He was the first black president of South Africa. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we'll be taking a look at the life and accomplishments of Nelson Mandela.
Born July 18th, 1918 in a South African , Nelson Mandela was the first in his family to school. A talented student who showed rebellious tendencies early on, he was from university for his involvement in a against the institution. It was expected Mandela would become of his tribe like his father, but instead he chose to study .
“It is absolutely important that you have the to serve your country and your people.”

By 1944, Mandela the African National Congress, or ANC. This left-wing political party wished to give rights and freedoms to the entire country. Within the party, Mandela was part of a group that formed the ANC Youth League, and this offshoot used grassroots methods to get their point across, including boycotts, and general civil .
“The task of the ANC was to the African people and, out of them, build a .”
In 1948, the National Party was to government, and following that, it instituted a legal system of racial called apartheid. Meanwhile, Mandela and the ANCYL continued their protests against racist policies.

For example, Mandela was instrumental in 1952's Defiance Campaign, as well as 1955's Congress of the People. He also served as a for mistreated black South Africans by opening the country's first black law practice. Mandela was quickly becoming an of the government, and he was whenever possible. At the end of 1956, Mandela and a group of about 150 protesters were on the suspicion of because of their advocacy. After a long , the group was acquitted.

It was around this time that a group of Africans began suggesting that the peaceful approach was not working. This group formed the Pan-Africanist Congress in 1959. Soon after, Mandela changed his position and proposed that conflict was the only way to end apartheid rule.
“It is useless and futile for us to continue talking peace and non-violence against a government whose reply is only savage .”
He helped a military offshoot of the ANC called Umkhonto we Sizwe, and this group specialized in and guerrilla warfare. Not long after, on August 5th, 1962, Mandela was arrested for a he had organized the previous year. He was to five years in prison; however, he ended up spending his next years in jail.

While serving his five-year sentence, Mandela was also with sabotage, treason and violent conspiracy during the infamous Rivonia Trial. He was sentenced to life in prison, and barely the death penalty. Mandela's first years were spent in a prison on , but he was in 1982. He was treated poorly as a black prisoner; however, he did manage to earn a Bachelor of Laws through a correspondence program. During this time, Mandela's profile and he became an international of anti-apartheid resistance. On more than one occasion, the government offered Mandela his in exchange for the abandonment of his beliefs. Each time, he .

After much negotiation, Mandela was finally on February 11th, 1990, at the age of 72, by the country's new president.
“I wish to put it plainly that the government has taken a firm decision to release Mr. Mandela unconditionally.”
Mandela then became president of the African National Congress, and helped negotiate the end of apartheid laws. On June 17th, 1991, the Population Registration Act was repealed, which meant that racial groups were no longer separated. The country held its first elections on April 27th, 1994, with the ANC taking 62 per cent of the . On May 10th, 1994, Nelson Mandela was sworn in as the first black of South Africa.

He spent his term the economy and uniting the country. He even used the country's national team as a rallying point for all citizens, and as a way to bring the country onto the world stage in a positive light. When his term ended in 1999, Mandela from active politics. Despite leaving public life in 2004, Mandela convened a group of world called “The Elders” in 2007. With figures like Desmond Tutu, Jimmy Carter and Kofi Annan, the group aimed to resolve world problems like , AIDS and climate change. Among his many honours, he was the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993. Even after leaving public life, Nelson Mandela is one man who continued his lifelong crusade for a better world.