Government, universities and the HSRC: a perspective on the past and present

The article considers the history of the HSRC's relationship with government and universities in three periods (1917-1945, 1945-1990 and 1990-2005), characterising the first as relatively harmonious, the second as conflictual and the third as uneasy. Underpinning this relationship is the nature of the funding of research in universities and entities such as the HSRC. This the article explores from its foundation to the current period, linking a discussion of it to the degree of independence of researchers and as mediating its relationships with government and universities. The article uses secondary sources to develop the argument and ends with a plea for the history of the HSRC to be written.