The Warring States Period (), also known as the Era of Warring States, covers the Iron Age period from about 475 BCE to the unification of China under the Qin Dynasty in 221 BCE. It is nominally considered to be the second part of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, following the Spring and Autumn Period, although the Zhou Dynasty ended in 256 BCE, 35 years earlier than the end of the Warring States period. During these periods, the Chinese sovereign (king of the Zhou Dynasty) was merely a figurehead.

The name ''Warring States Period'' was derived from the ''Record of the Warring States'', a work compiled early in the Han Dynasty. The date for the beginning of the Warring States Period is disputed. While it is frequently cited as 475 BCE (following the Spring and Autumn Period), 403 BCE, the date of the tripartite Partition of Jin, is also considered as the beginning of the period.

The Seven Warring States were: Qin in the west, in the lower Wei River valley "within the passes"; Chu, on the southern frontier around the middle Yangzi River; Qi to the east in Shandong; Yan, in the far northeast near Beijing; and in the center, from south to north, Han, Wei, and Zhao.

Culture

The Warring States Period was an era when regional warlords annexed smaller states around them and consolidated their power. The process began in the Spring and Autumn Period, and by the 3rd century BCE, seven major states had emerged as the dominant powers in China. Another indicator for the shift in power was the change in the title used by the rulers of the states. They were initially addressed as "dukes" (公), a sign that they were vassals of the Chinese sovereign (the King of the Zhou Dynasty), but later they called themselves "kings" (王), putting them on par with the Chinese sovereign.

The Warring States Period saw the proliferation of iron working in China, replacing bronze as the dominant type of metal used in warfare. Areas such as Shu (present-day Sichuan) and Yue (present-day Zhejiang) were also brought into the Chinese cultural sphere during this time. Different philosophies, known as the Hundred Schools of Thought, developed in this period. The most notable schools of thought include those of Mencius, Sun Tzu, Lao Zi, Zhuang Zi, Han Feizi, Xun Zi and Mozi. Trade also became important, and some merchants had considerable power in politics.

Warfare in the Warring States Period was also different from the Spring and Autumn Period, as most armies made use of infantry and cavalry in battles, and the use of chariots became less widespread. The use of massed infantry made warfare more bloody and reduced the importance of the aristocracy which in turn made the kings more despotic. From this period onward, as the various states competed with each other by mobilizing their armies to war, nobles in China belonged to the literate class, rather than to the warrior class as had previously been the case.

This period is also notable for the development of complex bureaucracies and centralized governments, as well as a clearly established legal system. The developments in political and military organization were the basis of the power of the Qin state, which conquered the other states and unified them under the Qin Empire in 221 BCE.

History

Background and Outline

When the Zhou Dynasty was founded in 1046 BCE, the land was divided into hereditary fiefs. After 771 the Zhou king was reduced to a figurehead and real power was held by 150 or more vassal states. During this Spring and Autumn Period (771-480 BCE) the smaller states were gradually absorbed by the larger ones. By about 550 there were only four major powers: Qin (west), Jin (west-center), Qi (east) and Chu (south). Most of the remaining small states were between Jin and Qi.

circa 450-350 BCE: Affairs are dominated by the three fragments of Jin, especially Wei.

circa 350-250 BCE: the main period of conflict. The states ruined each other in increasingly violent conflicts, leaving only Qin.

circa 250-221 BCE: Qin conquers all the other states, founding the Qin Dynasty.

In more detail: 453: Jin (center) splits into Zhao,Wei and Han; 383: Zhao vs. Wei; The states were seriously defeated in the following years: 340: Wei (center); 284: Qi (east); 278: Chu (south); 260: Zhao (north-center). 256: Zhou kingship abolished; 230-221: Qin conquers all the other states.

Military geography

At this time Chinese civilization was based in the Yellow River basin and was slowly expanding south to the Yangtze River.

Qin (west): The State of Qin was in the far west, in the Wei River valley within its natural fortress.

The Three Jins (center): Northeast of Qin, on the Shanxi plateau, were the three fragments of Jin: Zhao (north), Wei (center) and Han (south). Wei was the strongest and Han held the east-west stretch of the Yellow River that was the military gateway into Qin. The three states tended to expand eastward.

Qi (east): On the highlands and peninsula of Shandong, was the wealthy State of Qi.

Chu (south): The State of Chu was in the south along the Yangtze. It had the largest land area but much of this was undeveloped frontier.

