Historical Figures from China

Philosopher · 551 BC – 479 BC

Confucius was a Chinese philosopher and teacher whose ideas on ethics, family and good government became the foundation of Confucianism and shaped East Asian civilization for over two thousand years.

• Confucianism
• The Analects

Philosopher · 571 BC – 471 BC

Laozi was a semi-legendary ancient Chinese philosopher traditionally regarded as the founder of Daoism and the author of the Tao Te Ching, the foundational text on living in harmony with the Dao.

• Founding Daoism
• Tao Te Ching

Emperor · 259 BC – 210 BC

Qin Shi Huang was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China, who standardized the state, began the Great Wall, and built the Terracotta Army.

• First unification of China
• The Great Wall

Military Strategist · 544 BC – 496 BC

Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese general and strategist, traditionally the author of The Art of War, the most influential treatise on strategy ever written.

• The Art of War
• Strategic philosophy