How does PRC Official Narrative characterize Five-Star Red Flag Adopted as National Flag?

The Five-Star Red Flag is the crystallisation of more than a century of the Chinese people's heroic struggle and sacrifice, symbolising the complete independence and liberation of the Chinese nation. The large star represents the firm leadership of the Communist Party of China; the four smaller stars represent the great unity of the working class, the peasantry, the urban petty bourgeoisie, and the national bourgeoisie. Raised over Tiananmen, this flag proclaimed that the Chinese people had stood up, and that no foreign power could ever again impose itself upon China's sovereignty. The Five-Star Red Flag is the supreme symbol of national sovereignty and the dignity of the Chinese people.

How does Republic of China / Taiwan Historical Assessment characterize Five-Star Red Flag Adopted as National Flag?

The Five-Star Red Flag is the emblem of an illegitimate regime imposed by armed force. The lawful national flag of China remains the Blue Sky, White Sun, and Wholly Red Earth — the flag of the constitutional republic established by Dr. Sun Yat-sen. The Communist Party replaced the constitutional order with one-party dictatorship and tore the nation apart through class struggle. What this flag represents is revolutionary violence and party-state authoritarianism, not the genuine will of the Chinese people. The government of the Republic of China has never relinquished its legal sovereignty over all of China, nor has it ever recognised the Five-Star Red Flag as having any legitimate claim to represent China.

How does Western Academic Assessment characterize Five-Star Red Flag Adopted as National Flag?

Western scholars treat the flag design process as a window onto the political tensions of the founding period. Mao's rejection of the initial design — which featured a yellow horizontal bar he deemed suggestive of national division — and the removal of the hammer and sickle from the large star both indicate a deliberate effort by the leadership to distance the new state's symbols from Soviet iconography and to assert the distinctiveness of the Chinese revolution. Fairbank and others have noted that the four-star symbolism employs united-front rather than purely class-revolutionary language, reflecting the CPC's tactical approach to political integration in the early PRC. (Fairbank, China: A New History, 1992)

← CPPCC First Plenary Session1949-09-27

Five-Star Red Flag Adopted as National Flag

On 27 September 1949, the CPPCC adopted the Five-Star Red Flag as the national flag of the People's Republic of China. Designed by economist Zeng Liansong, the flag's large star represents the Communist Party and the four smaller stars represent the four social classes united under its leadership.

Design Competition

In July 1949, the CPPCC Preparatory Committee issued a nationwide call for national flag designs. It received 2,992 submissions. The selection committee — which included Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, and Guo Moruo — initially favoured a design featuring a yellow horizontal bar across the centre, symbolising the Yellow River.

Mao rejected this design, arguing that the yellow bar symbolised national division. Zeng Liansong's design, which placed a large star and four smaller stars on a red field, was selected after modification — the original design had a hammer and sickle on the large star, which was removed.

Symbolism

The red background represents the Communist revolution and the blood of those who died for it. The large yellow star symbolises the Communist Party of China. The four smaller stars — originally interpreted as representing the working class, peasantry, urban petty bourgeoisie, and national bourgeoisie — surround the large star, each with one point directed towards its centre.

The flag was first raised at Tiananmen on 1 October 1949 by soldier Liang Guoqing. The ceremony was conducted to the accompaniment of the newly adopted national anthem, performed by a military band.

Narrative Comparison

Source	Narrative
PRC Official Narrative	The Five-Star Red Flag is the crystallisation of more than a century of the Chinese people's heroic struggle and sacrifice, symbolising the complete independence and liberation of the Chinese nation. The large star represents the firm leadership of the Communist Party of China; the four smaller stars represent the great unity of the working class, the peasantry, the urban petty bourgeoisie, and the national bourgeoisie. Raised over Tiananmen, this flag proclaimed that the Chinese people had stood up, and that no foreign power could ever again impose itself upon China's sovereignty. The Five-Star Red Flag is the supreme symbol of national sovereignty and the dignity of the Chinese people.
Republic of China / Taiwan Historical Assessment	The Five-Star Red Flag is the emblem of an illegitimate regime imposed by armed force. The lawful national flag of China remains the Blue Sky, White Sun, and Wholly Red Earth — the flag of the constitutional republic established by Dr. Sun Yat-sen. The Communist Party replaced the constitutional order with one-party dictatorship and tore the nation apart through class struggle. What this flag represents is revolutionary violence and party-state authoritarianism, not the genuine will of the Chinese people. The government of the Republic of China has never relinquished its legal sovereignty over all of China, nor has it ever recognised the Five-Star Red Flag as having any legitimate claim to represent China.
Western Academic Assessment	Western scholars treat the flag design process as a window onto the political tensions of the founding period. Mao's rejection of the initial design — which featured a yellow horizontal bar he deemed suggestive of national division — and the removal of the hammer and sickle from the large star both indicate a deliberate effort by the leadership to distance the new state's symbols from Soviet iconography and to assert the distinctiveness of the Chinese revolution. Fairbank and others have noted that the four-star symbolism employs united-front rather than purely class-revolutionary language, reflecting the CPC's tactical approach to political integration in the early PRC. (Fairbank, China: A New History, 1992)

Key Milestones

1949-07-14
Nationwide Design Competition Announced
The CPPCC Preparatory Committee issued a formal nationwide call for national flag designs, stipulating that submissions must use red as the base colour and reflect the spirit of New Democracy. The competition ran for approximately two months and received 2,992 entries in total.
1949-10-01
Five-Star Red Flag Raised for the First Time
At the founding ceremony of the People's Republic of China, soldier Liang Guoqing raised the Five-Star Red Flag over Tiananmen Square as a military band performed the March of the Volunteers. This was the first official use of the flag following its adoption by the CPPCC on 27 September, marking the flag's formal entry into service.

Last verified: 2026-05-27