They were created at the foundation of the Union of South Africa in 1910, and abolished in 1986 when they were replaced by a strengthened executive appointed by the State President.
The provincial councils were created to legislate on those matters which the South Africa Act allocated to the provinces.
In 1973 the law relating to the delimitation of electoral divisions and the dissolution of provincial councils was altered by the Constitution and Elections Amendment Act, 1973, as described below.
The legislative powers of each provincial council were transferred to the Administrator of the province, subject to the approval of Parliament.
The provincial council was composed of members elected by first-past-the-post voting in single-member electoral divisions.
In provinces with less than 25 Assembly seats (i.e. Natal and the Orange Free State), there were 25 provincial councillors and separate districts were delimited for their election.
Further, while acts of Parliament could not be questioned by the courts, provincial ordinances were subject to judicial review to determine whether they were ultra vires.
The Administrator, who was appointed by the national government for a five-year term, was the official in whose name all provincial executive acts were carried out.