Photos: Nelson Mandela, 1918 - 2013

Politics

JOHANNESBURG (AP) - Nelson Mandela was a master of forgiveness. South Africa's first black president spent nearly one-third of his life as a prisoner of apartheid, the system of white racist rule that he described as evil, yet he sought to win over its defeated guardians in a relatively peaceful transition of power that inspired the world.

As head of state, the ex-boxer, lawyer and inmate lunched with the prosecutor who argued successfully for his incarceration, sang the apartheid-era Afrikaans anthem at his inauguration and traveled hundreds of miles to have tea with the widow of Hendrik Verwoerd, the prime minister at the time he was sent to prison who was also the architect of white rule.

It was this generosity of spirit that made Mandela, who died on Thursday at the age of 95, a global symbol of sacrifice and reconciliation in a world often jarred by conflict and division.

• Read more about Mandela's life and legacy


1 Nelson Mandela and his then-wife Winnie at their wedding in 1957. This copy was taken from the family album the original was by Alf Khumalo. 
2 Circa 1964: Nelson Mandela, President of the African National Congress (left) in discussion with C Andrews, a Cape Town teacher. 
3 ANC supporters give the thumb up as a prison van with anti-apartheid militants go to Johannesburg's courthouse, 28 December 1956. 152 anti-apartheid militants, including Nelson Mandela, were on trial in Johannesburg. 
4 ANC supporters pray in front of the courthouse of Johannesburg, 28 December 1956, to support 152 anti-apartheid militants, including Nelson Mandela, during their trial. 
5 Eight men, among them anti-apartheid leader and African National Congress (ANC) member Nelson Mandela, sentenced to life imprisonment in the Rivonia trial leave the Palace of Justice in Pretoria 16 June 1964 with their fists raised in defiance through the barred windows of the prison car. The eight men were accused of conspiracy, sabotage and treason. 
6 African women demonstrate in front of the Law Courts in Pretoria, 16 June 1964, after the verdict of the Rivonia trial, in which eight men, among them anti-apartheid leader and African National Congress (ANC) member Nelson Mandela, were sentenced to life imprisonment. 
7 Head of French anti-racist non-governmental organization "SOS Racisme" Harlem Desir takes part in a rally to call for the release of South African leader Nelson Mandela, on Dec. 25, 1985, at the parvis de Notre-Dame in Paris. 
8 Members of neo-fascist group Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (Afrikaner Resistance Movement) (AWB) protest against Frederik de Klerk's reforms and imminent release from jail of anti-apartheid leader and African National Congress (ANC) member Nelson Mandela during a rally in Pretoria, 10 Feb. 1990. 
9 Winnie Mandela (L), wife of anti-apartheid leader and African National Congress (ANC) member Nelson Mandela, arrives at the town of Brandfort, 26 March 1986, where she has been banished for nine years. Winnie Mandela arrived with boxes of toys for local children from a top west German diplomat. 
10 South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu addresses participants gathered for the Nelson Mandela Freedom Rally held in London's Hyde Park, 17 July 1988, one day before the 70th birthday of the jailed South African black leader. 
11 Thousands of ANC supporters wait for freed anti-apartheid leader and African National Congress (ANC) member Nelson Mandela before he addresses his first rally since his release from jail in February 1990. 
12 Anti-apartheid leader and African National Congress (ANC) member Nelson Mandela and his wife Winnie raise fists upon Mandela's release from Victor Verster prison on February 11, 1990 in Paarl. 
13 Nelson Mandela and Winnie Mandela give black power salutes as they enter Soweto's Soccer City stadium, South Africa Tuesday, Feb. 13, 1990. 120,000 thousand people packed the venue to hear his speech. 
14 A crowd of estimated 40,000 African National Congress (ANC) supporters listen to Nelson Mandela during a mass rally in Mmabatho 15 March 1994 prior to the 27 April general election. 
15 South African National Congress (ANC) President Nelson Mandela gives 15 March 1994 in Mmabatho a clenched fist to supporters upon his arrival for his first election rally for 27 April general elections. 
16 African National Congress President Nelson Mandela addresses a rally in Soweto as hundreds of thousands of blacks went on strike to protest the assassination of South African Communist Party leader Chris Hani, April 14, 1993. 
17 ANC President Nelson Mandela waves to supporters at Boksburg Sunday, April 10, 1994 as he arrives at a memorial service for former South African Communist Party leader Chris Hani. On April 10, 1993, Hani was gunned down outside his home, setting off riots and unrest in South Africa. A year later Mandela is on the verge of becoming president of the country. 
18 South Africa's new President Nelson Mandela (L) stands at attention as the national anthem is played during his inauguration at the Union Building in Pretoria 10 May 1994. Pictured on his left, his daughter Zinani. 
19 In this July 24, 2007, file photo, former South African President Nelson Mandela, who turned 89 years old on July 18, laughs while celebrating his birthday with children at the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund in Johannesburg. South Africa's president says, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2013, that Mandela has died. He was 95. 
20 Former South African President Nelson Mandela reacts at the Mandela foundation, in Johannesburg, South Africa, Tuesday June 2, 2009, during a meeting with a group of American and South African students as part of a series of activities leading to Mandela Day on July 18th.