Abstract

Recent scholarship has drawn attention to the chemical and biological weapons ‘Project Coast’ in the final phase of the apartheid regime. The earlier history of the production of chemical weapons in South Africa has received relatively little attention and some aspects have never been discussed before. Pointing to the need for protecting the white minority against indigenous unrest, the South African government showed considerable interest in acquiring the skills and logistics for the production of poison gas in collaboration with Great Britain in the 1930s. It was only after the start of the Second World War, however, that the British were prepared to support a South African chemical weapons programme because it contributed to the Allied war effort. Two poison gas factories were maintained in South Africa until the production of chemical weapons was terminated towards the end of the war despite an occasionally articulated desire by the government to continue with the project. This article will explore the continuities and discontinuities of South Africa’s endeavours in producing poison gas within a wider local and international context of chemical weapons policies from the First to the Second World War.

摘要

最近的学术研究引起了人们对种族隔离制度最后阶段的化学和生物武器“海岸计划”的关注。南非较早的化学武器生产历史受到的关注相对较少，有些方面以前从未讨论过。1930 年代，南非政府指出需要保护白人少数群体免受土著骚乱的影响，对获得生产毒气的技能和物流表现出极大的兴趣。然而，直到第二次世界大战开始之后，英国才准备支持南非的化学武器计划，因为它为盟军的战争努力做出了贡献。尽管政府偶尔明确表示希望继续该项目，但在南非维持了两家毒气工厂，直到战争结束时停止生产化学武器。本文将探讨从一战到二战期间，在更广泛的地方和国际化学武器政策背景下，南非在生产毒气方面的努力的连续性和不连续性。