Mandela's birth in the small village of Mvezo set in motion a life that would reshape South Africa. Raised in the traditions of the Thembu royal house, he would go on to study law, join the African National Congress, spend 27 years imprisoned for his fight against apartheid, and ultimately become South Africa's first democratically elected Black president in 1994, guiding the nation through a fraught transition to majority rule.
The boy born on this day in a mud hut in Mvezo was given the name Rolihlahla, which translates roughly to "troublemaker" — a name that would prove prophetic. His father, a counselor to the Thembu king, died when Mandela was nine, and the young boy was sent to be raised by the acting regent, immersing him in tribal politics and oral history from an early age.
A teacher later gave him the English name "Nelson," a common colonial practice of the time. He would go on to co-found the ANC Youth League, lead the armed wing Umkhonto we Sizwe, and spend from 1962 to 1990 in prison, most of it on Robben Island, for his opposition to apartheid.
His release in 1990 and subsequent negotiation of a peaceful transition to democracy, culminating in his 1994 election as president, made him one of the most revered statesmen of the 20th century. July 18 is now celebrated globally as Nelson Mandela International Day, marking his birth with a call to public service.