Nelson Mandela
Enjoy freedom with the world’s most famous prisoner
The founder of the Rainbow Nation and a hero in his homeland and across the globe. Mandela spent 27 years in prison before going on to become president of South Africa and is a symbol of hope and of triumph against adversity. His efforts to end Apartheid won him the Nobel Prize for peace in 1993.
- 1918: Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born
- 1952: Imprisoned for protesting against Apartheid
- 1955: Took part in the Congress of the People, laying out the vision of the South African People
- 1956: Arrested for treason and subsequently acquitted
- 1961: Became leader of the armed wing of the African National Congress
- 1962: Arrested and imprisoned in Johannesburg
- 1964: Sentenced to life on Robben Island for planning armed action and for sabotage
- 1981: Received Bachelor of Laws degree via correspondence course from University of London
- 1982: Transferred to Pollsmoor Maximum Security Prison in cape Town
- 1990: Released by President FW de Klerk. Leads the ANC
- 1994: Became South Africa’s first black president
- 1999: Took his well earned retirement
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