Abstract
Abstract This article conducts a comprehensive study on the battle of Changping 長平 (260 BCE) between Qin 秦 and Zhao 趙 and challenges some traditional views on it. This article estimates the sizes and losses of the opposing sides and argues that although the number of losses of the Zhao army in this battle looks unreasonably large, it is too subjective to say that the ancient sources exaggerate the numbers because the definition of “soldiers” at that time was different from today. This article concludes that the reasons for Zhao’s defeat are not because of replacing an experienced chief commander with an inexperienced one or shortage in supply but because it was the relatively weaker side and more importantly, its long-term strategic planning and diplomacy were inferior to Qin’s. This article also argues that the influence of this battle is not as significant as claimed by some scholars.
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