The modern
Chinese tunic suit is a style of male attire known in
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
as the
Zhongshan suit (after Sun Zhongshan), and known in the West as the
Mao suit (after
Mao ZedongMao Zedong was a Chinese revolutionary, political theorist and Communist leader. He led the People's Republic of China from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976...
). Sun Zhongshan (better known as
Sun Yat-senSun Yat-sen was a Chinese revolutionary and political leader. As the foremost pioneer of Republican China, Sun is frequently referred to as the Father of the Nation. Sun played an instrumental role in overthrowing the Qing Dynasty in October 1911, the last imperial dynasty of China...
) introduced the style shortly after the founding of the
Republic of ChinaThe Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan, is a state in East Asia that has evolved from a single-party state with full global recognition and jurisdiction over China into a democratic state with limited international recognition and jurisdiction only over Taiwan and minor islands, though it...
as a form of national dress although with a distinctly political and later governmental implication.
After the end of the
Chinese Civil WarThe Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party of China . The war began in April 1927, amidst the Northern Expedition,. The war represented an ideological split between the Western-supported Nationalist KMT and the Soviet-supported Communist CPC...
and the establishment of the
People's Republic of ChinaThe People's Republic of China , commonly known as China, is the largest country in East Asia and the most populous in the world with over 1.3 billion people, approximately one-fifth of the world's population...
in 1949, the suit became widely worn by males and government leaders as a symbol of proletarian unity and an Eastern counterpart to the Western business suit.
The modern
Chinese tunic suit is a style of male attire known in
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
as the
Zhongshan suit (after Sun Zhongshan), and known in the West as the
Mao suit (after
Mao ZedongMao Zedong was a Chinese revolutionary, political theorist and Communist leader. He led the People's Republic of China from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976...
). Sun Zhongshan (better known as
Sun Yat-senSun Yat-sen was a Chinese revolutionary and political leader. As the foremost pioneer of Republican China, Sun is frequently referred to as the Father of the Nation. Sun played an instrumental role in overthrowing the Qing Dynasty in October 1911, the last imperial dynasty of China...
) introduced the style shortly after the founding of the
Republic of ChinaThe Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan, is a state in East Asia that has evolved from a single-party state with full global recognition and jurisdiction over China into a democratic state with limited international recognition and jurisdiction only over Taiwan and minor islands, though it...
as a form of national dress although with a distinctly political and later governmental implication.
After the end of the
Chinese Civil WarThe Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party of China . The war began in April 1927, amidst the Northern Expedition,. The war represented an ideological split between the Western-supported Nationalist KMT and the Soviet-supported Communist CPC...
and the establishment of the
People's Republic of ChinaThe People's Republic of China , commonly known as China, is the largest country in East Asia and the most populous in the world with over 1.3 billion people, approximately one-fifth of the world's population...
in 1949, the suit became widely worn by males and government leaders as a symbol of proletarian unity and an Eastern counterpart to the Western business suit. The name "Mao suit" comes from Chinese leader Mao Zedong's affinity for wearing them in public, thus tying the garment closely to him and Chinese communism in general in the Western imagination. Although they fell into disuse in the 1990s amid increasing Western influences, they are still worn on occasion by Chinese leaders during important state ceremonies and functions.
Origins
When the Republic was founded in 1912, the style of dress worn in China was based on
ManchuThe Manchu people are a Tungusic people who originated in Manchuria . During their rise in the seventeenth century, with the help of Ming rebels , they conquered the Ming Dynasty and founded the Qing Dynasty, which ruled China until the Xinhai Revolution of 1911, which established a...
dress (
qipaoThe cheongsam is a body-hugging one-piece Chinese dress for women; the male version is the changshan. It is known in Chinese as the qípáo , qípáor , Wade-Giles ch'i-p'ao, and is also known in English as a mandarin gown...
and
changshanIn traditional Chinese dress, a changshan is the male equivalent of the women's cheongsam . It is also known as a changpao or dagua ....
