Zizhi tongjian Vol 1-8 - Warring States and Qin - Translated by Joseph P Yap Sima Guang (1019-1086 CE) completed his Zizhi tongjian (Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance) in 1084, a monumental historiography that commences in 403 BCE and ends in 959 CE, covering a span of 1362 years of ancient and medieval Chinese history. Qin Mu the eminent contemporary Chinese historian remarks, "Sima Guang successfully merged the three disciplines of literature, history, and philosophy into one entity." The Zizhi tongjian is about historical experience, and Sima Guang maintains that the heads-of-states can learn so much by studying history. The book has earned high acclaim among Chinese and Asian scholars ever since its publication. However, only a very small part of the work has been translated into English; hence, the work is not widely read. This volume of this translation begins in 403 BCE and concludes with the fall of the Qin Dynasty in 207 BCE. The Zizhi tongian assimilated the exceptional attributes and defining qualities of the Zuozhuan (the Commentary of Zuo) and the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian). Since its publication, it has held a very special and esteemed position among Chinese scholars and historians. Although the work was principally sponsored and financed by the Song Imperial Court, it was organized and written by private individuals; it, therefore, deviated significantly from historical texts prepared by court officials during previous dynasties. In 403 BCE, the once powerful Jin hegemonic state was partitioned into Hann, Wei, and Zhao. Together with Qi, Qin, Chu and Yan they came to be known as the seven warring states. Sima Guang in his annotation on the enfeoffment of the three fief lords by the King of Zhou laments over the breakdown of li (rites). He says, 'It was not the three Jin ministers who bankrupted the instituted rites; rather, the Son of Heaven brought on the collapse.' He contends that as the illegitimate act of partitioning a state by its subjects was legitimized by the Son of Heaven - the Zhou king was wholly accountable for the demise. Sima Guang thus chose to commence his chronicle of Zizhi tongjian during the 23rd year of King Weilei of Zhou, 403 BCE, when the Son of Heaven enfeoffed the Jin ministers. The times of the Warring States was about reforms, political strategies, intrigue, warfares, conquests and wholesale massacres when the major states vied for control of China. Wei was the first state that made reforms and enjoyed of decades of prosperity and military strength; it was followed by others in varying forms. The tide turned when Duke Xiao of Qin ascended to the throne; he made resolve to strengthen his state, and it was the turning point of the Warring States. Through Shang Yang's reform, Qin basically laid down the foundation for the final conquest of the six states. This volume offers the readers a glimpse of the political struggles between the seven states culuminating in the final unification of China by by the First Emperor Qin Shihuang in 221 BCE. The book ends with the demise of Qin. When Sima Qian (145?-90 BCE) composed the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian) he used all the information that was available to him, numerous errors were incorporated. Sima Guang, while conducted extensive research, drew copiously on the information from Shiji on the parts of Warring States, Qin, and early Han, and his work included many of the mistakes made. Ever since much textual and archaeological information on the Warring States have become available. Yang Kuan, one of the most eminent contemporary scholars, had conducted extensive textual and archaeological research on the Warring States, shedding much light on the errors on Shiji, Zhanguoce (Warring States Strategies) and Zizhi tongjian. The author translated some of his more outstanding articles.

This volume of - Wars with the Xiongnu is about a nomadic confederation - the Kingdom of Xiongnu to the north of ancient China, most notably for the relentless, atrocious and bloodletting wars that lasted for over two centuries with the mighty Han dynasty, comparable in size and power as Rome during its height. The roaming Xiongnu people, so powerful boasted of having a kingdom striding from Eastern Siberia to the west at the Altai Mountains in Central Asia, with territories so vast - even larger than the mighty Han at its zenith, were a wrath to its immediate neighbours for a period of no less than six centuries; yet with an estimated population of only one and a half million they were able to hold the Han Kingdom, during its height of fifty million people at bay. The powerful nomadic Kingdom rose to power from the midst of nowhere, reached its zenith, ran its course, its vitality and vigour spent, declined and vanished into oblivion without so much as a trace in the mists of time, albeit burial remains and textual references, predominantly from Chinese textual sources. This captivating page of history has prompted many eastern and western scholars to make in-depth studies into these fascinating people. Sushi tonguing, the text which this translation is based, does not offer us with any satisfactory explanations to the vicissitudes of the mighty kingdom, nonetheless there are clues and evidence throughout the text, the reader is encouraged to make his or her own hypothesis and conclusions. The accounts in the book are direct translations from the narratives of Sushi tonguing, the first time this part of the text that has been translated into English.

