Power of the Sword is a novel by Wilbur Smith set before and during World War II. The book features a critical portrayal of Hendrik Verwoerd who Smith described as "probably the most evil man in South Africa's history. Worse even than Chaka." It starts in the 1930s, and covers the Berlin Olympics, World War Two, an assassination attempt on Jan Smuts and the 1948 South African election which saw the official introduction of apartheid.