When the Republic was founded in 1912, and the style of dress worn in China was based on Manchu dress (qipao and changshan), which had been imposed by the Qing Dynasty as a form of social control. The majority-Han Chinese 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 completely adopting Western styles wholesale. Dr. Sun Yat-sen was personally involved, providing inputs based on his life experience in Japan: 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. 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-sen’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 China and the three cuff-buttons to symbolize Sun Yat-sen’s Three Principles of the People.

Tags: Cheongsam, Dress, Qipao, Zhongshan suit

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