Zizhi Tongjian

The monumental Zizhi Tongjian (“Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government”), a general chronicle of Chinese history, is considered one of the finest single historical works in Chinese. Compiled by Sima Guang, who was known for his scholarship in several disciplines and prominence in government, as well as moral uprightness, the collection chronologically narrates the history of China from the Warring States to the Five Dynasties (403 B.C.-959 C.E). In writing these works Sima Guang left behind the traditional methods of Chinese historiography. For almost 1,000 years and the Shiji, standard Chinese dynastic histories, primarily divided chapters between annals of rulers and biographies of officials. In Chinese terms, the book changed the format of histories from biographical style to chronological style, which is better suited for analysis and scholarship. According to Endymion Porter Wilkinson, "It had an enormous influence on later Chinese historical writing, either directly or through its many abbreviations, continuations, and adaptations. It remains an extraordinarily useful first reference for a quick and reliable coverage of events at a particular time."