Abstract

ZAAIMAN, Johan. The local role of a Wellington Afrikaner Broederbond branch, 1937-1994. Historia [online]. 2010, vol.55, n.2, pp.121-146. ISSN 2309-8392.

The role of the Afrikaner Broederbond in local communities has not been widely explored. It is generally accepted that members of the AB, formerly a clandestine society, probably made a significant contribution to local politics during the apartheid era. This article examines the minutes of an AB branch in the town of Wellington in order to assess its political role in the period 1937-1994. It demonstrates that the local political role of the AB was somewhat limited and was mainly oriented towards the development of Afrikaner nationalism. From the 1970s, however, in anticipation of a post-apartheid dispensation it became an important discussion forum and persuasion arena for prominent local Afrikaner leaders to re-orientate themselves in the light of national socio-political change.

Keywords : Afrikaner Broederbond; Afrikanerbond; Afrikaner Broederbond branch; local Afrikaner influence; Afrikaner; Wellington; secret societies; local politics.

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