Sun Tzu

Sun Tzu (6th-5th century BC), once known as Sun Wu, lived in the Chinese state of Wu. He was a general and military strategist. His book The Art of War is considered the earliest work dealing with military strategy and is today one of the most important in this field.

The only surviving source of information about Sun Tzu's life is a biography written by the historian Sima Qian in the 2nd century BCE. e. The form and content of The Art of War suggest that the book was written between 400 BC. AD and 320 BC e.

Some scholars believe that Sun Tzu's work was actually written by multiple Chinese philosophers and that Sun Tzu never even existed as a historical figure. There is evidence that supports this theory more than the traditional one, which holds that Sun Tzu was truly a historical figure. Lionel Giles, in the introduction to his 1910 translation of The Art of War, only cast doubt on the real existence of Sun Tzu.

A group of texts engraved in bamboo wood was found in 1972 in a tomb near Linyi in Shandong. They confirmed parts of the texts that were already known, but also added new knowledge. This version of the text is dated between 134-118. BC e., thus ruling out older theories that parts of the text were written much earlier.

Sun Tzu is believed to be a descendant of Sun Quan, the founder of the Kingdom of Wu, which was one of the three super-dynasties during the period known as the Three Kingdoms.