Nelson Mandela's willingness to forgive and forget helped peacefully end an era of white domination in his native South Africa. But as news of his death spread, mourners there and around the world professed that he, himself, would never be forgotten.
Timeline of his achievements:
July 18, 1918
Born Rolihlahla Mandela into Thembu royal family in Mvezo village in the south-east of South Africa.
1940
Expelled from Fort Hare University College for participating in a student strike.
1943
Joins African National Congress (ANC).
1952
Opens first black law practice in Johannesburg with Oliver Tambo.
December 5, 1956
Arrested and charged with treason along with 156 political activists.
1961
Acquitted in treason trial, along with co-accused.
December 16, 1961
Launch of ANC's armed wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation), with Mr Mandela as commander-in-chief.
August 5, 1962
Captured and sentenced on November 7 to five years in prison for incitement to strike and leaving country illegally, having earlier travelled to Ethiopia and Algeria for military training.
June 12, 1964
After famous speech from dock (democracy "is an ideal for which I am prepared to die"), Mandela is sentenced to life imprisonment and sent to Robben Island prison off Cape Town.
February 11, 1990
Released from prison.
July 5, 1991
Elected ANC president.
October 15, 1993
Wins Nobel Peace Prize with De Klerk.
April 27, 1994
Votes for the first time in his life in the country's first all-race elections.
May 10, 1994
Inaugurated as president.
1999
Steps down as president after one term.
June 1, 2004
Announces his retirement from public life.
January 6, 2005
Announces that his son Makgatho had died of AIDS.
April 19, 2009
Makes his final political address in a recorded message at an ANC election rally.
July 11, 2010
Appears at the closing ceremony of the football World Cup in South Africa.
February 25, 2012
Admitted to hospital to treat a long-running abdominal complaint kicking-off a long series of health problems.
May 30, 2012
Makes rare television appearance to receive symbolic flame marking the ANC centenary.
December 6, 2013
Dies at his home in Johannesburg surrounded by family, at the age 95.
5 Life-lessons from Mabida
Political leaders remember Mandela
The U.N. Security Council had a moment of silence in his honor, with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon later calling Mandela "a giant for justice and a down-to-earth inspiration."
"A great light has gone out in the world," tweeted British Prime Minister David Cameron. "Nelson Mandela was a hero of our time."
Reaction from U.S. politicians was similarly swift, with ex-Presidents George H. W. Bush calling Mandela "a man of tremendous moral courage" and Bill Clinton remembering him as "a man of uncommon grace and compassion, for whom abandoning bitterness and embracing adversaries was not just a political strategy but a way of life."
"We've lost one of the most influential, courageous and profoundly good human beings that any of us will share time with on this earth," said current U.S. President Barack Obama. "He no longer belongs to us. He belongs to the ages."
Hollywood reacts
Actor Denzel Washington said he was "honored and humbled to call Nelson Mandela a friend of our entire family. He will continue to live through all of us as a symbol of hope, faith and strength."
Actor Forest Whitaker expressed deep sadness "by the loss of one of the world's greatest souls." "Nelson Mandela was a man who unified the world with his convictions and grace," Whitaker said. "He cultivated human dignity while moving a nation from the shackles of apartheid to reconciliation. He defended tirelessly and with passion human rights and, through love, nurtured humanity's hopes and dreams
Singer Alicia Keys said: "I'm deeply saddened by the profound loss of Nelson Mandela. He was more than just a man, but a king of peace and a beacon of hope for anyone suffering or oppressed. His courageous life touched the hearts of millions. He was perhaps our generation's greatest example of how you can rise above oppression and use your struggles to unite the world in peace.
Other starts took their sorrow to social media