However, his dream was realised in 1947 after the declaration of India's independence. In 1942, Gandhi delivered his famous Quit India speech in Mumbai, calling for a general strike to force the British to leave - only to be arrested and jailed again until 1944. Mahatma Gandhi was the architect of a form of non-violent civil disobedience, organising boycotts against British institutions in a tactic that would influence the world
They went on to have four children.īetween 18, Gandhi studied law in London before he left to work as a lawyer in South Africa. In 1883 he was married off by his parents to Kasturba Makanji when the young couple were both aged just 13. Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869, as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi at Porbandar in the western Indian state of Gujarat. He was 78 when he was shot and killed in New Delhi on Januafter leading his usual multi-faith prayer group in New Delhi. The political and spiritual leader famously staged 17 hunger strikes during his long-running freedom campaign, the longest lasting 21 days.īut less than a year after he was finally able to celebrate independence from Britain in 1947, Gandhi was assassinated by Hindu extremist Nathuram Godse. Mahatma Gandhi was the architect of a form of non-violent civil disobedience, organising boycotts against British institutions in a tactic that would influence the world. He was named the Father of the Nation after his peaceful struggle to lead India to independence from the British.