Colin Fraser Steyn
Encyclopedia
Colin Fraser Steyn was a lawyer and a politician of Southern Africa, Member of the House of Assembly, Senator, and Cabinet Minister in the government of Jan Smuts
.
He was born on 27 November 1887 in Bloemfontein
in the Orange Free State
, the son of Marthinus Theunis Steyn, who was the President of the Orange Free State from 1896 till 1902. He was named for his grandfather on his mother's side, Reverend Colin Fraser.
He practiced as a lawyer in Pretoria and then in Bloemfontein, where he was elected as deputy leader of the National Party
. He served in the capacity as Deputy Minister of Justice from 1915 to 1928, under Tielman Roos
.
He resigned this mandate in 1928, and left the political life for a short period, before joining United Party in 1936 and was once again reelected to Parliament of South Africa
in 1938.
He was appointed as the Minister of Justice from 1939 till 1945, and then served as Minister of Employment from 1946 till 1948, in the South African Party
government of President Jan Smuts
.
In 1953, he left the House of Assembly for the Senate, where he was served as Senator until 1955. He resigned from Parliament in 1955, due to health problems. He died on 23 April 1959.
Jan Smuts
Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948...
.
He was born on 27 November 1887 in Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein is the capital city of the Free State Province of South Africa; and, as the judicial capital of the nation, one of South Africa's three national capitals – the other two being Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Pretoria, the administrative capital.Bloemfontein is popularly and...
in the Orange Free State
Orange Free State
The Orange Free State was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, and later a British colony and a province of the Union of South Africa. It is the historical precursor to the present-day Free State province...
, the son of Marthinus Theunis Steyn, who was the President of the Orange Free State from 1896 till 1902. He was named for his grandfather on his mother's side, Reverend Colin Fraser.
He practiced as a lawyer in Pretoria and then in Bloemfontein, where he was elected as deputy leader of the National Party
National Party (South Africa)
The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a...
. He served in the capacity as Deputy Minister of Justice from 1915 to 1928, under Tielman Roos
Tielman Roos
Tielman Johannes de Villiers Roos was a right wing South African politician and sometime Cabinet minister.-Labour politics:...
.
He resigned this mandate in 1928, and left the political life for a short period, before joining United Party in 1936 and was once again reelected to Parliament of South Africa
Parliament of South Africa
The Parliament of South Africa is South Africa's legislature and under the country's current Constitution is composed of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces....
in 1938.
He was appointed as the Minister of Justice from 1939 till 1945, and then served as Minister of Employment from 1946 till 1948, in the South African Party
South African Party
The South African Party was a political party that existed in the Union of South Africa from 1911 to 1934.-History:The outline and foundation for the party was realized after the election of a 'South African party' in the 1910 South African general election under the leadership of Louis Botha...
government of President Jan Smuts
Jan Smuts
Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948...
.
In 1953, he left the House of Assembly for the Senate, where he was served as Senator until 1955. He resigned from Parliament in 1955, due to health problems. He died on 23 April 1959.