Ancient Chinese Warfare

In this title, a leading scholar of Chinese military history offers the definitive account of the strategies and technology that shaped the earliest Chinese dynasties. The history of China is a history of warfare. Twenty-five dynastic changes and numerous millenarian revolts decimated the populace, shattered the infrastructure, and brought chaos to the state. Clashes with aggressive external people were frequent and brutal; lengthy periods of fragmentation witnessed intense, often unremitting internecine fighting; two decades rarely passed without large scale conflict. Wars have caused dynasties to collapse, fractured the thin facade of national unity, and sometimes brought decades of alien occupation and domination. But according to Chinese mythology, before the onset of war, strife, and violence, there was a legendary golden age of agrarian peace and prosperity throughout China. There was little evidence to refute this bucolic belief until now, as recent discoveries have suddenly infused life into the previously shadowy remnants of ancient Chinese civilisation. Ralph D. Sawyer, translator of "The Art of War" and one of America's preeminent experts on Chinese military history, here offers the first comprehensive examination in any language of the initiation, early evolution, and eventual maturation of conflict in China, as well as its role in the rise of the first great dynasties. As recently recovered documents and archaeological findings reveal, the Legendary Era, Hsia Dynasty, and Shang Dynasty were times when warfare, not virtue, wrought peace. Warfare was a primary source of innovation, social evolution, material progress, and creativity in ancient China, and it was the force that formed the first cohesive Chinese empire. By not just exploiting martial skills but also thoroughly integrating warrior values into their societies, the Shang, if not the Hsia, can be said to have set China on a trajectory of state building and aggressive activity that continues to this day. From the earliest evolutions of the arrowhead to the development of walled defenses, from the adoption of equestrian and chariot warfare to transformative advances in metallurgy, Sawyer provides an in-depth look at the early technologies and strategies that won wars and shaped culture in ancient China. Combining exhaustive research and unmatched expertise, "Ancient Chinese Warfare" is the book that military historians, military tacticians, and Chinese history buffs will turn to as the definitive account of the belligerent beginnings of a unified Chinese state.

ISBN 046502145X   Pages 576 ISBN13 9780465021451 (What's this?)   Weight (grammes) 816 Publisher The Perseus Books Group   Published in New York Imprint Basic Books   Height (mm) 235 Format Hardback   Width (mm) 155 Publication date 24 Mar 2011   Spine width (mm) 44 DEWEY 931   Academic level General DEWEY edition DC22

P. H. Liotta, author of "The Real Population Bomb: Megacities and Global Security""After decades of intense and dedicated scholarship, Ralph Sawyer has produced an astonishing volume. His linguistic and strategic skills--his fierce genius--are everywhere in evidence. Sawyer is a master, and "Ancient Chinese Warfare" is his masterpiece." Ralph Peters, retired Military Intelligence officer and author of "The War After Armageddon"""Ancient Chinese Warfare" is, paradoxically, a crucial book for the 21st century. As the 'new' China aspires to global power, understanding the foundations of this civilization's way of war helps us grasp Beijing's present psychology and behavior. The Chinese take a very long view of history, and we need to learn to do so. To that end, the brilliant work of Ralph D. Sawyer has long proven unrivalled...and this book is his masterpiece. No work better illustrates the deep (and gnarled) roots of China's contemporary ambitions." Nicola Di Cosmo, Henry Luce Foundation Professor of East Asian History at the Institute for Advanced Study""Ancient Chinese Warfare" is an important, informative, and exciting book. Written with panache, brimming with new ideas, and based on a level of knowledge that would challenge any expert, Sawyer's work has transformed single-handedly our understanding of ancient Chinese military history. Readers will find in this book a solidly informed and vivid account of China's ways of warfare from the Shang dynasty to the mid-first millennium BC. Only few of them will appreciate the massive effort of synthesis and analysis that this book represents, and it is to Sawyer's credit that he has succeeded in bringing an extremely difficult topic to a level that everyone can understand, learn from, and enjoy." Edward N. Luttwak, author of "The Grand Strategy of the Byzantine Empire""Not unexpectedly, this book enhances Ralph D. Sawyer's reputation as the premier interpreter of Chinese strategy and warfare. The surp

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