The ''Condor Trilogy'' (射鵰三部曲) is a series of three

wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted ...

novels written by

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

-based Chinese writer

Jin Yong Louis Cha Leung-yung (; 10 March 1924 – 30 October 2018), better known by his pen name Jin Yong (), pronounced "Gum Yoong" in Cantonese, was a Chinese wuxia ("martial arts and chivalry") novelist and essayist who co-founded the Hong Kong da ...

(Louis Cha). The series is amongst the most popular of Jin Yong's works. The novels in the trilogy are: * ''

The Legend of the Condor Heroes ''The Legend of the Condor Heroes'' is a wuxia novel by Chinese writer Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It is the first part of the '' Condor Trilogy'' and is followed by '' The Return of the Condor Heroes'' and '' The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber''. I ...

'' (射鵰英雄傳), published in 1957. * '' The Return of the Condor Heroes'' (神鵰俠侶), published in 1959. * '' The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber'' (倚天屠龍記), published in 1961. An English translation into 12 books is to be published by

MacLehose Press Quercus is a formerly independent publishing house, based in London, that was acquired by Hodder & Stoughton in 2014. It was founded in 2004 by Mark Smith and Wayne Davies. Quercus is known for its lists in crime (publishing such authors as Ell ...

beginning in February 2018.

Historical background

The first novel, ''The Legend of the Condor Heroes'', is set against a backdrop of a series of wars fought between the

Han Chinese The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive v ...

-dominated

Southern Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the res ...

and the

Jurchen Jurchen may refer to: * Jurchen people, Tungusic people who inhabited the region of Manchuria until the 17th century ** Haixi Jurchens, a grouping of the Jurchens as identified by the Chinese of the Ming Dynasty ** Jianzhou Jurchens, a grouping of ...

-led Jin dynasty. Concurrently,

Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...

tribes led by Temüjin (Genghis Khan) emerge as a rising power in the north. The second novel, ''The Return of the Condor Heroes'', is set in the period when the Mongols attack the Southern Song dynasty after having conquered the Jin dynasty. The historical

Battle of Xiangyang The Battle of Xiangyang () was a protracted series of battles between the Yuan dynasty and the Southern Song dynasty from 1267 to 1273. The battle was a significant victory for the Yuan dynasty and ended a 30-year defensive campaign waged by th ...

is also featured as one of the key events in the novel. The third and last novel, ''The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber'', is set in the late

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...

(founded by the Mongols). Towards the end of the novel, the Yuan dynasty is overthrown by rebel forces and the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

is established.

Plot

Book of Wumu

The '' Book of Wumu'' is a fictional military treatise written by the Song general

Yue Fei Yue Fei ( zh, t=岳飛; March 24, 1103 – January 28, 1142), courtesy name Pengju (), was a Chinese military general who lived during the Southern Song dynasty and a national hero of China, known for leading Southern Song forces in the wa ...

. The book is highly sought after by the Jurchens of the Jin dynasty. Guo Jing uses the knowledge he acquired from the book to defend the Song dynasty. Before his death, he hid the book in the blade of the Dragon Slaying Saber. Nearly a century after the

, the book comes into Zhang Wuji's possession. Zhang uses one of the strategies in the book to defeat Yuan forces at the siege of

Mount Song Mount Song (, "lofty mountain") is an isolated mountain range in north central China's Henan Province, along the southern bank of the Yellow River. It is known in literary and folk tradition as the central mountain of the Five Great Mountains o ...

. He passes the book to

Xu Da Xu Da (1332–1385), courtesy name Tiande, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived in the late Yuan dynasty and early Ming dynasty. He was a friend of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder and first ruler of the Ming dynasty, and assist ...

, who studies it and becomes a brilliant military leader. Xu Da leads rebel forces to overthrow the Yuan dynasty and becomes one of the founding pioneers of the Ming dynasty.

References

{{Condor Trilogy Literary trilogies MacLehose Press books