Subhash Chandra Bose was an influential figure in the Indian independence movement. He was born in 1897 in Orissa and strongly influenced by Swami Vivekananda's teachings. Though he passed the civil service exam in 1920, he resigned the following year to participate fully in the freedom struggle. He disagreed with Gandhi's principle of non-violence and was twice elected president of the Indian National Congress. In 1941, he fled British house arrest and traveled through Germany and Japan to form the Indian National Army to fight for India's independence. Though the circumstances of his death in 1945 are mysterious, he remains a revered figure for his leadership in the independence movement.