Whistling Arrows and Heavenly Horses: The Han-Xiongnu War

Scott Forbes Crawford discusses his book on the Han-Xiongnu War (133 BC–89 AD) — a two-century confrontation between sedentary China and steppe nomads that shaped Central Asia and opened the Silk Road. Crawford retraced campaign routes across Mongolia and the Gobi, and the conversation covers Han strategic adaptation, cavalry logistics, and the operational challenges of projecting power into the steppe. An under-covered conflict treated with proper military seriousness.