Ban Gu (32–92 CE) was a renowned historian and literary scholar of the Eastern Han dynasty. His courtesy name was Mengjian, and he was a native of Anling, Fufeng Commandery (in present-day northeastern Xianyang, Shaanxi).
A foundational Chinese historical text compiled by Ban Gu (32–92 CE) of the Eastern Han dynasty.
A historical text compiled by Chen Shou (233–297 CE) during the Western Jin dynasty. It is a biographical state-by-state history chronicling the Three Kingdoms period – Wei, Shu, and Wu – and comprises 65 scrolls: Book of Wei (30 scrolls),Book of Shu (15 scrolls), and Book of Wu (20 scrolls).
Sima Qian (c. 145 or 135 BCE – ?) was a preeminent historian and literary figure of the Western Han dynasty. His courtesy name was Zichang, and he was born in Xiayang (south of present-day Hancheng, Shaanxi). He was the son of Sima Tan, the Grand Historian (Taishi) of Emperor Wu’s court.
The popular saying – “Liu Bei borrowed Jing Province and never returned” – is deeply entrenched in Chinese folklore, largely due to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Yet historical records tell a far more nuanced story. In fact, the very notion of “borrowing Jingzhou” is something of a misleading construct, if not a…
Liu Bei is not the most brilliant strategist, nor the fiercest warrior, nor the most cunning politician of the Three Kingdoms. Yet across centuries – through both historical records like Chen Shou’s Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi) and the romanticized drama of Luo Guanzhong’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms – he remains the…