), which had been imposed by the
Qing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty , also known as the Manchu Dynasty, was the last ruling dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912...
as a form of social control. The majority-
Han ChineseHan Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and, by most modern definitions, the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92 percent of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98 percent of the population of the Republic of China , 75 percent of the...
revolutionaries who overthrew the Qing were fueled by failure of the Qing to defend China against western imperialists and the low standing of the Qing in terms of technology and science compared to the West. Even before the founding of the Republic, older forms of Chinese dress were becoming unpopular among the elite and led to the development of Chinese dress which combined the cheongsam and the Western hat to form a new dress. The Zhongshan suit is similar development which combined Western and Eastern fashions. It should be noted that until 1949 on the mainland and the 1980s in Taiwan, the civilian, non-
political attire for males in China was not this tunic suit but a gown and over-jacket.
The Zhongshan suit was an attempt to cater to "modern" sensibilities without adopting Western styles wholesale. Dr.
Sun Yat-senSun Yat-sen was a Chinese revolutionary and political leader. As the foremost pioneer of Republican China, Sun is frequently referred to as the Father of the Nation. Sun played an instrumental role in overthrowing the Qing Dynasty in October 1911, the last imperial dynasty of China...
was personally involved, providing inputs based on his life experience in
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
: the Japanese cadet uniform became the basis of Zhongshan suit. There were other modifications as well: instead of the three hidden pockets in Western suits, the Zhongshan suit had four outside pockets to adhere to Chinese concepts of balance and symmetry an inside pocket was also available. Over time, minor stylistic changes developed. The suit originally had seven buttons, later reduced to five.
After repeated attempts to win support and recognition from Western countries failed, the Nationalist Party government in Canton led by Dr. Sun gained help (advisers and critically vital small arms) from Soviet Russia, which viewed it as a likely revolutionary ally against Western interests in the Far East; Chinese nationalism at the time (of treaty ports and extra-territoriality discriminations) was naturally heavily infected with resentment against the West. As a result of this geopolitical alignment, Dr. Sun agreed to permit the nascent Chinese Communist Party to join the Nationalist Party -- as individual members -- not as a party-party union, combination or alliance. As a result, early Communist Party members adopted the attire as a mark of joining the Nationalist Party. Ironically, from that practice during an attenuated political marriage of convenience which would soon be divorced in blood (in 1927), Asian Marxist movements and governments henceforth would all consider this attire as a standard of political coloration, and it would continue to be appropriate dress for both sides of the bitter Chinese civil wars lasting decades.
After
Sun Yat-senSun Yat-sen was a Chinese revolutionary and political leader. As the foremost pioneer of Republican China, Sun is frequently referred to as the Father of the Nation. Sun played an instrumental role in overthrowing the Qing Dynasty in October 1911, the last imperial dynasty of China...
's death in 1925, popular mythology assigned a revolutionary and patriotic significance to the Zhongshan suit. The four pockets were said to represent the Four Virtues cited in the classic
Guanzi. The five center-front buttons were said to represent the five Yuans (branches of government) cited in the
constitution of the Republic of ChinaThe Constitution of the Republic of China is the fundamental law of the Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan. Drafted by the Kuomintang as part of its third stage of national development , it established a centralized Republic with five branches of government...
and the three cuff-buttons to symbolize Sun Yat-sen's
Three Principles of the PeopleThe Three Principles of the People, also translated as Three People's Principles, or collectively San-min Doctrine, is a political philosophy developed by Sun Yat-sen as part of a philosophy to make China a free, prosperous, and powerful nation...
.
Historical development
In the 1920s and 1930s, civil servants of the Chinese government were required to wear the
Zhongshan zhuang. A slightly modified version of the suit, adapted for combat, formed the basis for
National Revolutionary ArmyThe National Revolutionary Army was the Military Arm of the Kuomintang from 1925 until 1947, as well as the national army of the Republic of China during the KMT's period of party rule beginning in 1928...
army uniforms leading up through the
Second Sino-Japanese WarThe Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany and the Soviet Union...
, although during the 1930s, as German military advice and assistance to the National Government waxed, the formal military uniform in the professional elements and ranks essentially became that of
WeimarWeimar is a city in Germany mostly known for its cultural heritage. It is located in the Bundesland of Thuringia , north of the Thüringer Wald, east of Erfurt, and southwest of Halle and Leipzig. Its current population is approximately 65,000. The oldest record of the city dates from the year 899...
and then Nazi Germany (including the
famous helmetStahlhelm is German for "steel helmet". The Imperial German Army began to replace the traditional boiled-leather Pickelhaube with the Stahlhelm during the First World War in 1916...