The European view on history was shaken to its foundations when missionaries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries discovered that Chinese history was older than European and Biblical history. With an analysis of the Chinese, Manchu and European sources on ancient Chinese history, this essay proposes an early case of “intercultural historiography,” in which historical texts of different cultures are interwoven. It focusses on the ways Chinese and European authors interpreted stories about marvellous births by the concubines of Emperor Ku. These stories have been the object of a wide variety of interpretations in Chinese texts, each of them representing a different historical genre. They are excellent case-studies to illustrate how the Chinese hermeneutic strategies shaped the diversity of interpretations given by Europeans.

In this learned, yet readable, book, Joseph McDermott introduces the history of the book in China in the late imperial period from 1000 to 1800. He assumes little knowledge of Chinese history or culture and compares the Chinese experience with books with that of other civilizations, particularly the European. Yet he deals with a wide range of issues in the history of the book in China and presents novel analyses of the changes in Chinese woodblock bookmaking over these centuries. He presents a new view of when the printed book replaced the manuscript and what drove that substitution. He explores the distribution and marketing structure of books, and writes fascinatingly on the history of book collecting and about access to private and government book collections. In drawing on a great deal of Chinese, Japanese, and Western research this book provides a broad account of the way Chinese books were printed, distributed, and consumed by literati and scholars, mainly in the lower Yangzi delta, the cultural center of China during these centuries. It introduces interesting personalities, ranging from wily book collectors to an indigent shoe-repairman collector. And, it discusses the obstacles to the formation of a truly national printed culture for both the well-educated and the struggling reader in recent times. This broad and comprehensive account of the development of printed Chinese culture from 1000 to 1800 is written for anyone interested in the history of the book. It also offers important new insights into book culture and its place in society for the student of Chinese history and culture. 'A brilliant piece of synthetic research as well as a delightful read, it offers a history of the Chinese book to the eighteenth century that is without equal.' - Timothy Brook, University of British Columbia 'Writers, scribes, engravers, printers, binders, publishers, distributors, dealers, literati, scholars, librarians, collectors, voracious readers — the full gamut of a vibrant book culture in China over one thousand years — are examined with eloquence and perception by Joseph McDermott in The Social History of the Book. His lively exploration will be of consuming interest to bibliophiles of every persuasion.' - Nicholas A. Basbanes, author of A Gentle Madness, Patience and Fortitude, A Splendor of Letters, and Every Book Its Reader Joseph McDermott is presently Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge, and University Lecturer in Chinese at Cambridge University. He has published widely on Chinese social and economic history, most recently on the economy of the Song (or, Sung) dynasty for the Cambridge History of China. He has edited State and Court Ritual in China and Art and Power in East Asia.

Shortly after 300 AD, barbarian invaders from Inner Asia toppled China's Western Jin dynasty, leaving the country divided and at war for several centuries. Despite this, the empire gradually formed a unified imperial order. Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300-900 explores the military strategies, institutions and wars that reconstructed the Chinese empire that has survived into modern times. Drawing on classical Chinese sources and the best modern scholarship from China and Japan, David A. Graff connects military affairs with political and social developments to show how China's history was shaped by war.

Chinese emperors guaranteed male successors by taking multiple wives, in some cases hundreds and even thousands. Women Shall Not Rule offers a fascinating history of imperial wives and concubines, especially in light of the greatest challenges to polygamous harmony—rivalry between women and their attempts to engage in politics. Besides ambitious empresses and concubines, these vivid stories of the imperial polygamous family are also populated with prolific emperors, wanton women, libertine men, cunning eunuchs, and bizarre cases of intrigue and scandal among rival wives. Keith McMahon, a leading expert on the history of gender in China, draws upon decades of research to describe the values and ideals of imperial polygamy and the ways in which it worked and did not work in real life. His rich sources are both historical and fictional, including poetic accounts and sensational stories told in pornographic detail. Displaying rare historical breadth, his lively and fascinating study will be invaluable as a comprehensive and authoritative resource for all readers interested in the domestic life of royal palaces across the world.

This is the first book-length treatment in English of Three Kingdoms (Sanguo yanyi), often regarded as China's first great classical novel. Set in the historical period of the disunion (220–280 AD), Three Kingdoms fuses history and popular tradition to create a sweeping epic of heroism and political ambition. The essays in this volume explore the multifarious connections between Three Kingdoms and Chinese culture from a variety of disciplines, including history, literature, philosophy, art history, theater, cultural studies, and communications, demonstrating the diversity of backgrounds against which this novel can be studied. Some of the most memorable episodes and figures in Chinese literature appear within its pages, and Three Kingdoms has had a profound influence on personal, social, and political behavior, even language usage, in the daily life of people in China today. The novel has inspired countless works of theater and art, and, more recently, has been the source for movies and a television series. Long popular in other countries of East Asia, such as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, Three Kingdoms has also been introduced to younger generations around the globe through a series of extremely popular computer games. This study helps create a better understanding of the work's unique place in Chinese culture.