Phan Boi Chau ( December 26, 1867 - October 29, 1940) was a pioneer of Vietnamese 20th century nationalism. In 1903, he formed a revolutionary organization called the Reformation Society (Duy Tan Hoi). From 1905 to 1908, he lived in Japan where he wrote political tracts calling for the liberation of Vietnam from the French colonial regime. After being forced to leave Japan, he moved to China where he was influenced by Sun Yat-Sen. He formed a new group called the Vietnamese Restoration League (Viet Nam Quang Phuc Hoi), 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 Hue.