Republic of China nationalism

Before 1949

The 1911 Revolution was primarily driven by Han nationalism to overthrow the Qing dynasty led by Manchus. However, after the revolution succeeded, it became necessary to integrate non-Han people in China. The Beiyang government developed the term Zhonghua minzu to describe the Han Chinese and four other major ethnic groups (the Manchus, Mongols, Hui, and Tibetans based on the concept of "Five Races Under One Union". Conversely, Sun Yat-sen and the Kuomintang (KMT) envisioned it as a unified composite of Han and non-Han people.

Chiang Kai-shek promoted strong Chinese nationalism throughout the territories controlled by the ROC as well as the ideal of the Three Principles of the People of a unified Kuomintang's "Dang Guo" (Party-state), to solidify its rule and ideological supremacy. Mandarin Chinese became the sole official language, and standard education curriculums emphasized Chinese history with Confucianism culture.

During the Nanjing decade from 1927–1937, the ROC government utilized state nationalism as a tool for national unification against warlordism and foreign imperialism.

In 1934, Chiang launched the New Life Movement, which sought to revitalize the Chinese society by fusing traditional Confucian principles with modern nationalist civic duties. Following the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, ROC's pan-Chinese nationalism became centered on anti-imperialist resistance and national survival, which temporarily unified various political factions under a common goal of defending the Republic.

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Mainland China (after 1949)

Following the KMT's defeat in the Chinese Civil War and its retreat to Taiwan, overt expressions of ROC nationalism were systematically suppressed in mainland China by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP). However, in the 21st century, a cultural and intellectual phenomenon known as the "Republican Fever" emerged among some mainland internet users and dissidents. Proponents of this underground movement, often referred to as the "Republican faction", express nostalgia for the ROC era, romanticizing its ideology as an alternative to the current CCP one-party state. Despite being its historical ideological competitor, the PRC has begun rehabilitating the legacy of the ROC era within mainland China. The 2009 movie sponsored by the Chinese Communist Party, The Founding of a Republic, moved away from casting Chiang Kai-shek as 'evil' versus Mao Zedong, and emphasizing instead that the contingencies of war led the communists to victory.

Some pro-democracy activists have expressed respect for the post-reform liberal democratic political system of Taiwan and formed pro-ROC organizations that are illegal under the rule of PRC; including the Union of Chinese Nationalists.

Taiwan

Taiwan under Japanese rule

Following the cession of Taiwan to the Empire of Japan in 1895 under the Treaty of Shimonoseki, early Taiwanese resistance was characterized by local uprisings. However, the successful 1911 Revolution and the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC) profoundly inspired Taiwanese intellectuals, who began to view the newly born republic as their spiritual and political "fatherland".

The Taiwanese People's Party was a party that pursued extension of Taiwanese people's rights based on Chinese identity; whose platform adopted the Three Principles of the People, and along with it pro-ROC Taiwanese–Chinese nationalism and Kuomintang-style socialism.

The Taiwan Revolutionary Alliance was founded by anti-Japanese and anti-imperialists in Chongqing on 10 February 1941, during the Second Sino-Japanese War, to push for the return of Japanese-ruled Taiwan to Chinese rule.

1945–present

As a result of the Chinese Civil War, the ruling Kuomintang lost mainland China to the Communists and retreated the ROC government to Taiwan. The ROC government had taken control of Taiwan since 1945, but firmly established an ideological presence of Chinese nationalism since 1949. In Taiwan, an authoritarian, militaristic ROC nationalism was pushed to promote a reclamation of mainland China, culminating in the White Terror. In response to the Cultural Revolution in mainland China, Chiang Kai-shek launched the Chinese Cultural Renaissance Movement in 1966 to position the ROC as a guardian of traditional Chinese culture in contrast to the PRC.

Taiwan's democratization began in the 1990s during the Lee Teng-hui administration, and ROC nationalism gradually weakened as the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for pro-independence grew stronger and Taiwanese nationalism emerged. Today, Taiwan's two main political parties, the DPP and the KMT, represent Taiwanese nationalism and ROC nationalism respectively. The nationalist ideology of the Kuomintang rejects Taiwanese self-determination.

Hong Kong

In colonial Hong Kong, ROC nationalism was championed by the Pro-ROC camp (or "Rightists"), consisting of refugees, KMT veterans, and labor unions who fled the mainland after 1949. For decades, Rennie's Mill served as a major enclave for ROC nationalists, where the ROC flag was prominently displayed. The community actively celebrated the Double Tenth Day while clashing with pro-Communist factions, such as during the 1956 Hong Kong riots.

Following the handover of Hong Kong in 1997, the influence of ROC nationalism declined sharply due to the dismantling of KMT-affiliated organizations and the relocation of Rennie's Mill residents. In the 2020s, following the implementation of the Hong Kong national security law, public celebrations of the Double Tenth Day and displays of the ROC flag were effectively banned by authorities, marking the near-total disappearance of overt ROC nationalist activities in the city.

Double Ten Day

Double Ten Day (10 October), which commemorates the 1911 Wuchang Uprising that led to the establishment of the Republic of China, serves as a central symbol and annual ritual for ROC nationalism. In Taiwan, the national day is celebrated with official state ceremonies, flag-raising events, and military displays. For ROC nationalists and the Pan-Blue Coalition, active commemoration of Double Ten Day is viewed as an essential reaffirmation of the ROC's constitutional legitimacy, state identity, and historical continuity.

Outside Taiwan, Double Ten Day is celebrated by traditional or anti-communist overseas Chinese communities, particularly through organizations such as the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA) in Chinatowns worldwide (including New York, San Francisco, and Tokyo), where the ROC flag is prominently flown. Historically, the holiday was also widely observed by pro-ROC factions in British Hong Kong, although public celebrations have effectively vanished in recent years due to security legislation implemented by the PRC.

List of ROC nationalist groups