中華民國

The Republic of China 中華民國 is a non-UN member sovereign state in East Asia. It is a democracy and has the 20th largest economy, with a population of around 23 million.

The Republic of China was established in 1911 after the Xinhai Revolution 辛亥革命 which overthrew the Qing Dynasty 清朝. The revolution was led by the Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang 國民黨, under Sun Yat-sen 孫中山, who is considered by both communists and capitalists to be the father of modern China.

When Sun died, General Chiang Kai-shek 蒋中正 took power, and in 1927, the Chinese Civil War 國共內戰 began between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party 共產黨.

After the KMT suffered heavy losses against the Japanese, the CCP took control of mainland China by 1949 under Mao Zedong 毛澤東, and the KMT fled to Taiwan 台灣, which is an island off China’s east coast.

CHIANG

MAO

The CCP represents the People’s Republic of China 中華人民共和國 (PRC) and the KMT represented the Republic of China (ROC). Both claim sovereignty over the entirety of mainland China and Taiwan to this day, but are de facto independent states.

ROC PRC

Until the 70s, most non-communist states recognized the ROC as the sole legitimate government of China. Most countries have switched to recognizing only the PRC instead.

The ROC now occupies only Taiwan 台灣 and some islands of Fujian 福建, whereas the PRC occupies mainland China.

The ROC experienced rapid economic growth and industrialization in the latter half of the 20th century, and is one of the four Asian Tigers. It developed into an advanced industrialized economy, with a higher average income than other nations such as the UK, France and Japan.

In the 90s, it evolved into a multi-party democracy, and unlike its neighbor, ranks highly in press freedom, healthcare, education, economic freedom and human development. Its president is Ma Ying-jeou 馬英九.

In the next level, you can learn the Chinese characters for some of the most important events which shaped the country, from the foundation of the Republic of China in 1911 until democratization in the 80s and 90s.

In the following level, you can learn the dates these events occurred.