Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born in Transkei, South Africa, on July 18 1918. He had an eventful life right from the beginning. While he was in high school, his father died, and he went to live with his cousin, David Dalindyebo. After he finished high school, he went to Fort Hare University College. In 1940, before he was able to graduate, Mandela was told to leave the college because he had taken part in a student strike. At about this same time, his family had chosen a girl for him to marry. Mandela wanted to choose his own wife, however, so he ran away from home and made his way to the city of Johannesburg.
Soon after Mandela moved to Johannesburg, he got a job as a policeman in a mine. Later, he began studying to be a lawyer. He also became involved in politics and joined the African National Congress (1944), an organization that sought equality among all ethnic groups in South Africa. At same time, he studied for two university degrees. Then, in 1952, he and his friend, Oliver Tambo, opened the first black law firm in the country. In 1960, after the prohibition of the African National Congress, found an underground flank, dedicated to a sabotage program. Until 1964, Mandela practiced law, and was sent to prison several times for opposing the government's policy toward black South Africans.
Mandela's life changed completely in 1964 when a court found him guilty of trying to cause a revolution against the government. He was given "life imprisonment." During the next twenty-six years, Mandela became the world's most famous political prisoner. Mandela was finally released on February 9, 1990. Four years later, in the country's first free election, Mandela became the first black person to be elected President of South Africa.