Nelson Mandela Biography: Age, Height, Birthday, Family, Net Worth

Nelson Mandela Biography: Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, born on 18 July 1918, was a revolutionary political leader in South Africa. Mandela was known for his many accomplishments, but he is best known as South Africa’s first black president. His administration prioritised dismantling apartheid and its legacy of institutional racism and cultivating racial harmony in the nation. He was a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, the ‘Father of the Nation,’ and a man who cared deeply about his people. These are merely a few reasons to honour his legacy on his special day!

Nelson Mandela Birthday

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was and will always be a celebrated figure in South Africa and abroad. His accomplished mandates, political posture, strength, and valour are a few of the reasons he is revered to this day. Mandela was born on July 18, 1918 in Umtata, Cape Province, South Africa. At age seven, he attended a local Methodist school and was reared in the Thembu regent. In 1933, he began his secondary education at Clarkebury Methodist High School, where he earned his Junior Certificate within two years. In 1937, he attended Healdtown College, and in 1939, he enrolled at the University of Fort Hare to pursue a B.A. In his first year at this institution, Mandela studied Anthropology, English, Politics, Native Administration, and Roman-Dutch Law. However, he was suspended after a boycott against the subpar food quality at the university. Later, he enrolled in the law programme at the University of Witwatersrand. Mandela was the only pupil of African descent and faced extreme levels of racism. 1949: Due to his political interests, he failed his final exam three times and was denied a law degree.

After the white-only South African National Party government enacted apartheid laws that favoured whites, Mandela, as a member of the African National Congress, attempted to overthrow the government. In July 1952, he stood trial and was declared guilty of’statutory communism,’ the legal term for anti-apartheidism at the time. In August 1953, he established his law firm with Oliver Tambo. At the time, ‘Mandela and Tambo’ was the only black-owned law firm in the country, and it was popular among aggrieved blacks. Along with other A.N.C. national administrators, he was arrested in December 1956 on charges of high treason against the state. Mandela’s formal trial began in August 1958, and he was declared “not guilty” in 1961. In August of 1962, he was detained again for inciting worker strikes and leaving the country without permission. He was given a five-year prison sentence for this offence. During his incarceration, Mandela faced new conspiracy allegations and was tried in a proceeding dubbed ‘The Rivonia Trial.’ He was convicted of four counts of treason and given a life sentence in prison. 1964 saw the transfer of Mandela and his co-accused to the Robben Island prison, where they resided for 18 years.

Mandela’s time spent in captivity was horrendous. The glare from his job in a lime quarry irreversibly impaired his vision. Once every six months, he received a letter or a visit as a Class D inmate. During his time in prison, he also lost his mother and first-born child, Thembi. In 1975, he was classified as a Class A prisoner and permitted numerous visitors and correspondence. In April 1982, Mandela was transferred to Pollsmoor Prison. Due to declining foreign investment in South Africa, he was offered release in February 1985 with the condition that he denounce violence as a political tactic. On his 70th birthday in 1988, a tribute concert was staged at Wembley Stadium in London in his honour. He was transferred to Victor Verster Prison in 1988, and he was liberated in February 1990 after the president deemed apartheid unsustainable. Before his liberation, Mandela spent nearly three decades in prison. He promptly resumed his political interests. In 1994, he became the first black African president of South Africa in an effort to end apartheid.

Mandela accomplished many notable things as president, including land reform and poverty alleviation, among others. He received over 250 honours during his lifetime, including the Nobel Peace Prize. He is a shining example of democracy and social justice. Mandela was a remarkable individual who shared his struggles with his family and loved ones. He was a three-time married father of seven children. In addition to the Nelson Mandela Foundation, his legacy carries on in the hearts of those he influenced.

Nelson Mandela Net Worth, Height

Name	Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
Nickname	Madiba
Birth date	July 18, 1918
Death date	December 5, 2013 (age 95)
Zodiac Sign	Cancer
Height	6′ 1″
Relationship Status	Married
Net Worth	$4.1 million
Social Media	Instagram

Nelson Mandela Biography: 5 SURPRISING FACTS

The Xhosa meaning of Mandela’s middle name, Rolihlahla, is “troublemaker.”

Mandela was a member of the royal family because his paternal great-grandfather was King of the Thembu people.

Mandela was assigned the English name ‘Nelson’ at school due to the British bias in the education system.

Mandela had a passion for horticulture.

Mandela laboured in prison to earn his law degree from the University of London.