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The Japanese stepped up their assault on the Korean school system and other nationalistic movements. After the passage of an Education Act in 1911 the Japanese began to close all Korean schools. In 1913, the Tae- Song School was forced to close, and, by 1914, virtually all Korean schools had been shut down. This all but completed the Japanese campaign of cultural genocide. Chances of any part of the Korean culture surviving rested in the hands of the few dedicated patriots working in exile outside of Korea.

When Japanese governor-general Hirobumi Itoho was assassinated by Ahn Choong-gun (1879 - 1910), an independence fighter, Japan tightened its grip on Korean leaders. Finally Ahn exiled himself to Manchuria, then traveled to Siberia, Russia, Europe, and finally to the United States, along with Rhee Syngman. Rhee organized the Tongjihoe (Comrade Society) in Honolulu. In 1912, Ahn was elected chairman of the Korean National People's Association, which emerged as the supreme organization for Koreans abroad and played an active role in negotiations with the U.S. government. During this time, he established Hungsadan, a secret voluntary group of ardent patriots. 

Through these and other organizations an attempt was made to pressure President Woodrow Wilson into speaking in behalf of Korean autonomy at the Paris peace talks. Finally, in 1918, a representative of the Korean exiles was sent to these peace talks.

In 1919, when the Joseon Dynasty was forcefully absorbed into the Japanese Empire, Ahn started underground activities that focused on regaining Korean independence. He returned to Shanghai in April 1919 along with  Rhee Syngman and Kim Ku, where and became acting premier of a provisional government. They drew up a Democratic Constitution that provided for a freely elected president and legislature. This document also established the freedom of the press, speech, religion, and assembly. An independent judiciary was established and the previous class system of nobility was abolished. After trying in vain to narrow the differences of opinion between the leaders in Shanghai, he resigned from the post after two years.

Finally, on March 1, 1919, the provisional government declared its independence from Japan and called for general resistance from the Korean population. During the resistance demonstrations the Japanese police opened fire on the unarmed Korean crowds, killing thousands. Many thousand more were arrested and tortured.

Even after the Korean Declaration of Independence, Ahn Chang-Ho continued his efforts in the United States on behalf of his homeland. Ahn wanted to establish an ideal village for wandering Korean refugees in Manchuria and visited them in the 1920s. In 1922, he headed a historical commission to compile all materials related to Korea, especially the facts concerning the Japanese occupation. 

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