Inner Mongolia (China)

Last modified: 2002-03-15 by phil nelson
Keywords: mongolia | china | inner mongolia |
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• China
• Early 20th Century Chinese Flags

Inner Mongolia (1936- )

by Mark Sensen 26 June 1996

Inner Mongolia or Mengjiang (Meng Chiang), northeast China, north to the independent (Outer) Mongolia. I don't know by heart the exact dates of its existence nor what the official political status was. It used a flag of light blue with a canton of vertical red-yellow-white (order ?) in unequal widths (the flag is in Whitney Smiths's "big" book and e.g. in a recent issue of the Flagmaster).
Harald Mueller 11 December 1995

Flag adopted 28 June 1936. There were different, possibly earlier, versions of this flag: one with the stripes in the canton horizontally, one with stripes vertically and unequal, and one with stripes vertically and equal. According to Flagmaster no.79 it is most likely the latter one that was the official one.
Mark Sensen 26 June 1996

Mongolian Federated Autonomous Government

(Second World War Japanese puppet State in Inner Mongolia)

by Mark Sensen

The Japanese controlled Inner Mongolia where was constituted an "Autonomous Council" in 1934. On 8 December, 1937, in advance of the Japanese invasion of China, the Mongolian Prince Teh Wang proclaimed independence, signed a cooperation agreement with Manchokuo, and adopted for the country the name of MENGKUKUO (as given in Spanish sources; Meng Chiang is the name used in English sources). The capital was established at Chan Pei, near Kalgan. Chinese dominance of the area ended after the murder of a Chinese delegate on 24 January, 1938. The Japanese imposed a government, in which the principal ministers were Japanese. In August 1945, the Mengkukuo went over to the communists, with Soviet help. I think that the earliest flags predate 1937 - perhaps between 1934 and 1937, or even earlier. Some sort of flag was presumably adopted in 1929 when the region of Burga was constituted as a republic for some months.
Jaume Ollé 30 June 1996

The only name I have ever heard is "Mengjiang" (or "Meng Chiang)" although "Mengguguo" also makes sense (both "guo" and "jiang" mean land, AFAIK the latter rather in a geographical context and the former in a political context). On the coins or banknotes only "Mengjiang" is used, but they were issued by the Japanese puppet government. So possibly, "Mengguguo" was used between 1934 and 1937. The other possibility is a confusion with the name "Manzhouguo" (or "Manchu Kuo)", the Japanese puppet state in Manchuria. It is anyway interesting to notice that neither of the names is Mongolian, both are Chinese.

Mongolian League

by Jarig Bakker

This is from "Wie, wat, waar?", 1941. The almanac has this info on Inner Mongolia:

Federal state: 3 autonomous regions., belongs since the 17th century to China.
Since April 1934 autonomous state. Late 1935 an independent Mongolian government was formed, seated in Changpei; the territory of prince Tek remained autonomous. In 1936 prince Tek joined the Manchu Japanese bloc. In Shakar and Shansi autonomous governments were formed in 1937. 28 Oct 1937 formation of an autonomous government of the Mongolian League in Suiyuan.
Area: 506.800 km2
Pop: 5,5 million
Capital: Kalgan
President: Tek Wang
This flag has a Manchuoko pattern.

This remained a Japanese puppet-state until 1945. Tek Wang is also written as Teh Wang. He was the prince of the Shilingol-region at the start of all turmoil. (from: "Die Mongolen - Beiträge zu ihrer Geschichte und Kultur", by Michael Weiers, 1986.)
Jarig Bakker, 22 December 2000

Postal flag

by Phil Nelson

This is the flag of the Directorate General of Posts and Telecommunications (later Directorate General of Communications) of the Mongol Borderlands Federation Committee, under occupation in Inner Mongolia. The insignia was chosen by public competition (winner not named) and adopted on 15 May 1939. The barbs represent traditional Yuan dynasty feather messages. The flag is illustrated in a postmark as well as in a postcard commemorating the 5th anniversary of the Mongolian Postal and Telecommunications Systems. The image size is approximate.
Phil Nelson, 26 January 2000

In Evans' Observers Book of Flags (1959) I read: "The flag of the Eastern Mongolian Independent Republic resembles the red flag of Russia, except that the emblem below the star sepicts a crossed mattock and horsewhip, representing the peasants and the Mongol horsemen."

So far I found nothing on it in my books about this.
Jarig Bakker, 12 April 2000

I think it was the flag of Inner Mongolia (in China).
Victor Lomantsov, 4 April 2001

The Eastern Mongolian Independent Republic was an attempt to establish a state in the Mongolian inhabited western portion of Manchuria. The area was not part of Inner Mongolia at the time, although afterwards the PRC did incorporate it into Inner Mongolia from 1947 to 1969, and again from 1979 to the present. (Source: James Minahan, "Nations Without States")
Ned Smith, 23 April 2001