New History of the Five Dynasties

Ouyang XiuQunyan Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

4.4

Word count: 349K words
Chapters: 36

Summary

A chronicle-style historical work and one of the Twenty-Four "Orthodox Histories." The term "orthodox history" derives from the Suishu: Jingshizhi, which states: "Works produced in every age all modeled themselves on Ban [Gu] and Ma [Sima Qian] and were regarded as orthodox histories." The Qing Siku Quanshu further stipulated that in the orthodox-history category, "any work not personally sanctioned by the emperor shall not be admitted indiscriminately; for the genre of orthodox history is august, its standing equal to that of the classics, and without an explicit decree no one may presume to add to it"—that is, no work could be included without imperial approval. Most of the Twenty-Four Orthodox Histories contain annals, biographies, tables, and treatises, interwoven into a coherent framework; they not only describe the general historical outline of each dynasty but also reflect an extremely complex yet highly continuous historical process.

Editor's review

Ouyang Xiu privately compiled the New History of the Five Dynasties, which circulated alongside the officially commissioned Old History of the Five Dynasties and is one of the rarer examples of personal historiography among the Twenty-Four Histories. Modeling its style on the Spring and Autumn Annals, the work is marked by clear praise and blame and concise prose, embedding moral judgments on the turbulent Five Dynasties within its narrative; readers can trace the course of events and also grasp the historiographical outlook of Northern Song scholar-officials. This edition, published by Qunyan Press, serves well as an introductory reader for understanding the political upheavals and collective portraits of figures in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and is also suited to readers interested in traditional historiographical method who wish to read closely. While reading, note the arrangement of annals and biographies and the evaluative tendencies revealed in the author's discussions and panegyrics; reading it alongside the Old History of the Five Dynasties makes the differences between the two in source selection and standpoint all the more apparent. Overall, this is an orthodox history of moderate length and complete structure, suitable as thematic reading material in a systematic study of ancient Chinese history.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers interested in the history of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms who wish to understand the orthodox historical record systematically
Undergraduates and graduate students studying ancient Chinese history who need to engage with primary historical sources
Readers of history and literature who appreciate traditional historiographical method and care about the conventions of praise and blame in historical writing
Amateur history readers who wish to survey the rise and fall of a dynasty in a relatively short work

Not a good fit for

Beginners expecting popular, story-driven narrative and unwilling to engage with classical Chinese
Specialist researchers needing extensive archaeological material or surveys of modern scholarship
Readers who merely want a quick chronological table of major Five Dynasties events and are unwilling to read the biographies in detail

Reading tips

Begin with the annals to trace the main line of political change through the Five Dynasties, then read biographies according to interest.
Prepare a chronology of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms and consult it while reading to avoid confusion over personal relationships.
Pay attention to the conventions of judgment and the discussion-and-panegyric sections to appreciate Ouyang Xiu's praise-and-blame method; annotate as you go.
When time permits, read relevant chapters alongside the Old History of the Five Dynasties to compare differences in source selection and standpoint.

About the publisher

Qunyan Publishing House China · Founded in 1989

Founded in 1989, Qunyan Publishing House has long been committed to publishing academic and educational books for mid- and high-level readers, and has built up a certain presence in Eastern philosophy, classical literature, and classic works. Representative titles available in the database include Records of the Grand Historian, Dream of the Red Chamber, Selections of Refined Literature, Complete Song Ci, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, Record of Daily Knowledge, Taiping Huimin Hejiju Fang, and The Collected Works of Wang Yangming, covering common categories such as ancient poetry, medicine, and examinations. Its author resources include Sima Qian, Cao Xueqin, Xiao Tong, Li Shan, Pu Songling, and Gu Yanwu. The press also offers distinctive series such as the Biographical Series of the China Democratic League and the Historical Documents Series of the China Democratic League, and publishes research on historical documents, biographies, memoirs, and textbooks and academic works by League members. Public information is limited, and its overall publishing scale and complete catalogue require further verification.

版权信息
梁太祖本纪
梁末帝本纪
唐庄宗本纪
唐明宗本纪
唐愍帝本纪
唐废帝本纪
晋高祖本纪
晋出帝本纪
汉高祖本纪
汉隐帝本纪
周太祖本纪
周世宗本纪
梁家人传
唐家人传
晋家人传
汉家人传
周家人传
梁臣传
唐臣传
晋臣传
汉臣传
周臣传
死节传
死事传
一行传
唐六臣传
义儿传
伶官传
宦者传
杂传
司天考
职方考
十国世家
四夷附录
附：五代史记序

FAQ

What is the difference between the New History of the Five Dynasties and the Old History of the Five Dynasties?

The Old History of the Five Dynasties was officially commissioned in the Northern Song and completed earlier, preserving a richer body of historical material; the New History of the Five Dynasties was privately compiled by Ouyang Xiu, with concise prose modeled on the Spring and Autumn Annals and a stronger tone of praise and blame. Both belong to the Twenty-Four Histories and are best read as complementary; neither should be judged simply as superior or inferior.

Can I read this book without a foundation in classical Chinese?

The original text of the New History of the Five Dynasties is in classical Chinese, though its narrative is relatively concise. Readers without such a foundation can use an annotated or vernacular edition, first gaining a basic outline of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms and then gradually approaching the original; the difficulty will drop noticeably.

What background knowledge should I acquire before reading?

It is advisable first to grasp the basic timeline from late Tang regional military governors to the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and to know the rough succession of the Later Liang, Later Tang, Later Jin, Later Han, and Later Zhou, as well as major events such as the Khitan southward campaigns. With this background, the relationships among figures and the causes and effects of events in the book will be easier to understand.

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About the author

Ouyang Xiu Author · Chinese · 1007–1072

Ouyang Xiu (1007–1072), courtesy name Yongshu, styled Zuiweng and later Liuyi Jushi, was a native of Yongfeng in Jizhou (present-day Ji'an, Jiangxi). A statesman, man of letters and historian of the Northern Song dynasty, he was one of the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song and a leader of the Northern Song movement to reform poetry and prose. He held that writing should illuminate the Way and serve practical ends, and his plain, natural style deeply influenced later prose. In historiography he was chief editor of the New Book of Tang and sole author of the New History of the Five Dynasties. He rose to Vice Privy Councillor and Assistant Administrator and received the posthumous title Wenzhong. The collection holds 30 of his works, including complete collections, poetry and prose anthologies, the notebook Guitian Lu and historical writings.