The Art of War (Chinese: 孫子兵法; pinyin: Sūnzĭ bīngfǎ) is an ancient Chinese military treatise attributed to Sun Tzu, a high-ranking military general, strategist and tactician. The text is composed of
13 chapters, each of which is devoted to one aspect of warfare. It is commonly known to be the definitive work on military strategy and tactics of its time. It has been the most famous and influential of China's Seven Military Classics, and "for the last
two thousand years it remained the most important military treatise in Asia, where even the common
people knew it by name." It has had an influence on Eastern and Western military thinking,
business tactics, legal strategy and beyond.
The book was first translated into the French language in 1772 by French Jesuit Jean Joseph
Marie Amiot and a partial translation into English was attempted by
British officer Everard Ferguson Calthrop in 1905. The first annotated English language translation was completed and published by Lionel Giles in 1910. Leaders as diverse as Mao Zedong, General Vo
Nguyen Giap, General Douglas MacArthur and leaders of Imperial Japan have drawn inspiration from the
work.
The Art of War has been applied to many fields well
outside of the military. Much of the text is about how to fight wars without actually having to do battle: it gives tips on how to outsmart
one's opponent so that physical battle is not necessary. As such, it has found application as a training guide for many competitive endeavors that do not involve actual combat.
There are business books applying its lessons to office
politics and corporate strategy. Many Japanese companies make the book required reading for their key executives. The book is also
popular among Western business management, who have turned to it for inspiration and advice on how to succeed in competitive business situations. It has also been applied to the field of
education.
The Art of War has been the subject of law books and legal articles on the trial process, including negotiation tactics and trial strategy.