Yan (northeast): Near Beijing was the relatively weak State of Yan. Late in the period Yan pushed northeast and began to occupy the Liaodong Peninsula.

Others: On the southeast coast near Shanghai was the minor State of Yue. In the far southwest in Sichuan were the States of Ba and Shu. These were non-Zhou states that were conquered by Qin late in the period. Between Shandong and Shanxi (literally 'Mountain-east' and 'Mountain-west'), that is, between Qi and the Three Jins, was the central plain with its dense population and many small states.

Nobles, Bureaucrats and Reformers

As in any feudal system there was a danger that power would become decentralized. The multi-state system itself was created when the Zhou king lost power to his nobles. In Jin the duke killed off many of his kinsmen who held subordinate fiefs and replaced them with appointees. These new men formed clans and began to fight among themselves. By 453 the state was effectively divided between three clans (Zhao, Wei and Han), a fact that was formally recognized by the Zhou king in 403. In Qi the Dian clan gained such power that it overthrew the original ducal family. In the smaller states of Lu and Song, nobles held much of the power. Conversely, if a duke wished to strengthen his state, he would need to weaken the nobles and rule by appointed officials. Since these people were appointed they could, and did, move from one state to another. Perhaps the most important of these reforming bureaucrats was Shang Yang who imposed a highly centralized and authoritarian system on the state of Qin.

The Partition of Jin (453 and 403 BCE)

From about 607 BCE the Jin dukes began to lose power to their nobles. By 523 the state was controlled by six clans. Two clans were eliminated by 475 and another in 453. In 403 the Zhou king recognized the three remaining clans as independent marquisates: Zhao in the north, Wei in the center and Han in the south. This left seven great powers: the three remaining great powers, the three fragments of Jin and Yan in the northeast. Although divided, the "three Jins" remained powerful, especially when they cooperated.

The three Jins: alliance and conflict (453-368 BCE)

During the first 50 years the division of Jin allowed the other states to expand, Chu and Yue northward and Qi southward. Qin increased its control of the local tribes and began its expansion southwest to Sichuan.

From before 405 until 383 the three Jins were united under the leadership of Wei and expanded in all directions. The most important figure was Marquess Wen of Wei (445-396). In 408-406 he conquered the State of Zhongshan to the northeast on the other side of Zhao. At the same time he pushed west across the Yellow River to the Luo River taking the area of Xihe (literally 'west of the [Yellow] river').

The growing power of Wei caused Zhao to back away from the alliance. In 383 it moved its capital to Handan and attacked the small state of Wey. Wey appealed to Wei which attacked Zhao on the western side. Being in danger, Zhao called in Chu. As usual, Chu used this as a pretext to annex territory to its north, but the diversion allowed Zhao to occupy a part of Wei. This conflict marked the end of the power of the united Jins and the beginning a period of shifting alliances and wars on several fronts.

In 370 BCE, Marquess Wu of Wei died without naming a successor, which led to a war of succession. After three years of civil war, Zhao from the north and Han from the south invaded Wei. On the verge of conquering Wei, the leaders of Zhao and Han fell into disagreement about what to do with Wei, and both armies abruptly retreated. As a result, King Hui of Wei (still a Marquess at the time) was able to ascend the throne of Wei.

By the end of the period Zhao extended from the Shanxi plateau across the plain to the borders of Qi. Wei reached east to Qi, Lu and Song. To the south, the weaker state of Han held the east-west part of the Yellow River valley, surrounded the Zhou royal domain at Luoyang and held an area north of Luoyang called Shangdang.

Wei defeated by Qi (370-340)

King Hui of Wei (370-319) set about restoring the state. In 362-359 he exchanged territories with Han and Zhao in order to make the boundaries of the three states more rational. In 344 he assumed the title of king.

In 364 Wei was defeated by Qin at the Battle of Shimen and was only saved by the intervention of Zhao. Qin won another victory in 362. In 361 the capital was moved east to Daliang to be out of the reach of Qin.

In 354 BCE, King Hui of Wei started a large-scale attack on Zhao. By 353 BCE, Zhao was losing badly and its capital, Handan, was under siege. The State of Qi intervened. The famous Qi strategist, Sun Bin the great, great, great grandson of Sun Tzu (author of the Art of War), proposed to attack the Wei capital while the Wei army was tied up besieging Zhao. The strategy was a success; the Wei army hastily moved south to protect its capital, was caught on the road and decisively defeated at the Battle of Guiling. The battle is remembered in the second of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, "besiege Wei, save Zhao" meaning to attack a vulnerable spot to relieve pressure at another point.

