The battle of Changping (長平之戰) in the year 260 BCE was one of the most decisive battles in Chinese history. The forces of Qin surrounded the forces of Zhao on a hilltop and maintained their positions for 45 days. The Zhao troops were unable to break out of the encirclement and were defeated. Afterwards, 400,000 captured Zhao soldiers were sacrificed.
Timelines of Chinese Military History
The Warring States Period, Qin, Western Han, Eastern Han, Three Kingdoms, Sui, Five Dynasties and 10 Kingdoms, and Western Jin timelines are currently available. The Period of Spring and Autumn and others are in preparation.
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Hsiang Yu is surrounded by the armies of Liu Pang at the battle of Kai-hsia in 202 BCE. Scan from: C.J. Peers, Soldiers of the Dragon: Chinese Armies 1500 BC - AD 1840 (Westminster, MD: Osprey Publishing, 2006), 44.
For westerners the study of Chinese military history is difficult, the lack of English-language source material being the major problem. Most of the works listed below are English-language works, except as noted.
Bodde, Derek. “The state and empire of Ch'in,” in The Cambridge History of China, Volume 1, The Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C.- A.D. 220, Denis Twitchett and Michael Loewe, ed. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
Di Cosmo, Nicola. Ancient China and its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
Di Cosmo, Nicola. “The Northern Frontier in Pre-Imperial China”, in The Cambridge History of Ancient China - From the Origins of Civilization to 221 B.C., edited by Michael Loewe and Edward L. Shaughnessy, (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999), 885-966.
Ebrey, Patricia B. Cambridge Illustrated History of China. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
Elvin, Mark. “The Environmental Legacy of Imperial China,” in The China Quarterly, no. 156, Special Issue: China's Environment (December, 1998), 733-756.
Elvin, Mark. The Retreat of the Elephants: An Environmental History of China. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2005.
Graff, David Andrew, Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300-900. New York: Routledge, 2002.
Graff, David A., and Robin Higham (eds.) A Military History of China. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2002.
Hui, Victoria Tin-Bor. War and State Formation in Ancient China and Early Modern Europe. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Kierman, Frank A., Jr., “Phases and Modes of Combat in Early China,” in Chinese Ways in Warfare, edited by Frank A. Kierman, Jr., and John K. Fairbank, (Cambridge, Ma: Harvard University Press, 1974), 27-66.
Kiser, Edgar, and Youn Cai. “War and Bureaucratization in Qin China: An Anomalous Case,” in American Sociological Review, Vol. 68 (August, 2003), 511-539.
Lewis, Mark Edward. Sanctioned Violence in Early China. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1990.
Lewis, Mark Edward. “Warring States: Political History”, in The Cambridge History of Ancient China - From the Origins of Civilization to 221 B.C., edited by Michael Loewe and Edward L. Shaughnessy, (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999), 587-650.
Li, Xueqin. Eastern Zhou and Qin Civilizations. Translated by K.C. Chang. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1985.
Lorge, Peter. War, Politics and Society in Early Modern China 900-1795. New York: Routledge, 2005.
Lorge, Peter (Editor). Warfare in China to 1600. London: Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2005.
Peers, C.J. Soldiers of the Dragon: Chinese Armies 1500 BC - AD 1840. Westminster, MD: Osprey Publishing, 2006.
Peers, C.J. Warlords of China - 700 BC to AD 1662. New YOrk: Arms and Armour Press, 1998.
Sawyer, Ralph D. The Seven Military Classics of Ancient China. San Francisco: Cambridge University Press, 1993.
Shaugnhnessy, Edward L. “Western Zhou History”, in The Cambridge History of Ancient China - From the Origins of Civilization to 221 B.C., edited by Michael Loewe and Edward L. Shaughnessy, (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999), 292-351.
Watson, Bruce (Translator). The Tso Chuan - Selections from China's Oldest Narrative History. New York: Columbia University Press, 1989.
Whiting, Marvin C. Imperial Chinese Military History 8000 BC - 1912 AD. New York: Writers Club Press, 2002. 1
Yü, Ying-shih. Trade and Expansion in Han China - Structure of Sino-Barbarian Economic Relations. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1967.
“Zhongguo lidai zhanzheng nianbiao” editorial board. Zhongguo lidai zhanzheng nianbiao 《中国历代战争年表》 (Chronology of Wars in China Through Successive Dynasties.) Two volumes. Beijing: Jiefangjun chubanshe (People's Liberation Army Press), 2003. [Non-English]
1
This is an interesting book for many reasons, its major virtue being that it is one of the few English-language works of its kind on Chinese Military History. The author, however, has produced a self-admittedly flawed book. He gives a bibilography, but has included no notes to indicate which material came from which source. The author is uneven on its coverage of various historical periods, giving long accounts of wars from Ancient Chinese history for which there is very little factual information, yet condensing the entire Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 to a mere two sentences. The author consistently misuses certain words, and the many incorrect usages of the English language leaves the reader's to suspect his discussions, for instance, "thrown" is used to mean throne, "oar" to mean ore, "reword" to mean reward, etc. He also has a poor grasp of certain concepts and conventions used in the English language, such as the usage of plural and possessive noun forms, sometimes ignoring these concepts altogether. For instance, the dubious statement that “China had more famous bandit in it history than any other society” on p. xi. Nevertheless... it is one of the few English-language works of its kind.
WarData.net Recommended Books on Ancient Chinese Military History at Amazon.com
Bamboo - Ink on Paper done circa 1350 CE by Wu Zhen (1280-1354)
Bamboo is a symbol of survival in adversity: it is strong but flexible; because it bends, it can withstand storms and winds without breaking.
Ebrey, Patricia B., Cambridge Illustrated History of China (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996), 184.
龍 Dragon Chinois - Gravure sur bois en couleur, école chinois, XIXème siécle, bibliothèque des Arts décoratifs, Paris
Chinese dragon, colour engraving on wood, Chinese school, 19th Century, bibliothèque des Arts décoratifs, Paris.
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