James Connolly (5 June 1868 12 May 1916) was an Irish socialist leader. He was born in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, Scotland, to Irish immigrant parents. He left school for working life at the age of 11, but despite this he would become one of the leading Marxist theorists of his day. Though proud of his Irish background he also took a role in Scottish and American politics. He was shot by a British firing squad following his involvement in the Easter Rising of 1916.