Historical Organization
defence team
defence team
Details
Organization Timeline
Mandela appears in court for the Rivonia Trial
đź“… 9 October 1963Mandela appeared at the Palace of Justice in Pretoria with ten co-accused. The state charged them in connection with sabotage and the attempt to overthrow apartheid. These were allegations in a...
The first Rivonia indictment is quashed and the accused are rearrested
đź“… 30 October 1963The prosecution announced that Bob Hepple would become a state witness; Hepple was released and left the country. The court quashed the indictment against the other ten accused, who were immediately...
Bail is refused to Bernstein and Kantor
📅 1 November 1963Justice Quartus de Wet refused bail to Lionel “Rusty” Bernstein and James Kantor. The decision concerned those two accused, not Mandela personally. Their continuing detention illustrates the unequal...
The alleged sabotage counts are reduced from 199 to 193
đź“… 25 November 1963The prosecution reduced the alleged acts of sabotage from 199 to 193. The defence again sought to quash the indictment. Describing the counts as allegations matters: the numbers belong to the...
The court rejects the application to quash the indictment
đź“… 26 November 1963Justice De Wet dismissed the defence application to quash the new indictment. The ruling cleared the way for the trial to proceed. The courtroom remained a site where the state exercised power through...
The Rivonia Trial is remanded to 3 December
📅 27 November 1963The case was remanded after Kantor’s new defence requested time to prepare. The brief procedural entry preserves the work of the defense and the distinct circumstances of co-accused. It also documents...
The ten Rivonia accused plead not guilty
📅 3 December 1963The ten accused pleaded not guilty to sabotage. Their plea set the stage for a long trial in which the state sought severe penalties and the defendants used the courtroom to expose apartheid’s...
James Kantor is discharged and released
📅 4 March 1964The court discharged James Kantor from the Rivonia case and released him. Kantor’s acquittal came amid the continuing prosecution of the remaining accused. The Nelson Mandela Foundation chronology...
Mandela delivers the “Speech from the Dock”
đź“… 20 April 1964At the opening of the defence case, Mandela chose to make a statement from the dock instead of testifying. He traced the political conditions behind resistance and defended the ideal of a...