Aung San, born on this day in 1915, was a Burmese revolutionary nationalist who was instrumental in helping Burma achieve independence from British imperialists, however he was assassinated six months before independence was formalized.

Aung San was born to a family distinguished in the resistance movement after the British annexation of 1886. He enrolled in Rangoon University in 1933 and became secretary of the university's student union and and editor of its newspaper.

In 1936, Aung San was expelled for refusing to reveal the name of an author for the paper who had criticized a university official. In response, students went on strike, leading to his reinstatement. The incident garnered nationwide publicity and recognition for Aung San.

In 1938, Aung San joined the Thakins, a movement of nationalist intellectuals who rejected British rule. In 1939, he became a founding member and the first Secretary-General of the Communist Party of Burma, however he had a unsteady relationship with the Party, joining and leaving it twice.

In 1940, Aung San was contacted by Japanese agents, who offered assistance to help him raise an army to fight against British rule. On December 28th, 1941, Aung San, as part of the "Thirty Comrades", formally inaugurated the Burma Independence Army (BIA) in Bangkok.

The BIA initially collaborated with Japanese forces following their invasion of the country in 1942 and establishment of a puppet government. However, relations between the BIA and Japan soon deteriorated, and Aung San grew suspicious of Japan's true intentions in the region.

Aung San began to secretly organize against the Japanese occupation, founding the "Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League" (AFPL) in 1944. On March 27th, 1945, Aung San led a surprise attack against Japanese forces, continuing to fight them for the remainder of World War II.

Following the end of war and official alignment with Allied forces, British forces sought to integrate the Burma National Army into the colonial armed forces. Aung San, who was not personally invited to negotiate by the British, reorganized former soldiers as the paramilitary "People's Volunteer Organization" in an attempt to preserve an armed, nationalist formation.

Clement Attlee's newly-elected Labour Party government in the United Kingdom decided to start moving towards a withdrawal, and, beginning in September 1946, Aung San served as Premier of the Crown Colony of Burma, a move criticized by the Communist Party. On January 27th, 1947, Aung and Attlee signed an agreement on the terms of independence within the year.

On July 19th, before the transition to independence had been completed, Aung San was assassinated along with seven other members of the interim government under unclear circumstances.

U Saw, a political rival, was later executed for his role in the killings, although there have been allegations made regarding British complicity in the incident.

"If you're feeling helpless, help someone."

- Aung San