Phan Bội Châu, Vietnamese activist (died 1940)

Phan Bội Châu, born Phan Văn San, courtesy name Hải Thụ, was a pioneer of 20th century Vietnamese nationalism. In 1904, he formed a revolutionary organization called Duy Tân Hội and initiated the Đông Du movement. From 1905 to 1908, he lived in Japan where he wrote political tracts calling for the independence of Vietnam from French colonial rule. After being forced to leave Japan, he moved to China where he was influenced by Sun Yat-sen and gradually shifted his political position from monarchist to democrat. In 1912, he disbanded Duy Tân Hội to form Việt Nam Quang Phục Hội, modeled after Sun Yat-sen's republican party. In 1925, French agents seized him in Shanghai. He was convicted of treason and spent the rest of his life under house arrest in Huế.