The Art of War

The Art of War

By Sun Tzu, translated by Lionel Giles (1910). Barnes & Noble Classics edition with editorial commentary, introduction and notes by Dallas Galvin.

The day Sun Tzu executed the king's two favorites

The story is the founding myth of strategic thinking, and like most founding myths, it has the grain of cruelty that makes it stick.

Sun Tzu, then a wandering military adviser in the state of Wu, had written down his thirteen chapters and sent them to King Ho Lu. The king read them, was intrigued, and summoned the author. He wanted a demonstration. Could Sun Tzu, the king asked, drill any group of people into a disciplined army? Sun Tzu said yes. The king, with the sly humor of a sovereign who has already decided how to make a point, offered him the women of his own harem. One hundred and eighty concubines. Sun Tzu accepted.

He divided them into two companies. He put the king's two favorite consorts at the head, one in command of each. He explained the drill in plain language. Right hand, left hand, front, back. He asked if they understood. They said they did. He gave the order. The women laughed.

Sun Tzu said, calmly, that if the orders were not clear, the fault belonged to the general. He explained again. He asked again if they understood. They said yes. He gave the order. They laughed again.

This time he said something different. If the orders were clear and the troops still disobeyed, the fault belonged to the officers. He ordered the two favorites beheaded.

The king, watching from his pavilion, sent a frantic message. Spare them. He had seen enough. He believed Sun Tzu could command. Sun Tzu replied that a general in the field is not bound by every word from his sovereign. The favorites were executed. New officers were appointed. The drill resumed. The women now performed every movement in perfect silence, with absolute precision. Sun Tzu sent word to the king that the troops were ready for inspection. The king, sulking, refused to come down.