Nelson Mandela Timeline

1918 Jul 18 Nelson Mandela is Born
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (Xhosa pronunciation: [xoˈliɬaɬa manˈdeːla]; born 18 July 1918 in Transkei, South Africa) is a former President of South Africa, the first to be elected in a ful...
1944 The African National Congress Youth League is Founded
The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) is the youth wing of the African National Congress. Its foundation in 1944 by Anton Muziwakhe Lembede (1914-1947), Ashley Peter Mda, Nel...
1944 Jul 15 Nelson Mandela marries Evelyn Mase
Mandela's first marriage was to Evelyn Ntoko Mase who, like Mandela, was also from what later became the Transkei area of South Africa, although they actually met in Johannesburg.[92] The...
1952 Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo open first black legal firm in South Africa
By 1952 Mandela and Tambo had opened the first black legal firm in the country, and Mandela was both Transvaal president of the ANC and deputy national president. A petition by the Tra...
1952 Jul 30 Nelson Mandela was arrested and convicted of contravening the Suppresion of Communism Act
In 1949, the Programme of Action was written by the ANCYL and adopted by the ANC which advocated boycotts, strikes, civil disobedience and noncooperation to achieve its goals. Mandela al...
1956 Dec 5 Nelson Mandela and 150 others arrested and charged with treason
Initially committed to nonviolent resistance, Mandela and 150 others were arrested on 5 December 1956 and charged with treason. The marathon Treason Trial of 1956–1961 followed, with all ...
1958 Jun Nelson Mandela marries Winnie Madikizela
Mandela's second wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, also came from the Transkei area, although they, too, met in Johannesburg, where she was the city's first black social worker.[98] They h...
1961 Mar Nelson Mandela and others found not guilty in Treason Trial
The Treason Trial was a trial in which 156 people (105 Blacks, 21 Indians, 23 Whites and 7 Coloureds), including Nelson Mandela, were arrested in a raid and accused of treason in South Af...
1962 Nelson Mandela leaves country for military training
In January Mandela leaves South Africa illegally to attend a freedom conference in Algeria and to scout for military training facilities for Umkhonto members and raise funds from African ...
1962 Aug 5 Nelson Mandela arrested for leaving country illegally
On 5 August 1962 Mandela was arrested after living on the run for seventeen months, and was imprisoned in the Johannesburg Fort.[38] The arrest was made possible because the U.S. Central ...
1962 Oct
to 1990 Feb
Nelson Mandela's Imprisonment
Nelson Mandela was imprisoned on Robben Island where he remained for the next eighteen of his twenty-seven years in prison.[49] While in jail, his reputation grew and he became widely kno...
1963 Nov 26
to 1964 Jun 12
 Rivonia Trial
The Rivonia Trial was a trial that took place in South Africa between 1963 and 1964, in which ten leaders of the African National Congress were tried for 221 acts of sabotage designed to ...
1984 Song "Free Nelson Mandela" by The Special A.K.A released
"Free Nelson Mandela" is a song written by Jerry Dammers and performed by his Coventry-based band The Special A.K.A. released on the single Nelson Mandela / Break Down The Door in 1984 as...
1990 Feb 11 Nelson Mandela Released from Prison
11 February 1990: After 27 years of imprisonment, Mandela is released. His new life is busy, visiting old friends and supporters, becoming deputy president of the ANC, and travelling with...
1993 Dec 10 Nelson Mandela and Frederik Willem de Klerk are Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, born 18 July 1918 in Transkei, South Africa, is a former President of South Africa, the first to be elected in a fully representative democratic election, who h...
1994 May 10 Nelson Mandela inaugurated as South Africa's first black President
South Africa's first multi-racial elections in which full enfranchisement was granted were held on 27 April 1994. The ANC won 62% of the votes in the election, and Mandela, as leader of t...
1996 Mar Nelson Mandela divorces Winnie Madikizela
In 1992 Nelson Mandela tired of his wife's political and personal excesses and announced that he and Winnie were to separate. They eventually divorced in 1996 on the grounds of her adulte...
1998 Jul 18 Nelson Mandela marries Graca Machel
Mandela was remarried, on his 80th birthday in 1998, to Graça Machel née Simbine, widow of Samora Machel, the former Mozambican president and ANC ally who was killed in an air crash 12 ye...
1999 Jun Nelson Mandela Retires
Mandela became the oldest elected President of South Africa when he took office at the age of 75 in 1994. He decided not to stand for a second term unlike most African leaders, who usuall...
2001 Apr 30 Official Opening of Nelson Mandela Gardens in Millenium Square, Leeds
On 30 April 2001, Nelson Mandela Gardens in Millenium Square, Leeds was officially opened and Nelson Mandela was awarded the freedom of the city and awarded a commemorative 'golden owl' (...
2001 Nov 19 Nelson Mandela became first living honorary Canadian citizen
Nelson Mandela will become an honorary Canadian citizen Monday, making it the first time in history the distinction has been given to a living person. BACKGROUNDER: Nelson Mandela The f...
2002 Jul 9 President George W. Bush Awards Nelson Mandela Presidential Medal of Freedom
On July 9 2002 U.S. President George W. Bush presented Nelson Mandela with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the East Room of the White House. 'Shortly after he arrived on South Af...
2003 Apr 16 CNN Prematurely Releases Obituaries
Multiple premature obituaries came to light on 16 April 2003, when it was discovered that pre-written draft memorials to several world figures were available on the development area of th...
2003 Jul 18 Meeting Mandela: A Staying Alive Special hosted by Beyonce Knowles
In honour of Nelson Mandela’s 85th birthday on July 18, MTV (Music Television), announced that multi-platinum recording artist Beyonce Knowles will host ‘Meeting Mandela: A Staying Alive ...
2003 Nov 29 46664 AIDS Charity Concert
46664 (four, double six, six four) is a series of AIDS charity concerts played in honour of Nelson Mandela by South African musicians in the 2000s. Mandela was imprisoned on Robben Isl...
2004 Mar 31 Sandton Square in Johannesburg renamed Nelson Mandela Square
Nelson Mandela Square is a shopping centre in Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa. Formerly known as Sandton Square, it was renamed Nelson Mandela Square on 31 March 2004 after a 6-metre ...
2005 Jul 2 Live 8 concerts
Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and in South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 Conference and summit held at the Gleneagle...
2007 Aug 29 Statue of Nelson Mandela unveiled at Parliament Square in London
On 29 August 2007, a statue of Nelson Mandela was unveiled at Parliament Square in London by Richard Attenborough, Ken Livingstone, Wendy Woods, and Gordon Brown.[188] The campaign to ere...
2008 Jun 27 Nelson Mandela 90th Birthday Tribute
he Nelson Mandela 90th Birthday Tribute was held in Hyde Park, London on 27 June 2008 to commemorate Nelson Mandela's ninetieth birthday (18 July). The concert formed part of the 46664 co...
2008 Aug 27 Statue of Nelson Mandela Unveiled at Groot Drakenstein Correction Centre
On 27 August 2008, a statue of Nelson Mandela was unveiled at Groot Drakenstein Correction Centre ( ref Drakenstein Correction centre) between Paarl and Franshhoek on the R301 road, near ...