In 341 BCE, Wei attacked Han. Qi allowed Han to be nearly defeated and then intervened. The generals from the Battle of Guiling met again (Sun Bin and Tian Ji versus Pang Juan), by using the same tactic, attacking Wei's capital. Sun Bin feigned a retreat and then turned on the overconfident Wei troops and decisively defeated them at the Battle of Maling.

In the following year Qin attacked the weakened Wei. Wei was devastatingly defeated and ceded a large part of its territory in return for truce. With Wei severely weakened, Qi and Qin became the dominant states in China.

The Period of Qi (301-284 BCE)

This is the most complex part of the Warring States period. It corresponds to the reign of King Min of Qi and the schemes of Lord Mengchang of Qi and Su Qin.

300 BCE: Lord Mengchang of Qi, grandson of the former King Wei of Qi came to power when King Min acceeded to the throne. He made a westward alliance with the States of Wei and Han. In the far west, Qin, which had been weakened by a succession struggle in 307, yielded to the new coalition and appointed Lord Mengchang its chief minister. This "horizontal" or east-west alliance might have secured peace except that it excluded the State of Zhao.

298 BCE: Zhao offered Qin an alliance and Lord Mengchang was driven out of Qin. The remaining three allies, Qi, Wei and Han, attacked Qin, driving up the Yellow River below Shanxi to the Hangu Pass. After 3 years of fighting they took the pass and forced Qin to return territory to Han and Wei. They next inflicted major defeats on Yan and Chu. During the 5-year administration of Lord Menchang, Qi was the major power in China.

294 BCE: Lord Mengchang was implicated in a ''coup d'etat'' and fled to Wei. His alliance system collapsed. Qi and Qin made a truce and pursued their own interests. Qi moved south against the State of Song whilst the Qin General Bai Qi pushed back eastward against a Han/Wei alliance, gaining victory at the Battle of Yique. In 288 BCE the two rulers took the title of "Di", (帝 ''literally emperor'', of the east and west respectively). They swore a covenant and started planning an attack on Zhao.

287 BCE: The diplomat Su Qin, possibly an agent of Yan, persuaded King Min that the Zhao war would only benefit Qin. King Min agreed and formed a 'vertical' alliance with the other states against Qin. Qin backed off, abandoned the presumptuous title of "Di", and restored territory to Wei and Zhao. In 286 Qi annexed the state of Song.

285 BCE: The success of Qi frightened the other states (some say that this was part of Su Qin's plan). Under the leadership of Lord Mengchang, who was exiled in Wei, Qin, Zhao, Wei and Yan formed an alliance. Yan had normally been a relatively weak ally of Qi and Qi feared little from this quarter. Yan's onslaught under general Yue Yi came as a devastating surprise. Simultaneously, the other allies attacked from the west. Chu declared itself an ally of Qi but contented itself with annexing some territory to its north. Qi's armies were destroyed and the King Min was slain. Qi was reduced to the two cities of Ji and Jimo.

After 284 BCE Tian Dan was able to restore much of the state's territory, but it never regained the influence it had under King Min.

The period of Zhao (284-260)

After Chu was defeated in 278, the remaining great powers were Qin in the west and Zhao in the north-center. There was little room for diplomatic maneuver and matters were decided by war in 265-260. Zhao had been much strengthened by King Wuling of Zhao (325-299). In 307 he enlarged his cavalry by copying the northern nomads. In 306 he took more land in the northern Shanxi plateau. In 305 he defeated the northeastern border state of Zhongshan. In 304 he pushed far to the northwest and occupied the east-west section of the Yellow River in the north of the Ordos Loop. King Huiwen of Zhao (298-266) chose able servants and expanded against the weakened Qi and Wei. In 296 his general Lian Po defeated two Qin armies.