).
After the establishment of the
People's Republic of ChinaThe People's Republic of China , commonly known as China, is the largest country in East Asia and the most populous in the world with over 1.3 billion people, approximately one-fifth of the world's population...
, and especially during the long initial period marked by intensive Maoist indoctrination and mass oppression through waves of purges and campaigns and "criticism/struggle" culminating with the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution from 1965-76 when Mao himself died, the suit became widely worn by the entire male population, formally as a symbol of proletarian unity, but in fact as a form of personal -- and virtually camouflage -- coloration; it was, of course, regularly worn by
Communist PartyThe Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and the ruling political party of the People's Republic of China and the world's largest political party...
cadreCadre is the backbone of an organization, usually a political or military organization. The expression can be in the singular or the plural...
s until the 1990s when it was largely replaced by the Western business suit.
The Mao suit remained the standard formal dress for the
first and second generations of PRC leadersBecause both the Communist Party of China and the People's Liberation Army promote according to seniority, it is possible to discern distinct generations of Chinese leadership...
such as
Deng XiaopingDeng Xiaoping was a prominent Chinese politician, statesman, theorist, and diplomat. As leader of the Communist Party of China, Deng became a reformer who led China towards market economics...
. During the 1990s, it began to be worn with decreasing frequency by leaders of
Jiang ZeminJiang Zemin is the "core of the third generation" of Communist Party of China leaders, serving as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1989 to 2002, as President of the People's Republic of China from 1993 to 2003, and as Chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to...
's generation. Jiang wore it only on special occasions, such as to state dinners, but this practice was almost totally discontinued by his successor
Hu JintaoHu Jintao is currently the Paramount Leader of the People's Republic of China, holding the titles of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China since 2002, President of the People's Republic of China since 2003, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission since 2004, succeeding Jiang...
. By the early part of the 21st century, the Mao suit is rarely worn even on formal occasions. The military-green version of the suit is more often worn, usually by civilian
partyThe Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and the ruling political party of the People's Republic of China and the world's largest political party...
officials wishing to demonstrate control over – or camaraderie with – the
militaryThe People's Liberation Army is the unified military organization of all land, sea, and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on 1 August 1927—celebrated annually as "PLA Day"—as the military arm of the Communist Party of China...
in their capacity as officials of the
Central Military CommissionA Central Military Commission or National Defense Commission is an organisation typical of Communist one-party states, responsible for supervising the nation's armed forces....
. In
TaiwanTaiwan , also known as Formosa , is the largest island of the Republic of China in East Asia. Taiwan is located east of the Taiwan Strait, off the southeastern coast of mainland China...
, the Zhongshan suit was seldom seen after the 1970s. Moreover, given the subtropical weather much of the year in Taiwan, for a time a modified version became at least semi-standard which dropped the high-collar buttoned up original constriction in favor of a Western style open dress shirt collar, unbuttoned.
Today among the Chinese people, the suit has been largely abandoned by the younger generation in urban areas, but is still regarded as formal attire by many old people. It is also prevalent among Chinese peasants as casual dress. However the suit is becoming more popular amongst young
overseas ChineseOverseas Chinese are people of Chinese birth or descent who live outside the territories administered by the rival governments of the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China...
as a formal or business wear instead of wearing the "generic" Western three piece suit and also as an identity for their Chinese origin.
Mao Suit in North Korea
During Japanese forced occupation of Korea (1910-1945), many Korean communist leaders including
Kim Il-Sung Kim Il-sung was a Korean communist politician who led North Korea from its founding in 1948 until his death. He held the posts of Prime Minister from 1948 to 1972 and President from 1972 to his death. He was also the General Secretary of the Workers Party of Korea, exercising autocratic power...
went to China or Russia to effectively fight against the Japanese. They also militarily assisted the Chinese Communist Party for their fight against the Japanese Imperial Army during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. While staying in China, many of these leaders adopted Mao suit and continued to wear them even after Korea was liberated by the Allies in 1945. The tradition continued into the 21st century. The current North Korean leader
Kim Jong-IlKim Jong-il is the paramount leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea...
appears frequently wearing Mao suit both for formal and informal occasions.
External links