Why are there two kinds of Japanese flags: a red circle on a white background and a sun flag?

The red circle on a white background is the national flag, and the "sun flag" is called the rising sun flag, which was used by the old Japanese army. There is only one national flag.

japanese national flag

Legend has it that Japan was created by the God of Heaven, and the Japanese emperor is a descendant of the God of Heaven. This flag was used by the emperor in the 8th century A.D., when it was called "the flag of the emperor". Before the European powers went to Asia to colonize, Japan was in the period of the edo shogunate's lock-up, with less trade and weak national consciousness, so it didn't draw up a national flag like China and North Korea.

Until the end of the curtain period, European powers and American warships went to the Japanese archipelago and forcibly opened the door to Japan. Trade with other countries needs national flags to identify themselves, but Japan has no national flags to fly.

1March 854, the Kanagawa Treaty was signed; In July of the same year, the edo shogunate issued an announcement in the name of Masahiro Abe, the old central government, requesting the use of the Japanese Maruko flag on civilian ships and merchant ships. Since the middle of19th century, the Rizhang flag has gradually become the flag representing Japan, and all Japanese ships fly this flag.

Xuriqi

Rising Sun Flag (Japanese: Rising Sun Flag/きょくじつき? It is a flag with red sun and rising sun patterns. There are two kinds of flags, the sun rising in the sky and the sun rising in the east. This is the flag adopted by the Japanese army. The former Japanese Navy Rising Sun Flag is still used in Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Extended data:

Give up the rising sun flag

The rising sun flag is of political significance today. Because the rising sun flag was used by the old Japanese army, it was sometimes regarded as an offensive mode and a symbol of Japanese militarism in areas invaded by Japan during World War II, such as the Korean Peninsula and Southeast Asia. In China and the Korean Peninsula, the Rising Sun Flag was criticized and resisted by local people because of Japanese war crimes during World War II.

In particular, the Japanese army, which incited war atrocities, was forbidden to fly this flag after its dissolution. At this point, the Ground Self-Defense Force no longer uses the Rising Sun Flag. However, the Japanese navy was not the main perpetrator of this war, but the navy version of the rising sun flag was not investigated. However, after the establishment of the Maritime Self-Defense Force, whether Japan still uses this naval flag has also caused controversy.