Nelson Mandela's magic lay in the sheer force of his character He became a human rights lawyer, a political activist, and a constant thorn in the side of the authorities. But he also became a leader the black population could believe in. Mandela was a man with a clear vision of where black South Africans aspired to be. He was imprisoned for political activism in 1962, and freed in 1990 to worldwide acclaim. But even then, few would have believed that - less than four years later - apartheid would be gone and Nelson Mandela would be voted into office as president of a new, multi-racial South Africa. Mandela's eloquence and leadership served the people of South Africa well. He was able to face down hardliners in his own party, convince doubting whites, and bring his country back into the world community. The source of his magic was the sheer moral force that clung to him as a result of all he had endured throughout his years of imprisonment - and the lack of bitterness with which he had emerged from it. In government, he proved to be wise and even-handed. He inherited high unemployment and social deprivation, yet - despite being politically to the Left - did not shrink from using capitalist methods to fight them. He said famously: "Money won't create success, the freedom to make it will." It was a truism any Conservative might have uttered. He was a pragmatist in his politics: he included F W de Klerk's National Party in his Cabinet, and set up the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to smooth the way from ill-will to understanding - an organisation that is now used around the world as a model for post-conflict resolution. In September 1994 I was invited, as prime minister, to visit South Africa, only months after the first fully democratic elections in the country's history. While there, I addressed both Houses of Parliament. Afterwards, over lunch in the very room in which, 30 years earlier, Macmillan had delivered that famous "Wind of Change" speech, I saw for myself the remarkable spirit that had taken the country into the new era. As I looked around the room, former inmates of the notorious prison on Robben Island sat chatting amiably with white MPs who had served in the previous government. Mandela enabled those old antagonisms to fade. But he was always swift to share the credit. He told me explicitly that the work of his colleagues in the ANC and - above all - of de Klerk, his co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, were crucial in the overall settlement. He knew - and acknowledged - that de Klerk's own battle with his hardliners was hugely significant, and had accelerated the final outcome. But it was Mandela who was the recognisable face of change in the birth of a new, unified nation. He was iconic. On the day we met, he had been addressing an Aids conference - and he was still wearing the pink ribbon on his lapel. This was a hugely significant gesture, since the ANC was (and is) a very puritanical party, and preferred not to acknowledge the scale of the problem. Mandela, characteristically, brushed such taboos aside - and no doubt many lives were saved as a result. He also had a mischievous sense of humour. Wishing to promote sport for the young in the townships, I took some sporting icons with me to South Africa, Colin Cowdrey and Bobby Charlton among them. Mandela was fascinated, especially by the cricketers - and chuckled merrily when he heard that, in the nets, I had bowled out Steve Tshwete, the South African sports minister, first ball. It would be wrong to think of Mandela as flawless: no man who led an armed struggle can claim that. Nor would he have ever recognised such a description of himself. His determination would show itself as ruthlessness, but his "long walk to freedom" was more than just the title of a book. It was a journey that powerfully illustrates how change that must come, does come. Seen in retrospect, Mandela's life transcends the detail of the struggle for racial equality. He has become part of our collective understanding of natural justice. But, beyond that, he was a very human man. I was lucky enough to have seen and spoken to him many times, but my most vivid recollection is of a state visit he made to the UK in 1996 after he became president. That meeting was unlike any other during my time as prime minister. Everyone who works in Downing Street becomes accustomed to celebrated visitors, and their arrival rarely causes a stir. But how different it was when Mandela came to town: along Downing Street itself, officials from the Treasury and the Foreign Office were leaning out of their windows, waving; when he entered No 10 itself, almost all the staff had crowded into the corridor to greet him. Shaking everyone by the hand, the president charmed them completely. It was clear that here was a man who had outgrown politics, and whose influence would be pivotal - for good or ill - in the future of South Africa. Beyond any doubt, it proved to be for good. During that visit, Mandela was feted wherever he went. He reminded me that he had been brought up in a British school, when Britain was the home of much that was "best in the world" (his phrase, not mine). He spoke warmly of British history and culture. He regarded Britain as "the home of parliamentary democracy." None of this was said as casual flattery from a guest to his host: it was, I believe, genuinely meant. I am often asked who - out of all those I have been fortunate enough to know and work with - has impressed me the most. It is an almost impossible question to answer. But Nelson Mandela comes as close as anyone. This was a man of great courage and empathy, who stood up for what he believed - and won. He had an enormous personal presence, but it was not created by power or position; it was created by the sheer force of his character, which - far from being ground down during his 27 years" imprisonment - emerged untouched, even enhanced. Nelson Mandela died as he had lived: with humility, dignity and grace. A remarkable man has gone, and an extraordinary life has ended. South Africa - and the world - will mourn him. But his legacy will live on for ever.