Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925)

Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925) celebrates the birthday of the Chinese revolutionary and first President of the Republic of China, born on November 12, 1866, in Guangdong, China. Revered as the “Father of the Nation” in both Taiwan and mainland China, he led the revolution that overthrew the Qing dynasty in 1911, ending over 2,000 years of imperial rule. Sun, a physician turned revolutionary, founded the Kuomintang and articulated the Three Principles of the People: nationalism, democracy, and livelihood.

Who was Sun Yat-sen?

Sun Yat-sen was born on November 12, 1866, in Guangdong, China, and became a Chinese revolutionary, politician, and the first President of the Republic of China. Trained as a physician, he turned instead to the work of revolution, convinced that China could only be saved by overthrowing the Qing dynasty and building a modern republic.

Sun founded the Kuomintang and articulated the Three Principles of the People: nationalism, democracy, and livelihood. These ideas became the founding creed of the Republic of China and remain some of the most influential political doctrines in modern Chinese history. He spent decades organising uprisings, raising funds from overseas Chinese communities, and spreading republican ideas across a vast and fractious empire.

In 1911, the revolution he had so long prepared finally came. The Qing dynasty fell, and the Republic of China was proclaimed, with Sun as its first president. Though he held the presidency only briefly, his role as the architect of the revolution was never in doubt.

Why Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925) matters

Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925) matters because he ended an empire. The revolution of 1911, which he led, overthrew the Qing dynasty and ended over 2,000 years of imperial rule in China — one of the most consequential political transformations of the twentieth century. The republic he founded set China on the long road to modernity.

He is revered as the “Father of the Nation” in both Taiwan and mainland China — a rare figure honoured across one of the world’s deepest political divides. The Three Principles of the People he articulated continue to shape political thought in the Chinese-speaking world, a legacy few revolutionaries can claim.

Sun’s life also tells a larger story about modern China: a physician who became a revolutionary, a exile who became a president, a thinker whose ideas outlived him. He died in 1925, but the republic he imagined endures.

How to mark Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925)

• Learn the 1911 story. Read about the revolution that overthrew the Qing dynasty and ended over 2,000 years of imperial rule.
• Study the Three Principles. Look into nationalism, democracy, and livelihood — the doctrine Sun articulated for the new China.
• Explore modern China’s turning point. Consider how one revolution reshaped a civilisation, and what the republic meant for ordinary people.
• Reflect on revolutionary ideals. Sun’s career asks what it costs — and what it is worth — to change the order of a nation.

Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925): frequently asked questions

When was Sun Yat-sen born?
Sun Yat-sen was born on November 12, 1866, in Guangdong, China, and died in 1925.

What is Sun Yat-sen famous for?
He was the Chinese revolutionary and first President of the Republic of China, who led the revolution that overthrew the Qing dynasty in 1911, ending over 2,000 years of imperial rule.

What were the Three Principles of the People?
Nationalism, democracy, and livelihood — the political doctrine Sun articulated for the new China.

Why is he called the Father of the Nation?
Because he founded the Kuomintang and led the revolution that created the Republic of China, he is revered as the “Father of the Nation” in both Taiwan and mainland China.

Related observances

Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925) is one of the famous birthdays on this date. Read more about November 12 on November 12 Holidays, Observances and History.

Why we remember Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925)

We remember Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925) because he did what few people in history have done: he ended an empire and imagined a republic. On his birthday, his life reminds us that ideas — nationalism, democracy, livelihood — can topple dynasties and remake nations.