Nelson Mandela was hero of mankind. He stood up against violence and wars. The South African activist and former president Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela helped bring an end to apartheid and has been a global advocate for human rights. A member of the African National Congress party beginning in the 1940s, he was a leader of both peaceful protests and armed resistance against the white minority’s oppressive regime in a racially divided South Africa. His actions landed him in prison for nearly three decades and made him the face of the antiapartheid movement both within his country and internationally. Released in 1990, he participated in the eradication of apartheid and in 1994 became the first black president of South Africa, forming a multiethnic government to oversee the country’s transition. after retiring from politics in 1999, he remained a devoted champion for peace and social justice in his own nation and around the world until his death in 2013 at the age of 95.
A brief timeline of the life and times of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
1918 Born Rolihlahla Dalibhunga Mandela on July 18th in the Eastern Cape. His English name, Nelson was given to him by a teacher at his school
1943 Joins African National Congress (ANC) as an activist
1944 Forms the Youth League of the ANC with Oliver Tambo and Walter Sisulu
1952 Opens the first Black legal firm in South Africa with fellow attorney Oliver Tambo
1956 Charged with high treason with 155 other political activists. Treason Trial of 1956-61 follows and they were all acquitted after a four-year trial
1958 Marries Nomzamo Winfreda Zanyiwe Madikizela (his second marriage), a Social Worker and the couple have two daughters, Zenani and Zindziwa
1960 Sharpeville massacre in which police kill 69 peaceful protestors and the ANC is banned. Mandela goes into hiding
1962 Captured and arrested twice, August 5th & October 25th Mandela is convicted of incitement and leaving country without a passport. He is sentenced to five years in prison but goes on the run
1964 Captured and charged with treason and sabotage, Mandela and two of his co-accused are found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment rather than death. They are transferred from Pretoria to Robben Island where they are kept for 18 years
1968 His mother dies and his eldest son, Thembi dies in a car accident. Mandela is forbidden from attending either of the funerals
Tribute to Nelson Mandela : Collection of Nelson mandela Old Pictures
Nelson Mandela, center, stands amid a gathering of other co-defendants during the Treason Trial.
Nelson Mandela sews prison clothes by the shore in 1964. He was sent to the infamous jail at Robben Island, a barren rock off the coast near Cape Town, in 1963 in part for his activities supporting the ANC’s militant wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (the Spear of the Nation). His 27-year-long imprisonment made him the world’s most famous political prisoner.
Nelson Mandela, in a boxing pose, wearing shorts, t-shirt and boxing gloves, circa 1950.
Nelson Mandela and his then-wife Winnie at their wedding in 1957.
Nelson Mandela With second wife Winnie
Nelson Mandela, then a defense lawyer, outside the Drill Hall during the Treason Trial, the first major trial for treason in Johannesburg, South Africa, 1961. Photograph by Ian Berry/Magnum.
Nelson Mandela and his second wife, Winnie Madikizela, on their wedding day, in Pondoland, South Africa, June, 1958.
Mandela, second from right, as a leader of the African National Congress. He and other activists charged with treason by the South African government walk to their trial, in 1956.
Nelson Mandela, a senior member of the African National Congress, in prison on Robben Island.