of publications in which they commented on the apartheid policy
of the National Party government. While Scholtz and Van Jaarsveld were very subdued in their criticism,
Giliomee was more openly critical. On the other hand, Scholtz and Giliomee were more consistent in
their criticism than Van Jaarsveld, who repeatedly changed his views. Scholtz and Giliomee, however,
overestimated the power of the government to control the factors that determined South Africa’s political
and economic development during this period.
Description
Keywords
Afrikaner historians, Political criticism, Afrikaner nationalism, Apartheid, Territorial separation, G. D. Scholtz, F.A. van Jaarsveld, H. Giliomee
Citation
De Klerk, P. (2012). Afrikaanse historici as politieke kritici en koers-aanduiders. Journal for Contemporary History, 37(1), 45-64.