Through a series of novelistic biographies that showcase the pivotal roles and actions of those involved, dive into a centuries-long fight for survival for the Han empire that resulted in a golden age for China.

The Han-Xiongnu War (133 BC – AD 89) pitted the Han dynasty of China against a confederation of nomadic steppe peoples, the Xiongnu Empire. In campaigns waged on a huge scale by the standards of contemporary Western warfare (perhaps half a million soldiers were fielded at the Battle of Mobei in 119 BC), the two states fought for control of Central Asia, hungry for its rich resources and Western trade links. China’s victory set the stage for millennia of imperial rule and a vast sphere of influence in Asia.

Scott Forbes Crawford examines the war in a lively, engaging narrative. He builds a mosaic encompassing the centuries of conflict through biographies of fifteen historical figures: the Chinese and Xiongnu emperors who first led their armies into battle; ‘peace bride’ Princess Jieyou, whose marriage to a steppe king forged a vital Chinese alliance; the explorer-diplomat Zhang Qian, who almost-inadvertently established the Silk Road, among other key individuals. Their stories capture the war’s breadth, the enduring impact on Han society and statecraft in what became a Chinese golden age, and the doomed resistance of the Xiongnu to an ever-strengthening juggernaut.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Chronology of Major Events in the Han-Xiongnu War
• Prologue: A Misread Prophecy
• Part One: Architects of War and Empire
  • Chapter I Chanyu Modun (d. 174 BC): First Emperor of the Steppe
  • Chapter II Liu Bang (256–195 BC): From Rebel to Emperor
  • Chapter III Emperor Wu of Han (156–87 BC): The ‘Martial Emperor’
• Part Two: Steppe Soldiers
  • Chapter IV Li Guang (d. 119 BC): The Bold and Blundering Bowman
  • Chapter V Chanyu Yizhixie (d. 114 BC): Leader of an Embattled Empire
  • Chapter VI Wei Qing (d. 105 BC): Strategist of the Battlefield and Court
  • Chapter VII Huo Qubing (140–117 BC): Horseman with the Strength of the Steppe
• Part Three: Pathfinders to the West
  • Chapter VIII Zhang Qian (died c. 114 BC): Pioneer of the Silk Road
  • Chapter IX Princess Jieyou (d. 49 BC): Peace Bride and Han Operative
  • Chapter X Li Guangli (d. 88 BC): Hunter of Heavenly Horses
  • Chapter XI The Chanyus Zhizhi (d. 36 BC) and Huhanye (d. 31 BC): A Broken Brotherhood
• Part Four: Warriors at the Imperial Sunset
  • Chapter XII King Xian of Yarkand (d. circa AD 62): Han Ally Gone Rogue
  • Chapter XIII Ban Chao (AD 32–102): Wielder of Brush and Sword
  • Chapter XIV Dou Xian (d. AD 92): Final Cog in the Han War Machine
• Epilogue: Reared in Each Other’s Shadows
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Plates