In examining the early United Nations disputes over South African racial and expansionist policies between 1946 and 1952, this book explores how South Africa had become out of step with the post-war international environment and had become a parish state even before apartheid had come to the fore.

Focusing on international concerns around two specific disputes; the treatment of Indians in South Africa, and Pretoria's attempts to annex the territory of South West Africa (Namibia), Barnes highlights how divisive these issues became for the British Commonwealth of Nations. As the 'new' members, especially India, led the charge in criticizing these policies, the 'old' members, from whom South Africa expected support, went the furthest in standing by its partner, but also clearly felt uncomfortable openly endorsing them. Utilizing national archives of all the Commonwealth countries involved, The South African Disputes before Apartheid shows how these issues caused the deepest rifts within the Commonwealth during the early postwar period and set the scene for South Africa's departure from the organization in 1961. Offering an international context to South Africa's early disputes over the future of race relations and territorial claims, Barnes charts opposition against South African policies in a postwar world even before its eventual descent into apartheid.