Nelson Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary and politician who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was born in 1918 in South Africa and spent 27 years in prison from 1952 to 1990 for fighting against apartheid and racial segregation. Mandela is celebrated around the world on July 18th as Mandela Day for his message of peace and equality, and he received awards such as the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 for his work ending apartheid and reconciliation in South Africa.