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A B S T R A C T This article summarises the uniaxial tension tests for 20 notched bars fabricated from highstrength steel Q345 specified in Chinese National Standards. The effects of the notch radius, r, and that of the notch depth ratio, d /D, on the ductility and fracture resistance of this high strength steel are examined. The experimental data are further analyzed using a generalized yield model together with an elliptical fracture stress envelope originally proposed by the first author. The experimental results demonstrate that cracks initiate at the notched section, with the fracture surface filled with many dimples and shearing marks. Specimens with a sharper notch radius (a smaller r) and a larger notch depth (a smaller d /D ratio) show poor ductility, but high fracture strength. The stress field computed from the numerical procedure including the generalized yield model indicates that the crack initiation occurs at the centre of the notched section which experiences the highest stress triaxiality ratio (σ m /σ seq ). As the stresses at the notched section reach the limiting values determined from the elliptical fracture criterion, macroscopic fracture failure in the notched bar occurs.