nelson mandela was born on 18 july 1918, in trnaskei,south africa. when he was twenty-one he went to university to become a lawyer. he soon became involved in the struggle to make things better for black people.later he soon became involved in the struggle to make things better fo black people. later he became involved in protests against apartheid. in 1962 he was sent to prison, where he remained for twenty-seven years.