The military anthem of China is a Chinese patriotic song that dates back to the formation of the New Armies of the late

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

. The succeeding Chinese regimes have recycled the music and changed the lyrics. Urban legend states that the music was taken from the

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

n ''March of the Emperor Wilhelm II''; however, no piece by this name can be found in Armeemarschsammlung. The original Qing lyrics were commissioned by Zeng Guofan for the Xiang Army. The same lyrics were used during the

Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 September 1859 – 6 June 1916) was a Chinese military and government official who rose to power during the late Qing dynasty and eventually ended the Qing dynasty rule of China in 1912, later becoming the Emperor of China. H ...

regime and known as the ''Soldier's Training Song''. After the

Xinhai Revolution The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China. The revolution was the culmination of ...

, the lyrics were changed again and continued to be used by the Chinese military. A well known variant was the ''National Revolution Army Song''. The Communists reworded the song into the ''Land Revolution Is Successful''. A further modification transformed the song into '' Three Rules and Eight Notices'', which is the best known form today. The latest lyrics are an extension of Zeng Guofan's version, and add additional rules to further inspire soldiers' discipline. At the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, the music was used in the presence of representatives of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

and the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeas ...

References

External links

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Orchestral military march version performed by the Orchestra of the People's Armed Police
{{Chinese patriotic songs Chinese military marches Chinese patriotic songs Maoist China propaganda songs