Flag of the Republic of China

The flag of the Republic of China, commonly called the flag of Taiwan,^[2][3][4] consists of a red field with a blue canton bearing a white disk surrounded by twelve triangles; said symbols symbolize the sun and rays of light emanating from it, respectively.

The flag was originally designed by the anti-Qing group, the Revive China Society, in 1895 with the addition of the red field component in 1906 by Sun Yat-sen in his speech.^[5] This was first used in mainland China as the Navy flag in 1912,^[6] and was made the official national flag of the Republic of China in 1928 by the Nationalist government and was also used by the Japanese-backed Chinese Republic from 1943. It was enshrined in the sixth article of the ROC constitution when it was promulgated in 1947. The flag is no longer used in mainland China due to the ROC defeat in the Chinese Civil War and the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. The ROC national flag has since then remained in use within the "Taiwan Area".

The public display of this flag is still seen in historical museums and war cemeteries across mainland China, but its use otherwise remains illegal due to its history as a symbol of opposition to communism. Some supporters of Taiwanese independence reject the flag due to its association with Chinese nationalism and as a statement of opposition against the Kuomintang, although supporters of the Democratic Progressive Party and its leaders still retain and use the current flag both domestically and abroad.^[7]