'Madiba, we are now burying you': Nelson Mandela is laid to rest in his childhood home after four hour service and full tribal burial rites including guests drinking blood of slaughtered ox
- South Africa's first black president is laid to rest at his ancestral home in Qunu on tenth day of national mourning
- Thousands lined the streets to watch his funeral cortège as it made its way to the tiny hamlet in Eastern Cape
- The anti-apartheid icon died at his Johannesburg home on December 5 at the age of 95 after long battle with illness
- The South African flag draped on his coffin was handed to his widow Graca before body was lowered into the ground
- Air force jets carry out fly-past over grave accompanied by 21-gun salute and soloist playing the Last Post
- His Xhosa tribe will have slaughtered ox and offered guests blood - although dignitaries probably offered cooked meat
- Mourners included Prince Charles, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson and Idris Elber
- Current president Jacob Zuma said Mandela was 'a fountain of wisdom, a pillar of strength and a beacon of hope'
- 'Today marks the end of extraordinary journey that began 95 years ago, the long walk to freedom has ended', he said
- Nandi Mandela said: 'Go well, Madiba. Go well to the land of our ancestors, you have run your race'
- Funeral overruns by 105 minutes, meaning the tribal tradition that members are buried at noon was missed
- Seats were filled during the state funeral service as soldiers were moved in to occupy empty chairs
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South Africa's first black President died in his Johannesburg home on December 5, at the age of 95 after a long battle with illness and he was laid to rest in his grave in Qunu in Eastern Cape province.
Troops lined the route up to the hillside as Mandela was carried on a gun carriage to the private burial on his family’s estate.
As his body was placed on the grave the South African flag on the coffin was removed and handed to Mandela's widow Graca Machel, who was comforted by his ex-wife Winnie Mandela.
A fly-past then followed accompanied by a 21-gun salute and a solitary trumpeter played the Last Post while his body was lowered into the ground.
As he was buried armed forces Chaplain General Monwabisi Jamangile said: 'Yours was truly a long walk to freedom, and now you have achieved the ultimate freedom, in the bosom of your maker.'
His funeral was also marked by his Xhosa tribe whose elders will have slaughtered an ox to accompany his spirit after burial, while guests would be asked to drink its blood from a communal bowl.
But it is understood dignitaries such as Prince Charles were probably offered the animal's meat to eat instead after it was cooked on an open fire.
Mandela's family also talked to him until he was lowered into the earth and will have said 'Madiba, we are now burying you,' a tradition followed so the souls of the dead know where they are going.
Goodbye to an icon: Nelson Mandela's coffin is
slowly lowered into the ground in the hills close to where he grew up at
the small, private burial today in Qunu as military salute and mourners
watch the poignant moment
Poignant: Nelson Mandela's coffin was carried to
his grave and then the flag of the country he loved so ardently was
removed and handed to his widow Graca Machel
Last steps: After being carefully taken from his
gun carriage, Mandela's coffin was wheeled the final few yards before
being placed above his final resting place
United in grief: Mandela's widow Graca Michel
(centre) and his ex-wife Winnie Mandela (left) tearfully comforted one
another as they sat next to president Jacob Zuma and Mandela's grandson
Mandla as he was laid to rest
Royal meeting: The Prince of Wales meets the
King of the Xhosa tribe Zwelonke Sigcau, head of Mandela's tribe, at the
burial in Quno today. Elders will have slaughtered an ox and drank its
blood to ensure Mandela's soul is accompanied after burial although
dignitaries such as Prince Charles will have been offered the meat
Around 5,000 guests, including his ex-wife Winnie, the Prince of Wales, Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson and the American civil rights activist Jesse Jackson, were also at the service.
But the ceremony overran by nearly two hours as political figures gave a series of extended eulogies, meaning that his tribe's tradition that burials should be at noon 'when the sun is at its highest and the shadow at its shortest' had to change.
The current leader of his beloved country, Jacob Zuma, told mourners Madiba, as he was adoringly called, was 'a fountain of wisdom, a pillar of strength and a beacon of hope for all those fighting for a just and equitable world order.
'Today marks the end of extraordinary journey that began 95 years ago, the long walk to freedom has ended'.
‘When people see goodness in a person they respond by reflecting goodnesss back at that person and on their fellow man and women,' Zuma said.
