Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd
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Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd (1901-1966) was a South African professor of psychology, newspaper editor, and politician. He is best known for his role as the "architect of apartheid" when he was Minister of Native Affairs during the 1950s and his popular yet polarizing stint as prime minister from 1958-1966.
Personal life
Verwoerd was born on September 8, 1901 in Amsterdam. Two years later, his father, Wilhelmus Johannes Verwoerd, decided to emigrate from the Netherlands to South Africa as an expression of solidarity with the Afrikaners who had been recently vanquished in the Anglo-Boer War.
Education and academic career
Verwoerd earned his doctorate in philosophy at the University of Stellenbosch in 1924.