Born in rural South Africa in 1918, Nelson Mandela rose from childhood poverty to present one of the world’s most mythologized and romanticized struggles for freedom. Mandela trained as a lawyer in Johannesburg, hoping to assimilate to white South Africans’ way of life, but the city brought him into contact with radical ideas that redirected the course of his life.

As apartheid was implemented in the 40s and 50s, Mandela’s law practice and private activism with the African National Congress (ANC) created an escalating conflict with the government. This resulted in his being charged with treason in 1955. Throughout several trials, Mandela employed oratory theatrics to draw greater attention to his cause. Despite a 1961 acquittal, he was certain that only armed resistance could end apartheid. He and like-minded allies formed MK, the paramilitary wing of the ANC.

MK operations began in 1962, but that same year, Mandela was captured soon after returning from a trip abroad lobbying for international support. A government raid on MK headquarters in 1963 yielded additional evidence, and Mandela and his compatriots were sentenced to life in prison. For the next 27 years, 18 of which were spent on the notorious Robben Island, Mandela was imprisoned.