Commanders

Sun Tzu

/ˌsʊnˈsuː/ (sun-SOO); Mandarin: Sunzi

Also Known As Sunzi

Ancient, State of Wu

Citation Formats

General Reference

War and Military Atlas. "Sun Tzu." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://military.interactiveatlas.org/commanders/sun-tzu.

APA Style

War and Military Atlas. (n.d.). Sun Tzu. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://military.interactiveatlas.org/commanders/sun-tzu

BibTeX

@misc{warandmilitaryatlas-sun-tzu,
  author = {War and Military Atlas},
  title = {Sun Tzu},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://military.interactiveatlas.org/commanders/sun-tzu},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Sun Tzu was a Chinese military general, strategist, philosopher and writer of the Eastern Zhou period, traditionally credited as the author of The Art of War, the earliest and most influential surviving Chinese treatise on military strategy. Later tradition places him as a general in service to King Helu of the southeastern state of Wu, though his own dates and the extent of his historical activity rest on a much later account by the Han dynasty historian Sima Qian and are traditional rather than firmly established. This atlas cites him for The Art of War's direct bearing on its own doctrine entries, including his early discussion of, and caution against, the pincer movement.

Facts

Birth Year

544 BCE 1

Traditional date from the Han dynasty historian Sima Qian's much later account; Sun Tzu's historicity and exact dates are not independently confirmed.

Death Year

496 BCE 1

Traditional date from the same Sima Qian account as the birth year above, equally unconfirmed independently.

Nationality

Born in the state of Qi; later a general and minister in the state of Wu (Eastern Zhou period China) 1

Defining Contribution

Author of The Art of War, the earliest surviving and most influential Chinese treatise on military strategy. 1

Notable Work

The Art of War 1

Cross-Tradition Connections