Nelson Mandela Freed From Prison On This Day In 1990

FILE – In this Oct. 6, 2007 file photo, former South African President Nelson Mandela reacts as German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, waves farewell after a meeting at the Nelson Mandela Foundation building in Johannesburg, South Africa. Former South African President Nelson Mandela has been hospitalized with a stomach ailment, according to a government statement issued Saturday Feb. 25, 2012 about the 93-year-old anti-apartheid icon. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, file)

On This Day in History: Nelson Mandela Freed From a South African Prison On this day in history, February 11, 1990 Nelson Mandela was freed from a South African prison. The late South African anti-apartheid activist served decades in prison as a political prisoner in his home country. In 1961 he was arrested and acquitted of treason. In 1962 he was arrested for illegally leaving South Africa. In 1964 he was sentenced to life for threatening to overthrow the government. Nelson Mandela died on December 5, 2013 at the age of 95.