Nelson Mandela's incarceration at Robben Island

Nelson Mandela's incarceration at Robben Island

From Witness History by BBC World Service

June 8, 2026 · 10 min

About this episode

This episode discusses Nelson Mandela's incarceration at Robben Island and the historical context surrounding it.

On 13 June 1964, Nelson Mandela, who later became South Africa's president, was taken to the maximum security prison on Robben Island off the coast of South Africa. Mandela had led the military wing of the African National Congress party which was banned by the apartheid government. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and spent 18 years on the island before being transferred to prison on the mainland. He was freed on 11 February 1990 after serving 27 years behind bars. Jen Dale uses BBC archive to tell this period of Mandela's life. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from how the Excel spreadsheet was developed, the creation of cartoon rabbit Miffy and how the sound barrier was broken. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: the…

People in this episode

Host: Jen Dale

Topics covered

  • Nelson Mandela
  • Robben Island
  • apartheid
  • South Africa
  • life imprisonment
  • historical accounts

Keywords

  • Nelson Mandela
  • Robben Island
  • apartheid
  • life imprisonment
  • African National Congress

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: African National Congress

Places: South Africa, Robben Island

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