Shortly before his death from cancer on Monday at the age of 72, Johannes (Joe) Modise, the country's first post-apartheid defence minister, received the Order of the Star of South Africa for meritorious service.
President Thabo Mbeki and most members of his cabinet travelled to Modise's home in Centurion to bestow the award on their ailing comrade.
The citation, read by Mbeki's director-general, Frank Chikane, said Modise served South Africa with courage, devotion and distinction, both as a liberation fighter and cabinet minister.
"That a stable, unified force has emerged from the transformation of the SA National Defence Force and the change of its command structure is a monument to former minister Modise's leadership."
Modise was born in Doornfontein, Johannesburg, in 1929 and, after his schooling, worked as a driver for various employees.
According to his official biography, the destruction of Sophiatown in 1953 sparked his militancy. In 1956 he was one of 156 activists charged with treason. The charges were dropped in the late 1950s.
Modise served on the high command of Umkhonto weSizwe, and in 1963 went into exile in Tanzania. He became MK commander in 1965.
He saw the establishment of Umkhonto weSizwe as a logical and almost irreversible development.
Modise participated in the first operations undertaken by MK. He was tasked by the high command with the establishment of MK infrastructure in the regions (particularly Natal and the Eastern and Western Cape).
He established bases in Tanzania, Angola and Uganda, and oversaw training programmes in the Eastern Bloc, Cuba, Algeria, Egypt, Ethiopia and China.
In 1967 Modise was involved in the Wankie-Sipokilo campaign, when MK forces joined briefly with Zapu's armed wing Zipra to engage Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian's Smith's troops in Zimbabwe's liberation war.
After the ANC's unbanning, Modise was among the first group of ANC negotiators to hold talks with the apartheid government at Groote Schuur in March 1990, and was part of the ANC's negotiating team at Kempton Park.
He became defence minister under the democratic government of then-president Nelson Mandela.
In March 1999, an ailing Modise buried one of his three children, Captain Ezekiel Modise, 43, who had died after a short illness.
Modise retired from active politics in June 1999.
He was actively involved in the arms procurement process during his five-year term as minister. He was accused by arms critics of corruption.
Last month, newspapers reported he was dying of cancer, had withdrawn from his business interests and was now spending most of his time at his home in Centurion.
He is survived by his wife General Jackie Sedibe and daughters Dipuso and Lesedi. - Sapa