Biography of Mahatma Gandhi

-Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbander

-He helped to free the Indian people with the help of non-violent resistance and is named the father of the Indian Nation

-The Indian people called Gandhi “Mahatma” which means “Great Soul”

-His roots came out of a middle class family and his father was a dewan

-He visited an elementary school, later primary school and last high school

-He was married at the age of thirteen to Kasturbai, who was also at the same age

-Gandhi studied law in London because he wanted t to take his father’s place in the state service

-1891 he returned to India – in the same year he heard that his mother died

-1893 he took on a one-year contract for legal working in South Africa

-British people controlled South Africa at this time

-All Indians suffered a bad treatment of the British, so Gandhi stayed there 21 years to secure rights for Indian people

-He developed some principles of courage, nonviolence and truth, called Satyagraha

-In 1915 Gandhi returned to India and within 15 years he became the leader of the Indian nationalist movement

-With the principles of Satyagraha, he fought for the independence of the Indian from the British

-For those activities he was arrested many times (altogether 7 years)

-in 1947 India gained independence, and partitioned into India and Pakistan

-Gandhi became an advocate for a united India where Hindus and Muslims lived together in peace

-On January 13, 1948, at the age of 78 he was assassinated by a fanatic Hindu, who opposed his program of tolerance for all creeds and religion