10 highlights from the life and legacy of Nelson Mandela

In commemoration of Mandela Day we take a look at 10 points in the life of Mandela which he may have considered as memorable moments

July 18, 2015

Danielle Greaves 3 minutes read

Families of four Soweto pupils who were killed in an accident involving hip hop star Jub Jub Maarohanye say they've lost faith in the justice system. The South Gauteng High court on Wednesday overturned Maarohanye and Themba Tshabalala's murder convictions, reducing it to culpable homicide.

Nelson Mandela’s quest for freedom in South Africa’s system of white rule took him from the court of tribal royalty to the liberation underground to a prison cell to the presidency, but have you ever wondered what may have been some amazing points in his life?

It’s no easy task fishing through the highlights of the life and legacy of an all-time historic hero. In commemoration of Mandela Day we take a look at 10 points in the life of Mandela which he may have considered as memorable moments.

1. Mandela attends the University of Fort Hare

In the year 1918 Rolihlahla Mandela is born in Mvezo, a small village in the Transkei, a former British protectorate in the south. His father, Gadla Henry Mphakanyiswa, was a chief of the Thembu people, a subdivision of the Xhosa nation. Mandela received his more familiar English name, Nelson, from a teacher at age seven. Mandela’s childhood left a fond spot in his heart. In 1938 Mandela was admitted to the University of Fort Hare, a black institution. It can be doubted that other children may not have had the opportunities, which were presented to Mandela.

2. First marriage

In the year 1944 Mandela married Evelyn Ntoko Mase. The couple had four children together. In the year 1952 Mandela and Oliver Tambo opened South Africa’s first black law practice.

3. During Trial, a Second Marriage

In the midst of Mandela’s trial on treason charges in 1958, he married Nomzamo Winifred Madikizela, 16 years younger than Mandela at the time. The union which created uproar produced two daughters.

4. Meets with the South African president

After Mandela and seven others were convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Mandela was sent to the Robben Island prison, on the coast of Cape Town where he spent the next 18 years. Mandela informally met with P.W Botha at the presidential office in Cape Town in 1964. It was the first publicly acknowledged meeting between Mandela and a government official outside prison, which led to speculation that he would soon be released.

5. Release from prison

At the age of 71 in 1990, Mandela was freed without conditions, ending 27 and a half years of imprisonment. For F.W de Klerk, enlisting Mandela in negotiations over a new constitution at the time was the surest way to achieve his stated goal: to end political domination by the white minority without replacing it with domination by the black majority.

6. Nobel Peace Prize

The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded jointly to Nelson Mandela and Frederik Willem de Klerk in 1993 for their work for the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime, and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South Africa.

Election victory; Mandela becomes president

In 1994 general voting opened in the first election in South African history which included black participation. Despite months of violence leading up to the vote, not a single person was reported killed in election-related violence. When the election process concluded on April 29, the A.N.C. has won more than 62 percent of the vote, earning 252 of the 400 seats in Parliament’s National Assembly. Mandela was chosen as president without opposition. May 10, 1994 Mandela took the oath of office in Pretoria to become South Africa’s first black president. He made a speech of shared patriotism.

8. Reconciliation through rugby

South Africa’s national rugby team wins the World Cup final in 1995. The team, the Springboks, were banned from international competition until the year 1992, and was long seen as a symbol of oppression by many black South Africans. Mandela called for blacks to support the team and was hailed as a move toward racial reconciliation. Mandela congratulated the team while wearing a green Springboks jersey, in a stadium full of cheering rugby fans.

Third marriage at 80

On his 80th birthday in 1998, Mandela married Graça Machel, the 52-year-old widow of the former president of Mozambique, Samora Machel.

10. Retires from the public eye

In 2004, an increasingly frail Mandela said he will reduce his public activities so he can spend his remaining years resting and writing. Bowing out of the public life gave him much deserved time with family, friends and himself.