'Thank you for being everything we wanted in a leader during a difficult period in our lives.
'Your long walk to freedom has ended but in a physical sense our journey continues.
'We have to take your legacy forward and in doing so we will continue taking lessons from your very rich and extraordinary life.
Arm in arm: Mandela's second wife Winnie
Madikizela Mandela (far right) and the statesman's widow Graca Machel
(centre) walk together as he is about to be buried
Civil rights campaigner: American Jesse Jackson,
a close friend of Mandela's meets Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, right, and
Lindiwe Sisulu, left, at the burial
Religious movement: Archbishop Desmond Tutu,
centre, is surrounded by clergymen at his Christian burial after his
state funeral was dominated by political eulogies
Special tribute: The South African air force fly
over Mandela's grave in the hills of Qunu where he grew up, which was
accompanied by a 21-gun salute
A nation in mourning: Three helicopters carrying
South African flags fly over the burial site today as a much smaller
crowd of mourners watched the great statesman laid to rest after ten
days of official mourning
Air force tribute: A squadron of South African
jets flew across the skies above the Eastern Cape hills where Mandela
spent his formative years
Ceremonial: The fly-past was accompanied by a
21-gun salute and a solitary trumpeter played the Last Post while his
body was lowered into the ground
Burial: The military carry Mandela's body along the pathway to the area where South Africa's beloved son's burial site in Qunu
Procession: After the funeral South Africa's
military took over and followed Mandela's coffin up the hill to his
family plot where he was buried
Funeral procession: After the four hour memorial
service Mandela's body on a gun carriage led by troops and followed by
his family in cars
Final journey: The coffin of former South
African President Nelson Mandela is carried by military personnel at the
end of his funeral service in his ancestral village of Qunu in the
Eastern Cape
Gathered to remember Madiba: South Africa's
president Jacob Zuma (2nd left), Mandela's ex-wife Winnie Mandela
(left), and the widow of Mandela, Graca Machel (3rd left), sit by his
coffin
Embrace: Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who initially
claimed he had not been invited to the funeral, hugs former president
Thabo Mbeki
Respect: Candles are lit under a portrait of Nelson Mandela before his funeral. One for every year of his life
Dignitaries: Prince Charles, right, arrives for
the state funeral on Sunday and is greeted by a fellow mourner who
welcomed him to the Quno service
Representing Britain: The Queen sent the Prince
of Wales, pictured here speaking to Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, a politician
and former wife of Jacob Zuma
Mourners: US talk show host Oprah Winfrey,
centre, her husband Stedman Graham, left, and English businessman
Richard Branson, right, watching the state funeral service
Star: British actor Idris Elba, who played
Mandela in Long Walk To Freedom, also attended the state funeral - the
first in South Africa's democratic history
Praise: President Jacob Zuma said that Mandela was 'a fountain of wisdom, a pillar of strength and a beacon of hope'
He read a Mandela quote: ‘I hate race discrimination most intensely and in all its manifestations. I fought it all through my life. I fight it now and will fight it to the end of my life.’
He said he taught forgiveness and reconciliation.
‘We learned from you that to build a new society, a new SA from the ashes of apartheid and colonialism we had to rise above anger and the human desire for retribution.’
Zuma also spoke of Mandela's dedication to gender equality which led to more women in public life.
Historic figure: Thousands of people have paid tribute to South Africa's first black president as he was buried today
‘As you take your final steps, South Africa will continue to rise.’
He said the poor and working class have benefitted from the fruits of democracy.
‘We commit to work more intensely to deal a decisive blow against poverty, inequality.’
In a political eulogy he promised improved utilities, better jobs and working conditions as well as efficient and accountable public service.
‘We will be able to complete this country’s transformation into a global force for social and economic leadership that you believed we were capable of being.’
‘Tata as your triumphant journey comes to an end we sincerely thank you.’
‘We sincerely thank you, thank your family for sharing you with us and the world.’
Zuma added that his children must be truly proud today to be ‘brought to this planet by a man so great and humble’.
His casket, transported to the tent on a gun carriage and draped in the national flag, rested on a carpet of cow skins below a lectern where speakers delivered eulogies.
'A great tree has fallen, he is now going home to rest with his forefathers,' said Chief Ngangomhlaba Matanzima, a representative of Mandela's family.
