Biography about mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on July 18, , in Mvezo, a small village on the banks of the Mbashe River in the Eastern Cape Province. He was born into the Madiba clan, son of Nonqaphi Nosekeni and Gladla Henry Mphakanyiswa, the chief of Mvezo and an advisor to the kings.
Mandela was the first in his family to receive a formal education. After primary school, he attended the University of Fort Hare, the only Western-style academic education for South African blacks at the time. At Fort Hare, he studied English, anthropology, politics, native administration, and Roman-Dutch law. Due to his involvement in a student protest, he was expelled in and did not complete his degree at the University. However, Mandela later completed his degree at the University of South Africa.
Following his expulsion, Mandela moved to Johannesburg in This move opened his eyes not only to an industrial city but also to a nation of injustice based on racial segregation. For the first time, he saw himself as a black man in a white society. He began working as a law clerk with Walter Sisulu, a prominent black businessman active in the African National Congress (ANC). It wasn’t until that Mandela joined the ANC and helped form the ANC Youth League (ANCYL). In , he was elected to his first position in the ANC as the Executive Committee.
After the election of , the National Party gained power in South Africa. Consequently, this began a formal system of racial classification and segregation – the system of apartheid. This system restricted nonwhites’ basic rights and barred them from participating in government as a way to maintain a white minority rule. Mandela’s commitment to politics and the ANC grew stronger after this election.
By , Mandela was President of the ANCYL and had drawn much attention from the South African government. Subsequently, he was served a banning order that restricted his freedom of speech and movement. The order banned Mande
Discover the remarkable life and work of Nelson Mandela – who helped change the lives of millions of South African people – in our Nelson Mandela facts…
Throughout history, lots of people around the world have faced discrimination – where they are treated differently because of their race, skin colour, gender, age and lots of other things, too.
Sadly, it still happens to this day! But there are some amazing people who have worked hard to make a change for the better, and helped us move towards a world where everyone is treated fairly and equally. One such person is Nelson Mandela…
Nelson Mandela facts
Who was Nelson Mandela?
Full name: Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
Born: 18 July
Hometown: Mvezo, South Africa
Occupation: President of South Africa and civil rights activist
Died: 5 December
Best known for: Becoming the first black President of South Africa and a civil rights hero
Also known as: Madiba
Nelson Mandela’s early life
Nelson Mandela was born on the 18th July in the village of Mvezo, which is located in an area of South Africa called Transkei. His father’s name was Henry, and his mother was called Nosekeni Fanny.
As a youngster, little Nelson was actually called Rolihlahla – it wasn’t until he was seven that a teacher at school gave him the name ‘Nelson’, and it stuck!
And check this out… Nelson was born into royalty! His father, Henry, was chief of a tribe in South Africa called the Tembu, and his great grandfather was the tribe’s king! But sadly, Nelson was just twelve years old when his father died.
Nelson studied hard at school and later attended the University of Fort Hare, the South African Native College. He then moved to the city of Johannesburg to study law at the University of the Witwatersrand, before qualifying as a lawyer in , aged 24.
Inequality in South Africa
South Africa is home to many differe
Nelson Mandela - Biography
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born in Transkei, South Africa on July 25, His father was Chief Henry Mandela of the Tembu Tribe. Mandela himself was educated at University College of Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand and qualified in law in He joined the African National Congress in and was engaged in resistance against the ruling National Party's apartheid policies after He went on trial for treason in and was aquitted in
After the banning of the ANC in , Nelson Mandela argued for the setting up of a military wing within the ANC. In June , the ANC executive considered his proposal on the use of violent tactics and agreed that those members who wished to involve themselves in Mandela's campaign would not be stopped from doing so by the ANC. This led to the formation of Umkhonto we Sizwe. Mandela was arrested in and sentenced to five years' imprisonment with hard labour. In , when many fellow leaders of the ANC and the Umkhonto we Sizwe were arrested, Mandela was brought to stand trial with them for plotting to overthrow the government by violence. His statement from the dock received considerable international publicity. On June 12, , eight of the accused, including Mandela, were sentenced to life imprisonment. From to , he was incarcerated at Robben Island Prison, off Cape Town; thereafter, he was at Pollsmoor Prison, nearby on the mainland.
During his years in prison, Nelson Mandela's reputation grew steadily. He was widely accepted as the most significant black leader in South Africa and became a potent symbol of resistance as the anti-apartheid movement gathered strength. He consistently refused to compromise his political position to obtain his freedom.
Nelson Mandela was released on February 18, After his release, he plunged himself wholeheartedly into his life's work, striving to attain the goals he and others had set out almost four decades earlier. In , at the first national conference of the ANC held in Rolihlahla Mandela was born into the Madiba clan in Mvezo, Transkei, on 18 July His mother was Nonqaphi Nosekeni and his father, Nkosi Mphakanyiswa Gadla Mandela, was the main advisor to the Acting King of the Thembu people, Jongintaba Dalindyebo. He received the name "Nelson" on his first day in primary school from his teacher Miss Mdingane. When he was 12 his father died and he was raised by the Regent at the Great Place in Mqhekezweni. He was sent to the best schools available and began studying a BA at Fort Hare University. When he was expelled for joining a student protest, the Regent told him to return or get married. So he ran away to Johannesburg with his cousin Justice. His first job in was as a security guard on a gold mine and then as a legal clerk in the law firm Witkin, Edelman and Sidelsky. At the same time he completed his BA through Unisa. In he enrolled for an LLB at Wits University. He was a poor student and became more involved in politics from after he helped to start the ANC Youth League. He married in the same year and needed money to support his family. By mid when the university asked him to pay the 27 pounds he owed or leave, he already had three children. He only started studying again in in prison. He finally graduated with an LLB through Unisa 27 years later. Later in he became the National Volunteer-in-Chief of the Defiance Campaign against apartheid laws. He and 19 others were later charged and sentenced to nine months, suspended for two years. In August he and Oliver Tambo started South Africa’s first black law firm, Mandela & Tambo. In those days one could practise as an attorney with a two-year diploma. Later that year he was banned for the first time – he had to ask the government for permission whenever he needed to leave Johannesburg. After the adoption of the Freedom Charter in , people were arrested and charged with treason. The trial lasted four-and-a-half years until 29 March by wh
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