British rule in Burma began in 1824 after the first Anglo-Burmese War. Due to the remote location of the Kachin State and its rugged landscape, however, Kachin Peoples were relatively untouched by British rule. American missionaries were the first to heavily interact with Kachin Peoples and they converted large tracts of the population from animism to Christianity. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, the British started replacing ethnic Burmans in the military with Chin, Kachin, and Karen soldiers. This exclusion of ethnic Burmans from the British military was formally adopted in 1925 when policy was written only allowing ethnic minorities to enlist in the army. Due to this change in military composition, many ethnic Burmans began associating the ethnic minorities with British oppression. Following the Japanese invasion of Burma in 1942, many Burmese soldiers rallied together to form the Burmese Independence Army (BIA) and fight against the British alongside the Japanese. The Kachin Peoples, however, were recruited by the British and America to fight against Japanese forces with the promise of autonomy after the war. After the end of World War II and British rule in the region, the Kachin Peoples agreed to join the Union of Burma at the 1947 Panglong Conference. The conference brought together Kachin, Chin, and Shan leaders - along with the Burman leader at the time General Aung San. Together they signed the Panglong Agreement which granted the ethnic border states autonomy in local administration and equal treatment by the State. The assassination of General Aung San, however, reduced government support for the agreement and led to feelings of betrayals on the part of Kachin Peoples.