Mohandas Gandhi was the youngest of four sons in a merchant family. Growing up, he craved knowledge and devoted himself to his studies. Upon graduating high school, he decided to go to London to become a lawyer. This profession took him all the way to South Africa, where he tested his theory of non-cooperation and civil resistance to get rights for the Indians there. Upon returning to India, he used the same practices to protest for independence from British rule. Over the course of his seventy-eight year life, he helped win rights and independence for himself, his people, and his nation. He is globally recognized as a hero and a symbol of peace.