The confidence and aggression which Devon Malcolm exuded when taking nine South African wickets to set up the target on Saturday rubbed off on England's batsmen, who attacked the bowling after resuming on one for 107 on Sunday.
Graham Thorpe hit the winning runs with a lofted on drive back past bowler Craig Matthews 15 minutes before lunch with the loss of only two wickets with a day and two sessions to spare.
Graeme Hick finished unbeaten on a masterful 81 with Thorpe not out 15.
The only wicket to fall was captain Michael Atherton who made a defiant 63 before he fended off a short ball from Allan Donald to offer a thick edge to wicketkeeper David Richardson.
In his last three innings, Hick has looked in superb touch and his chanceless knock at the Oval saw him at his confident stroke-playing best. Atherton and Hick continued the aggressive approach of Saturday evening when England blazed its way to 107 in only 16 overs, taking only 100 minutes to score the required 98 runs.
Their partnership of 124 finished any hopes South Africa may have held of a collapse at the start of play.
Atherton's innings was the second time he has answered pressure on his position with runs.
He was fined 1,250 pounds ($1,875) Friday for showing dissent when the umpire gave him out leg before wicket in the first innings and there were calls for him to be stripped of his captaincy.
This came four weeks after he was fined 2,000 pounds ($3,000) at the first Test at Lord's for having dirt in his pocket which it was alleged he used to tamper with the ball.
He followed the ensuing 10 days of intense pressure with a superb 99 in the first innings of the second drawn Test at Headingley.
"It's been an expensive summer," Atherton said after this match. "I'm playing for the glory and honor of it these days."
This was a classic Test which swung many ways until Malcolm put the match inexorably in England's hands with his nine for 57, the sixth best Test bowling figures of all time, to skittle South Africa all out for 175 in its second innings.
England trailed by 28 runs on the first innings after Brian McMillan extracted South Africa from near-disaster with 93 to lead it to a total of 332. But England's eighth wicket partnership between Darren Gough and Phil DeFreitas in its first innings turned the match.
As South Africa was on top with England at seven for 222, the pair put on 57 runs in the last 40 minutes of Friday to push England towards 300 and give it hope.
The South Africans made a triumphant return to England after nearly three decades of isolation because of their government's apartheid policy with a crushing 356-run win in the first Test at Lord's.
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