When the government of the Republic of China was established on 1 January 1912, the "Five-coloured Flag" was selected by the provisional Senate as the national flag. The "18-Star Flag" was adopted by the army and the modern flag was adopted as a naval ensign. Sun Yat-sen, however, did not consider the five-coloured flag appropriate, reasoning that horizontal order implied a hierarchy or class like that which existed during dynastic times.
