34 replies to this topic

[Zhao Yun '87]

I have been looking for more primary sources on Chinese military history. Mostly around Warring States to the end of the Three Kingdoms. I know there aren't many English translations but I'd prefer them if you know of any though Chinese is alright too.

[JacquestheApostate]

Books on ancient Chinese warfare/military or tactics are hard to get here where I live (Winnipeg). I finally got the library to order me “Medieval warfare 300 to 900 AD”. I will let you know when I am done reading it what I thought.

My opinion won’t amount to much however because I typically read books on WWII and the Napoleonic time period.

[f0ma]

Thought I might update this. David A Graff has two new books: A Military History of China and The Eurasian Way of War. Likewise, I'm surprised no one has mentioned C. J. Peers, who has written extensively on the subject. His main work is Soldiers of the Dragon, which deals with Chinese warfare from 1500 BC to 1840 AD, but he's also written a series on Chinese armies for Osprey, including Ancient, early Imperial, Imperial and late Imperial. He's not the most credible author, but he provides good overviews. It's wise to take his work with a pinch of salt sometimes, since he doesn't cite any references and sometimes makes mistakes. There's a wealth of other Osprey titles on Chinese warfare too, predominately authored by Stephen Turnbull (late Imperial, naval/siege and Sino-Japanese warfare) and Phillip Jowett (post-Qing to civil war). Since these books are condensed to a very small page count, they're only really good for basic overviews, but many of the subjects covered don't have much else written about them - such as early Chinese maritime endeavour and Twentieth century warlordism - which make them good investments.

Edited by f0ma, 12 August 2012 - 06:54 PM.

[returnofkevin]

is there any softcopy version of those recommended books ? I mean the pdf ones

[f0ma]

Not legally, I don't imagine. Kindle editions exist for some of them, which you can purchase for a cheaper price - though that of course requires buying a Kindle.

You can find many free pdf articles online though. Try Asia Major. David A Graff, author of many ancient Chinese military monographs listed above, has several articles published here.