A Tribute to Madiba

A timeline of Nelson Mandela's life:

18 July 1918 - Born at Mvezo in the Transkei.
1925 - Attends primary school near Qunu (receives the name ‘Nelson’ from a teacher).
1930 - His father dies.
1934 - Undergoes initiation; Attends Clarkebury Boarding Institute in Engcobo.
1937 - Attends Healdtown, the Wesleyan College at Fort Beaufort.
1939 - Enrols at the University College of Fort Hare, in Alice.
1940 - Expelled.
1941 - Escapes an arranged marriage; becomes a mine security officer; starts articles at the law firm Witkin, Sidelsky & Eidelman.
1942 - Completes BA through the University of South Africa (UNISA).
1942 - Begins to attend African National Congress (ANC) meetings informally.
1943 - Graduates with BA from Fort Hare; Enrols for an LLB at Wits University.
1944 - Co-founds the ANC Youth League (ANCYL); marries Evelyn Ntoko Mase – they have four children: Thembekile (1945); Makaziwe (1947 – who dies after nine months); Makgatho (1950); Makaziwe (1954).
1948 - Elected national secretary of the ANCYL.
1951 - Elected President of the ANCYL.
1952 - Defiance Campaign begins; Arrested and charged for violating the Suppression of Communism Act; Elected Transvaal ANC President; Convicted with J.S Moroka, Walter Sisulu and 17 others under the Suppression of Communism Act; Sentenced to nine months imprisonment with hard labour, suspended for two years; Elected first of ANC deputy presidents; Opens South Africa’s first black law firm with Oliver Tambo.
1953 - Devises the M-Plan for the ANC’s future underground operations.
26 June 1955 - Watches as the Congress of the People at Kliptown adopts the Freedom Charter.
5 December 1956 - Arrested and later joins 155 others on trial for teason. All are acquitted by 29 March 1961.
1958 - Divorces Evelyn Mase; Marries Nomzamo Winnie Madikizela – they have two daughters: Zenani (1959) and Zindzi (1960).
21 March 1960 - Sharpeville Massacre.
30 March 1960 - A State of Emergency is imposed and he is among thousands detained.
8 April 1960 - The ANC is banned.
1961 - Goes underground; Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) is formed.
11 January 1962 - Leaves the country for military training and to garner support for the ANC.
23 July 1962 - Returns to South Africa.
5 August 1962 - Arrested near Howick in KwaZulu-Natal.
7 November 1962 - Sentenced to five years in prison for incitement and leaving the country without a passport.
27 May 1963 - Sent to Robben Island.
12 June 1963 - Returned to Pretoria Local Prison.
9 October 1963 - Appears in court for the first time in what becomes known as the Rivonia Trial, with Walter Sisulu, Denis Goldberg, Govan Mbeki, Ahmed Kathrada, Lionel 'Rusty' Bernstein, Raymond Mhlaba, James Kantor, Elias Motsoaledi and Andrew Mlangeni.
3 December 1963 - Pleads not guilty to sabotage in the Rivonia Trial.
4 June 1964 - James Kantor discharged and released.
12 June 1964 - All except Rusty Bernstein are convicted and sentenced to life.
13 June - Arrives on Robben Island.
13 July 1969 - Thembekile is killed in a car accident.
31 March 1982 - Mandela, Sisulu, Raymond Mhlaba and Andrew Mlangeni and later Ahmed Kathrada are sent to Pollsmoor Prison.
10 February 1985 - Rejects, through his daughter, Zindzi, South African President PW Botha's offer to release him if he renounces violence.
3 November 1985 - Admitted to the Volks Hospital for prostate surgery.
23 November 1985 - Discharged from Volks Hospital and returned to Pollsmoor Prison.
12 August 1988 - Admitted to Tygerberg Hospital where he is diagnosed with tuberculosis.
31 August 1988 - Admitted to Constantiaberg MediClinic.
7 December 1988 - Moved to Victor Verster Prison in Paarl where he is held for 14 months in a cottage.
2 February 1990 - ANC is unbanned.
11 February 1990 - Released.
2 March 1990 - Elected ANC Deputy President.
10 December 1993 - Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize with President FW de Klerk.
27 April 1994 - Votes for the first time in his life.
9 May 1994 - Elected by Parliament as first president of a democratic South Africa.
10 May 1994 - Inaugurated as President of the Republic of South Africa.
14 December 1994 - Launches his autobiography Long Walk to Freedom.
1995 - Establishes the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund.
1996 - Divorces Winnie Mandela.
18 July 1998 - Marries Graça Machel on his 80th birthdays the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
2001 - Diagnosed with prostate cancer.
2003 - Establishes the Mandela Rhodes Foundation.
1 June 2004 - Announces that he will be stepping down from public life.
6 January 2005 - Announces that his eldest son Makgatho had died of AIDS.
13 April 2007 - Attends the installation of his grandson Mandla as chief of the Mvezo Traditional Council.
27 June 2008 - Asks future generations to continue the fight for social justice.
18 July 2008 - Turns 90 years old.
2009 - Votes for the fourth time in his life; Attends the inauguration of President Jacob Zuma on 9 May and witnesses Zuma's first State of the Nation address; Turns 91.
2010 - Formally presented with the Fifa World Cup trophy before it embarks on a tour of South Africa.
11 June 2010 - His great-granddaughter Zenani is killed in a car accident.
17 June 2010 - Attends the funeral of his great-granddaughter Zenani.
11 July 2010 - Makes a surprise appearance at the final of the Fifa World Cup in Soweto.
18 July 2010 - Celebrates his 92nd birthday at home in Johannesburg with family and friends.
12 October 2010 - His second book Conversations with Myself is published.
18 November 2010 - Meets the South African and American football teams that played in the Nelson Mandela Challenge match.
2011 January - Admitted to hospital in Johannesburg. Discharged after two nights.
16 May 2011 - Votes in the local government elections.
27 June 2011 - His book Nelson Mandela By Himself: The Authorised Book of Quotations is launched.
21 June 2011 - Visited at home by American First Lady Michelle Obama and her daughters Sasha and Malia.
18 July 2011 - Celebrates his 93rd birthday with his family in Qunu, Eastern Cape.
21 October 2011 - Officially counted in South Africa’s Census 2011.
25 December 2011 - Spends Christmas with family in Qunu, Transkei.
25 February 2012 - Admitted to hospital.
26 February 2012 - Discharged from hospital.
18 July 2012 - Celebrates his 94th birthday with his family in Qunu, Transkei.
8 December 2012 - Admitted to hospital.
26 December 2012 - Discharged from hospital.
1 January 2013 - Spends New Year’s Day with members of his family in Johannesburg.
9 March 2013 - Admitted to hospital.
10 March 2013 - Discharged from hospital.
27 March 2013 - Admitted to hospital.
6 April 2013 - Discharged from hospital.
8 June 2013 - Admitted to hospital.
18 July 2013 - Spends his 95th birthday in hospital.
1 September 2013 - Discharged from hospital.
5 December 2013 - Passes away at home in Johannesburg.

Nelson Mandela

(Rolihlahla Mandela)

A man who devoted his life for social equality in South Africa

An exceptional and inspirational leader

A timeline of Nelson Mandela's life:

Some notable quotes by Nelson Mandela :