In 265 King Zhaoxiang of Qin made the first move by attacking the weak state of Han which held the Yellow River gateway into Qin. He moved northeast across Wei territory to cut off the Han exclave of Shangdang north of Luoyang and south of Zhao. The Han king agreed to surrender Shangdang, but the local governor refused and presented it to King Xiaocheng of Zhao. Zhao sent out Lian Po who based his armies at Changping and Qin sent out general Wang He. Lian Po was too wise to risk a decisive battle with the Qin army and remained inside his fortifications. Qin could not break through and the armies were locked in stalemate for three years. The Zhao king decided that Lian Po was not aggressive enough and sent out Zhao Kuo who promised a decisive battle. At the same time Qin secretly replaced Wang He with the notoriously violent Bai Qi. When Zhao Kuo left his fortifications, Bai Qi used a Cannae maneuver, falling back in the center and surrounding the Zhao army from the sides. After being surrounded for 46 days, the starving Zhao troops surrendered (September, 260 BCE). It is said that Bai Qi had all the prisoners killed and that Zhao lost 400,000 men.

Qin was too exhausted to follow up its victory. Some time later it sent an army to besiege the Zhao capital but the army was destroyed when it was attacked from the rear. Zhao survived, but there was no longer a state that could resist Qin on its own. The other states could have survived if they remained united against Qin, but they did not.

The history of Chu

The general policy of Chu was to slowly annex the small states to its north. By late in the period it had a common border with Qi and Wei.

''389:'' Early in the Warring States Period, Chu was one of the strongest states in China. The state rose to a new level of power around 389 BCE when King Dao of Chu (楚悼王) named the famous reformer Wu Qi as his chancellor.

''334:''Chu rose to its peak in 334 BCE, when it conquered Yue to its east on the Pacific coast. The series of events leading up to this began when Yue prepared to attack Qi to its north. The King of Qi sent an emissary who persuaded the King of Yue to attack Chu instead. Yue initiated a large-scale attack at Chu but was defeated by Chu's counter-attack. Chu then proceeded to conquer Yue.

''278:'' General Bai Qi of Qin attacked from Qin's new (from 316) territory in Sichuan to the west of Chu. The capital of Ying was captured and Chu's western lands on the Han River were lost. The effect of 334 and 278 was to shift Chu significantly to the east.

The Royal Title

The title of 'king' (''wang'',王) was held by figurehead rulers of the Zhou Dynasty, 'duke' (''Gong'', 公) by those of the larger states, and 'marquess' (''hou'', 侯) by those of medium sized states, while the rulers of smaller states had lesser titles.

In 703 King Wu of Chu took the title of king. (Since the chiefs of the local non-Zhou tribes were also called kings, this may not be as presumptuous as it sounds.) In 288-287 the kings of Qin and Qi briefly called themselves 'Di', which means something like sacred.

In 344 King Hui of Wei changed his title from Marquess to King. In 334 his victorious enemy, King Wei of Qi adopted the same title. In 325 the rulers of Qin and Han declared themselves kings, and in 323 those of Zhao, Yan and Zhongshan. In 318 BCE, the ruler of Song, a relatively minor state, declared himself a king. The ruler of Zhao held out until around 299 BCE, and was the last take the royal title.

Horizontal and Vertical Alliances

Towards the end of the Warring States Period, the Qin state became disproportionately powerful compared to the other six states. As a result, the policies of the six states became overwhelmingly oriented towards dealing with the Qin threat, with two opposing schools of thought. One school advocated a 'vertical' or north-south alliance called ''hezong'' (合縱/合纵) in which the states would ally with each other to repel Qin. The other advocated a 'horizontal' or east-west alliance called ''lianheng'' (連橫/连横) in which a state would ally with Qin to participate in its ascendancy. There were some initial successes in ''hezong'', though it eventually broke down. Qin repeatedly exploited the horizontal alliance strategy to defeat the states one by one. During this period, many philosophers and tacticians travelled around the states, recommending that the rulers put their respective ideas into use. These "lobbyists," such as Su Qin, were famous for their tact and intellect, and were collectively known as the School of Diplomacy, which takes its name from the two main schools of thought.

The rise of Qin

After the Zhou were driven out of the Wei River valley in 771 BCE the house of Qin was given the task of restoring Zhou rule in the valley. This they did by slowly absorbing the local Rong tribes. The valley was bounded on the south by high mountains and on the north by dry country. Its great advantage was its location in the far west "within the passes" which tended to keep Qin out of needless wars with the other states.

We have little information about the early history of Qin during the Spring and Autumn Period. Most of its interactions were with its powerful eastern neighbor, Jin. In 632 Duke Mu of Qin (660-621) helped Jin win the Battle of Chengpu against Chu. In 579 Qin, Jin, Chu and Qi held a peace conference and agreed to limit the size of their armies.

During the early Warring States period Qin generally avoided conflicts with the other states. It began to become aggressive after the Shang Yang reforms of about 356 and then played a very active role in the final 180 years (300-221 BCE).

Circa 408 Wei pushed Qin back to the Luo River occupying the Xihe area west of the Yellow River. 364: Qin defeated Wèi and Han at the battle of Shimen. Wei was saved by the intervention of Zhao. 356-338: Shang Yang made centralizing and authoritarian reforms. 340: Qin took land from Wèi after it had been defeated by Qi. 316: Qin conquered Shu and Ba in Sichuan to the southwest. Development of this area took a long time but slowly added greatly to Qin's wealth and power.325: The Duke of Qin took the title of king. 312: Qin defeated an attack from Chu. 307: Qin was weakened by a disputed succession. 301-284: See Warring States Period#The Period of Qi (301-284) for the complex conflict with Qi. 269: General Lian Po of Zhao decisively defeated two Qin armies. After 269: Fan Sui became chief advisor. He advocated authoritarian reforms, irrevocable expansion and an alliance with distant states to attack nearby states (the twenty-third of the Thirty-Six Stratagems). His maxim "attack not only the territory, but also the people" enunciated a policy of mass slaughter that became increasingly frequent. 278: Qin's notoriously bloody general Bai Qi captured the Chu capital and pushed the Qin frontier east of Sichuan. 265: Qin started a war with Han, probably to open up the Yellow River corridor south of Shanxi. 260: Zhao aided Han but its power was broken by Bai Qi at the battle of Changping. Qin was now the strongest state in China.

Qin conquers the other states (230-221)

In 230 BCE, the Qin state conquered the Han state. Han, the weakest of the Seven Warring States, was adjacent to the much stronger Qin, and had suffered continuous assaults by Qin in earlier years of the Warring States Period. This went on until Emperor Qin Shi Huang sent general Wang Jian to attack Zhao. King An of Han, frightened by the thought that Han would be the next target of the Qin state, immediately sent diplomats to surrender the entire kingdom without a fight, saving the Han populace from the terrible potential consequences of an unsuccessful resistance.

In 225 BCE, Qin conquered Wei. The Qin army led a direct invasion into Wei by besieging its capital Daliang but soon realized that the city walls were too tough to break into. They devised a new strategy in which they utilized the power of a local river that was linked to the Yellow River. The river was used to flood the city's walls, causing massive devastation to the city. Upon realizing the situation, King Jia of Wei hurriedly came out of the city and surrendered its city to the Qin army in order to avoid further bloodshed of his people.

In 223 BCE, Qin invaded the relatively strong Chu state. However, the first invasion was an utter disaster when 200,000 Qin troops, led by the inexperienced general, Li Xin, were defeated by 500,000 Chu troops in the unfamiliar territory of Huaiyang, modern-day northern Jiangsu and Anhui provinces. Xiang Yan, the Chu commander, had lured Qin by allowing a few initial victories, but then counterattacked and burnt two large Qin camps.

The following year, Wang Jian was recalled to lead a second invasion with 600,000 men. High in morale after their victory in the previous year, the Chu forces were content to sit back and defend against what they expected to be a siege of Chu. However, Wang Jian decided to weaken Chu's resolve and tricked the Chu army by appearing to be idle in his fortifications whilst secretly training his troops to fight in Chu territory. After a year, the Chu defenders decided to disband due to apparent lack of action from the Qin. Wang Jian invaded at that point, with full force, and overran Huaiyang and the remaining Chu forces. Chu lost the initiative and could only sustain local guerrilla-style resistance until it too was fully conquered with the destruction of Shouchun and the death of its last leader, Lord Changping of Chu, in 223 BCE. At their peak, the combined armies of Chu and Qin are estimated to have ranged from hundreds of thousands to a million soldiers, more than those involved in the campaign of Changping between Qin and Zhao 35 years earlier.

In 222 BCE, Qin conquered Yan and Zhao. After the conquest of Zhao, the Qin army then turned its attention towards Yan. Realizing the danger and gravity of this situation, Crown Prince Dan of Yan had sent the assassin Jing Ke to kill the Qin king, but this failure only helped to fuel the rage and determination of the Qin king, and he increased the number of troops to conquer the Yan state.

In 221 BCE, Qin conquered Qi. Qi was the final unconquered warring state. It had not previously contributed or helped other states when Qin was conquering them. As soon as Qin's intention to invade it became clear, Qi swiftly surrendered all its cities, completing the unification of China and ushering in the Qin Dynasty.

Military Theory and Practice

Increasing Scale of Warfare

The chariot remained a major factor in Chinese warfare long after it has gone out of fashion in the Middle East. Near the beginning of the Warring States Period we see a shift from chariots to massed infantry, possibly associated with the invention of the crossbow. This had two major effects. First it led the dukes to weaken their chariot-riding nobility so they could get direct access to the peasantry who could be drafted as infantry. This change was associated with the shift from aristocratic to bureaucratic government. Second, it led to a massive increase in the scale of warfare. When the Zhou overthrew the Shang at the Battle of Muye they used 45,000 troops and 300 chariots. For the Warring States Period the following figures are reported: Qin: 1,000,000 infantry, 1,000 chariots, 10,000 horses; Chu: same numbers; Wei:200-360,000 infantry, 200,000 spearmen, 100,000 servants, 600 chariots, 5,000 cavalry; Han: 300,000 total; Qi: several hundred thousand; Battle of Maling: 100,000 killed; Battle of Yique: 240,000 killed; General Bai Qi was responsible for 890,000 enemy deaths. Most scholars think these numbers are exaggerated (they are much larger than those from similar societies, soldiers were paid by the number of enemies they killed and the Han Dynasty had an interest in exaggerating the bloodiness of the age before China was unified). Regardless of exaggeration, it seems clear that warfare had become excessive during this period. The bloodshed and misery of the Warring States Period goes a long way in explaining China's traditional preference for a united monarchy.

Military developments

The Warring States Period saw the introduction of many innovations to the art of warfare in China, such as the use of iron and of cavalry.

The various states fielded massive armies of infantry, cavalry, and chariots. Complex logistical systems maintained by efficient government bureaucracies were needed to supply, train, and control such large forces. The size of the armies ranged from tens of thousands to several hundred thousand men. Iron became more widespread and began to replace bronze. Most armour and weapons of this period were made from iron.

The first official native Chinese cavalry unit was formed in 307 BCE by King Wuling of Zhao. But the war chariot still retained its prestige and importance, despite the tactical superiority of cavalry.

The crossbow was the preferred long-range weapon of this period, due to several reasons. The crossbow could be mass-produced easily, and mass training of crossbowmen was possible. These qualities made it a powerful weapon against the enemy.

Infantrymen deployed a varieties of weapons, but the most popular was the dagger-axe. The dagger-axe came in various lengths, from 9 to 18 feet; the weapon consisted of a thrusting spear with a slashing blade appended to it. Dagger-axes were an extremely popular weapon in various kingdoms, especially for the Qin who produced 18-foot-long pikes.

Military thought

The Warring States was a great period for military strategy. The military strategist Sun Tzu is said to have written ''The Art of War'', which is recognized today as the most influential and oldest known military strategy guide. Along with this were other military writings that make up the Seven Military Classics of ancient China: Jiang Ziya's ''Six Secret Teachings'', Sima Rangju's ''The Methods of the Sima'', ''Sun Bin's Art of War'', Wu Qi, Wei Liaozi, Three strategies of Huang Shigong, and Questions and Replies between Tang Taizong and Li Weigong (the last being made approximately 800 years after this era ended). Once China was unified, these seven military classics were locked away and access was restricted due to their potential to promote revolution.

In 307 BCE, King Wuling of Zhao adopted both nomadic attire and the nomads' proficiency in marksmanship while on a galloping horse. Superior horse-riding clothing, in particular split trousers instead of robes, and the use of mounted bowmen to better facilitate superior light cavalry fighting tactics.

Footnotes

References

.

Li Xueqin. ''Eastern Zhou and Qin Civilizations''. Trans. K.C. Chang. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1985. ISBN 0300032862.

Yap, Joseph P. (2009). ''Wars With The Xiongnu, A Translation from Zizhi tongjian''. AuthorHouse, Bloomington, Indiana, U.S.A. ISBN 978-1-4490-0604-4.

External links

Warring States Project, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Rulers of the warring states – Chinese Text Project

Category:5th-century BC conflicts Category:4th-century BC conflicts Category:3rd-century BC conflicts Category:Zhou Dynasty Category:Ancient Chinese states Category:History of Ancient China

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