Tributes have been paid to Nobel Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who has died aged 90.
The tireless rights campaigner was equally comfortable swapping high fives with schoolchildren - as he did on a trip to Oxford in 2010, when he was praised as 'magical' - as he was in the company of heads of state.
Announcing the death, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said it was ‘another chapter of bereavement in our nation's farewell to a generation of outstanding South Africans who have bequeathed us a liberated South Africa’.
An uncompromising foe of apartheid in South Africa, Archbishop Tutu worked tirelessly and peacefully for its downfall.
He used his pulpit as the first black bishop of Johannesburg and later Archbishop of Cape Town as well as frequent public demonstrations to galvanise public opinion against racial inequity both at home and globally.
In 2010, the archbishop visited Oxford to give the Bynum Tudor lecture at the Sheldonian Theatre.
But he also spent 45 minutes at the – then – Windmill Fairtrade Shop in Headington, speaking to staff and customers, blessing the shop and exchanging high fives with pupils from St Andrew’s Primary School.
Elizabeth Whitwick, one of the cooperative’s directors, told the Oxford Mail at the time: “He wasn’t just impressive, he was magical, everything you have ever thought this man was, plus.”
Desmond Tutu visits the Windmill Fairtrade Shop, Headington, in 2010 Picture: Margaret Stranks/Windmill Fairtrade Shop
Paying tribute this morning, Bishop of Oxford the Rt Revd Dr Steven Croft said: “Archbishop Tutu was an influence for good across the whole world.
“He helped bring an end to apartheid and worked tirelessly for peace, truth and reconciliation.
“He radiated deep faith in God, deep love for all people and an irrepressible joy.
“His life is an inspiration and example for the world. We mourn his death but give thanks to God for his remarkable life.”
Desmond Tutu visits the Windmill Fairtrade Shop, Headington, in 2010 Picture: Margaret Stranks/Windmill Fairtrade Shop
Prof Jonathan Michie, President of Kellogg College, where Archbishop Tutu was a fellow, added: “He was a wonderful friend and supporter of Kellogg College, who loved talking with our students. He filled any room with energy and warmth.
“He was elected to a ‘Bynum Tudor Fellowship’, through which the College strengthens its links beyond academia.”
Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa, described Archbishop Tutu as a champion of human rights ‘from the pavements of resistance in South Africa to the pulpits of the world's great cathedrals and places of worship’.
The clergyman had been treated in hospital several times since 2015, after being diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1997.
In recent years, he and his wife Leah lived in a retirement community outside Cape Town.
File photo of the Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu at the offices of The Desmond Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation in Cape Town. Picture: Chris Radburn/PA Wire
Throughout the 1980s - when South Africa was gripped by anti-apartheid violence and a state of emergency giving police and the military sweeping powers – Archbishop Tutu was one of the most prominent people able to speak out against abuses.
A lively wit lightened his hard-hitting messages and warmed otherwise grim protests, funerals and marches.
Short, plucky, tenacious, he was a formidable force, and apartheid leaders learned not to discount his canny talent for quoting apt scriptures to harness righteous support for change.
The Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 highlighted his stature as one of the world's most effective champions for human rights, a responsibility he took seriously for the rest of his life.
File photo of Archbishop Desmond Tutu speaking during the One Young World Summit ceremony at Old Billingsgate, London, in 2010. Picture: Zak Hussein/PA Wire.
With the end of apartheid and South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994, Archbishop Tutu celebrated the country's multi-racial society, calling it a "rainbow nation" - a phrase that captured the heady optimism of the moment.
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tik Tok
Got a story for us? Send us your news and pictures here
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel