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President Obama Speaks at Nelson Mandela's Funeral

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18 July 1918
Rolihlahla Mandela is born in a small South African village called Mvezo.

1925
Mandela becomes the first person in his family to go to school. A teacher gives him the name Nelson after having difficulty pronouncing his real name.

1937

Having passed his Junior Certificate in two years at Clarkebury Boarding Institute Mandela joins Healdtown, a college in Fort Beaufort.
1941
Mandela flees to Johannesburg, to avoid an arranged marriage. There he meets Walter Sisulu and begins work at his law firm.

1944
Two years after joining the African National Congress (ANC), Mandela and 60 other young members form the ANC Youth League.

1948
The National Party comes to power on the policy of apartheid. The ANC launch a campaign of passive resistance against the laws. They later begin the Campaign for the Defence of Unjust Laws.

1952
Mandela sets up the country's first black law firm with Oliver Tambo. They provide legal services to those who would have normally had no representation.

1953
The ANC is concerned that it will be banned so Mandela is tasked with ensuring the party can work underground.

1956
Along with 155 others, Mandela is arrested and charged with treason. After a four-year trial, the charges are dropped.

21 March 1960
Police kill 69 people, including women and children, as black people protest in Sharpeville against restrictions on their freedom of movement. A state of emergency is declared, amid fears of retaliation, and the ANC is banned.

1961
The ANC concludes that peaceful protest is not enough to combat apartheid and forms an underground military wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation). Mandela, now vice-president of the ANC, is appointed as the group's first leader.

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1962
Having spent a year underground, Mandela is arrested for leaving the country illegally. He is sentenced to five years in jail.
1963
While Mandela is in prison, fellow ANC members are arrested. They are charged with sabotage and treason, along with Mandela. The men appear in court in Rivonia.
12 June 1964
At the end of the eight-month trial, Mandela and seven other defendants are given life sentences and taken to prison on Robben Island.

March 1982
Mandela and fellow ANC leaders are transferred to Pollsmoor Prison.

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11 February 1990
Mandela is freed after 27 years, as a result of a relaxation of apartheid laws and the lifting of the ban on the ANC. He is greeted by large crowds as he and wife Winnie leave the prison grounds.

1991
At the ANC's first national conference in South Africa, Mandela is elected president of the party.

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1993
Mandela, along with South African President FW De Klerk, is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for efforts to bring stability to South Africa.

Accepting the award, Mandela says: "We will do what we can to contribute to the renewal of our world."

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27 April 1994
South Africans, including Nelson Mandela, vote in the country's first democratic election.

Mandela, leader of the ANC, is elected as the country's first black president.

10 May 1994
Nelson Mandela addresses the crowds at his inauguration, saying: "Let freedom reign, God bless Africa!"

Thabo Mbeki, Mandela's deputy, takes over the day-to-day running of government, leaving Mandela to promote the country around the world.

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February 1995
To mark the fifth anniversary of his release, Nelson Mandela visits Robben Island, the prison he was held in for 18 years.
1999
Thabo Mbeki takes over from Mandela as president of South Africa and goes on to win the 1999 presidential election.

2001
Mandela is diagnosed with prostate cancer and begins a course of radiation.

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2004
Announcing his retirement from public life, Mandela says he plans to enjoy a quieter life and spend more time with his family.

Joking with reporters, he says: "The appeal therefore is - don't call me, I'll call you."

2007

Despite his retirement, Mandela forms The Elders. The group, which includes Archbishop Desmond Tutu and other statesmen and women, aims to help tackle the world's problems.

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2008
Musicians, film stars and politicians join Mandela at a concert in London's Hyde Park to celebrate his 90th birthday.
Speaking to the crowd he says "It is time for new hands to lift the burdens, it is in your hands now."

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BBC NEWS | Special Reports | Timeline: The Nelson Mandela story

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18 July 1918 Rolihlahla Mandela is born in a small South African village called Mvezo. 1925 Mandela becomes the first person in his family to go to school. A teacher gives him the name Nelson after having difficulty pronouncing his real name.

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Obama: Nelson Mandela "belongs to the ages"

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The full text of US President Barack Obama's tribute to Nelson Mandela:

At his trial in 1964, Nelson Mandela closed his statement from the dock saying, 'I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.

'I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.

'It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.'

And Nelson Mandela lived for that ideal, and he made it real. He achieved more than could be expected of any man.

Today, he has gone home.

'Prisoner to president'

And we have lost one of the most influential, courageous and profoundly good human beings that any of us will share time with on this Earth. He no longer belongs to us - he belongs to the ages.

1918 Born in the Eastern Cape

1943 Joined African National Congress

1956 Charged with high treason, but charges dropped after a four-year trial

1962 Arrested, convicted of incitement and leaving country without a passport, sentenced to five years in prison

1964 Charged with sabotage, sentenced to life

1990 Freed from prison

1993 Wins Nobel Peace Prize

1994 Elected first black president

1999 Steps down as leader

2001 Diagnosed with prostate cancer

2004 Retires from public life

2005 Announces his son has died of an HIV/Aids-related illness

Through his fierce dignity and unbending will to sacrifice his own freedom for the freedom of others, Madiba transformed South Africa - and moved all of us.

His journey from a prisoner to a president embodied the promise that human beings - and countries - can change for the better.

His commitment to transfer power and reconcile with those who jailed him set an example that all humanity should aspire to, whether in the lives of nations or our own personal lives.

And the fact that he did it all with grace and good humour, and an ability to acknowledge his own imperfections, only makes the man that much more remarkable.

As he once said, 'I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.'

I am one of the countless millions who drew inspiration from Nelson Mandela's life.

My very first political action, the first thing I ever did that involved an issue or a policy or politics, was a protest against apartheid.

I studied his words and his writings. The day that he was released from prison gave me a sense of what human beings can do when they're guided by their hopes and not by their fears.

And like so many around the globe, I cannot fully imagine my own life without the example that Nelson Mandela set. And so long as I live I will do what I can to learn from him.

'History in his hands'

To Graca Machel and his family, Michelle and I extend our deepest sympathy and gratitude for sharing this extraordinary man with us.

His life's work meant long days away from those who loved him the most.

And I only hope that the time spent with him these last few weeks brought peace and comfort to his family.

To the people of South Africa, we draw strength from the example of renewal and reconciliation and resilience that you made real.

A free South Africa at peace with itself - that's an example to the world. And that's Madiba's legacy to the nation he loved.

We will not likely see the likes of Nelson Mandela again.

So it falls to us as best we can to forward the example that he set: to make decisions guided not by hate, but by love; to never discount the difference that one person can make; to strive for a future that is worthy of his sacrifice.

For now, let us pause and give thanks for the fact that Nelson Mandela lived - a man who took history in his hands, and bent the arc of the moral universe toward justice. May God Bless his memory and keep him in peace.

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The full text of US President Barack Obama's tribute to Nelson Mandela: At his trial in 1964, Nelson Mandela closed his statement from the dock saying, 'I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.

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World Mourns, Pays Tribute to Nelson Mandela

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World Mourns, Pays Tribute to Nelson Mandela

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English to French, Italian, German & Spanish Dictionary - WordReference.com

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Cambridge Dictionary | English Dictionary, Translations & Thesaurus

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The most popular dictionary and thesaurus for learners of English. Meanings and definitions of words with pronunciations and translations.