Strategies of the Warring States is a historical work compiled by Liu Xiang of the Western Han Dynasty. It was not produced at a single time, nor was it written by a single author. During the Warring States period, there were specialists in diplomatic strategy who studied how to discern the psychology of rulers and employ tactics of alliance and division, known as “vertical and horizontal alliances,” in order to unite allied states and isolate or strike against enemies. These figures were historically called the “School of Vertical and Horizontal Alliances.” They paid particular attention to the art of persuasion, continually collecting materials for wide citation and even composing sample speeches for practice; Strategies of the Warring States emerged from this tradition.
The book is arranged by state, comprising one section on Western Zhou, one on Eastern Zhou, five on Qin, six on Qi, four each on Chu, Zhao, and Wei, three each on Han and Yan, one combined section on Song and Wei, and one on Zhongshan. Its records extend from 453 BC, when Han, Zhao, and Wei destroyed Zhi Bo, to the accession of the Second Emperor of Qin. The work reflects the political, military, and diplomatic situations of the various feudal states, and documents the sharp and complex conflicts among different states and social groups, making it an extremely important source for the study of Warring States history.
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