Nandi Mandela said her grandfather went barefoot to school in Qunu when he was boy and eventually became president and a figure of global import.
'It is to each of us to achieve anything you want in life,' she said, recalling kind gestures by Mandela 'that made all those around him also want to do good.'
In the Xhosa language, she referred to her grandfather by his clan name: 'Go well, Madiba. go well to the land of our ancestors, you have run your race.'
Ahmed Kathrada, an anti-apartheid activist who was jailed on Robben Island with Mandela, remembered his old friend's 'abundant reserves' of love, patience and tolerance. He said it was painful when he saw Mandela for the last time, months ago in his hospital bed.
'He tightly held my hand, it was profoundly heartbreaking,' Kathrada said, his voice breaking at times. 'How I wish I never had to confront what I saw. I first met him 67 years ago and I recall the tall, healthy strong man, the boxer, the prisoner who easily wielded the pick and shovel when we couldn't do so.'
'It is through Mandela that the world cast its eyes on South Africa and took notice of the severe and organised repression of black South Africans,' he said.
'Yet it was also through Mandela that the world would learn the spirit of endurance, the triumph of forgiveness and the beauty of reconciliation.'
Loss of an icon: A mourner weeps as he watches
the funeral service for former South African President Nelson Mandela on
a large screen television in Cape Town
Hard to take: Mourners console each other as
they watch a broadcast of the state funeral of former South African
President Nelson Mandela, at Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg
Hero: An ANC member sobs in Johannesburg this
morning as the world said its final goodbye to 'Madiba' on the tenth day
of mourning in South Africa
Celebration of life: Men in tribal Zulu warrior dress perform ritual dances on the area overlooking the burial ceremony
Heroic: Warriors pay a personal tribute to the
Nobel Peace Prize winner and revered icon of the anti-apartheid struggle
in South Africa who died on December 5 at the age of 95
Some mourners wiped away tears as Kathrada spoke, his voice trembling with emotion.
Mandela's widow, Grace Machel, and his second wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, were dressed in black and sat on either side of South African President Jacob Zuma.
Guests included veterans of the military wing of the African National Congress, the liberation movement that became the dominant political force after the end of apartheid, as well as U.S. Ambassador Patrick Gaspard and other foreign envoys.
More than an hour into the service, people were still filling empty seats in parts of the marquee. Soldiers moved in to occupy some chairs.
The funeral included traditions of Mandela's Thembu clan, as well as a 21-gun salute, brass band and fly over by jets.
Elders were in traditional funeral attire out of respect for Mandela and his family sang old struggle songs as they lined the road to greet the funeral cortege.
The Xhosa people to whom Mandela belonged have a number of hallowed traditions surrounding death - including the ritual slaughter of an ox.
Because the former president died far from his birthplace, his body had to be escorted home so he could be buried near to where he was born.
The Xhosa believe that in order to guide the souls of the dead to their final resting places, their bodies should be constantly talked to so that they know where they are going.
When Mandela was about to be buried, his family will have said to him, 'Madiba, we are now burying you,' according to religious expert Nokuzola Mndende.
Final journey: The coffin carrying former South
African President Nelson Mandela is escorted into his state funeral
service in Qunu this morning
Eulogy: Mandela's granddaughter Nand takes to the podium to pay her tributes to the leader
Paying their final respects: Nelson Mandela's
grandsons Ndaba (left) and Mandla Mandela (centre) look at the coffin as
they attend the funeral ceremony of the South African former president
today
Honour and respect: A gun salute is fired as the funeral procession nears the Mandela family compound at the start of today
Procession: Military officers accompany the coffin into the funeral as others stand to attention
Wives: Grace Machel, left, and Winnie
Madikizela-Mandela, right, have led South Africa in mourning for the man
they were both married to
Speech: Joyce Banda, the president of Malawi, was one of many African leaders to pay tribute to Mandela at the service
Stage: The speakers delivered their addresses in front of 95 candles, representing every year of Mandela's life
Moved: Mandela's daughter Makaziwe, centre, sits in front of her father's coffin during the ceremony
Tears: The former president's daughter Zindzi comforts another mourner
Packing out the building: Soldiers moved in to
fill some of the empty chairs during the funeral service, despite many
people complaining about being left off the invite list
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