Nelson Mandela was born on July 18, 1918 in Transkei, South Africa. His father was a
great chief and had four wives. Mandela’s mother was his father’s third wife. Mandela was the
only child of his father to survive. Nelson Mandela’s name was originally Rolihlahla which
literally means “pulling the branch of the tree” but better known as “The Trouble Maker.” At age
nine Mandela’s father died and Rolihlahla Mandela was adopted by a high ranking chief who
was able to provide Mandela with a Western education. Early in Mandela’s schooling his teacher
gave him the western name Nelson, so that he would have all the more reason to learn and be
like the people of the west. As Nelson Mandela went through college he began to become an
advocate for black Africans. Mandela pursued a career in law and became a well sought after
lawyer. Mandela was a defense lawyer who defended black Africans against the terrible
treatment of the white government as it became substantially worse. Mandela and fellow lawyer
Oliver Tambo worked in a law firm called Mandela and Tambo. They offered free or low-cost
legal counsel and representation to black Africans who couldn’t afford an attorney.
Mandela was not pushed towards politics until the election of 1948 when the dominantly
Afrikaner, National Party won. The National Party supported the apartheid policy of racial
segregation. Nelson Mandela began to lead anti-apartheid protests; he led predominately in the
ANC’s defiance campaign and the 1955 Congress of the People. The Congress of the People
adopted the Freedom Charter which provided the fundamental basis for the anti-apartheid cause.
Mandela and his group were initially a non-violent organization. Mandela and 150 others
were arrested on December 5, 1956 and charged with treason. The marathon Treason Trial of
1956-1961 that followed ended with all defendants receiving acquittals. In 1961 Mandela was
put in charge of the ANC’s armed wing.
On August 5, 1962 Nelson Mandela was arrested after seventeen months of being on the
run. The United States Central Intelligence Agency aided the South African Security Police as of
Mandela’s whereabouts and his disguise. On October 25, 1962 Nelson Mandela was sentenced to
five years in prison. Later when Mandela approached the court again, he was found guilty on
even more charges and was then sentenced to life in prison. Mandela was imprisoned in Robben
Island where he remained for the next 18 of his 27 years in prison. On the island he and his
fellow inmates did hard labor in a lime quarry. Prisoners were segregated by race, but political
criminals were separated from the rest of the criminals.
In March of 1982 Mandela was transferred from Robben Island to Pollsmor Prison.
About three years later in February 1985 President P.W. Botha offered Mandela his freedom on
condition that he ‘unconditionally rejected violence as a political weapon’. In 1988 Mandela was
moved to Victor Verster Prison and remained there until his release. Throughout his
imprisonment international pressure mounted on the South African government to release him.
Mandela was released from prison on February 11, 1990. The event was broadcasted live
throughout the world.
Mandela's leadership through the negotiations, as well as his relationship with President
F. W. de Klerk, was recognized when they were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993.
However, the relationship was sometimes strained, particularly so in a sharp exchange in 1991
when he furiously referred to De Klerk as the head of "an illegitimate, discredited, minority
regime".
Following his release from prison Mandela resumed his leadership of ANC. He led the
party to the multi-party negotiations that led the country’s first multi-racial elections. On May
10, 1994 President Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as President of The Republic of South
Africa. He was the first Black South African to become President of South Africa. Mandela
served only one term as President and became an international icon. Since being out of office
Nelson Mandela has traveled the world, speaking to people and trying to spread the ideas of
equality and kindness.