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 A 1922 depiction of a Chinese door god wearing traditional Chinese armor and military officer garb. China has a long history of armour and weapons development. China has many variety of armour, but the most were of the lamellar and scaled varieties. Image File history File links Question_book-3. ...
Door god - Civil - Project Gutenberg eText 15250. ...
Door god - Civil - Project Gutenberg eText 15250. ...
Colorful Door Gods adorn a temple door in Taichung, Taiwan. ...
For other uses, see Armour (disambiguation). ...
A weapon is a tool used to kill or incapacitate a person or animal, or destroy a military target. ...
Japanese Samurai Odoshi Armor. ...
Dacian scale armour on Trajans column. ...
Ancient armour: Shang (商）- Han（汉）
Armour was exclusively for noblemen, the earliest armour used by the Shang dynasty (商) was made from turtles shells tied together with cords. Later bronze and leather was introduced, and simple one piece breastplate and lamellar cuirass begin to appear. Most of these were highly elaborate and decorated, and were often very heavy. The majority of noblemen fought mounted on war chariot, so weight of the armour wasn’t a major factor in its construction. Remnants of advanced, stratified societies dating back to the Shang period have been found in the Yellow River Valley. ...
Lamellar armour is a kind of personal armour consisting of small rectangular plates (lames) which are laced together in parallel rows. ...
For other uses, see Chariot (disambiguation). ...
After the defeat of the Shang, the Zhou (周) used many weapons and types of equipment that originally came from the Shang. However, the Zhou incorporated some of their own different or unique styles of armour. One type was the ge jia (革甲), a sleeveless coat of animal hide formed on a wooden dummy. The hide used was of buffalo and rhinoceros. Buffalo was more often used later on, because of the disappearance of the rhinoceros in the region. Another armour used by the Zhou was the wei jia, a boiled leather on a fabric backing. Red lacquer was often used to form a protective layer for most armour used by the Zhou. Zhou refers to Zhou Dynasty (1122 BC - 256 BC) or Zhou state Zhou Dynasty (690 AD - 705 AD) Zhou (political division) — Zhou is the name of a political/administrative division of China. ...
 A diagram of Chinese star-scale style armor. Chariots were used extensively during the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋). The chariots were mainly used as a shock weapon and a platform for archers; but the chariot was restricted to flat terrain and when used against well organized infantry, it was often defeated. Shang chariots were often drawn by two horses, the Zhou later introduced a four horse chariot. The crew of the chariot was made up of noblemen, all would have worn armour. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 783 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (947 × 725 pixel, file size: 163 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ...
Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 783 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (947 × 725 pixel, file size: 163 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ...
Zhou chariots were protected by leather, and sometimes came with a canopy to protect the crew from the weather, but this was probably removed before going into battle. Chariot horses were protected by a blanker made of animal skins -- most popular was tiger skin, and sometime would have worn lamellar peytral made of leather to protecte the horses' chest and neck. Chariot use declined during the Warring States Period (战国时期), probably because of the introduction of the crossbow and cavalry. A hoplite wearing a helmet, a breastplate and greaves (and nothing else). ...
Most of the Warring States maintained large armies, numbering anywhere from 30,000 to 100,000. With such a large number of men, it became prohibitive to give all of them armor. Armour was most common for elite soldiers. During the Warring States Era, most armour was made of leather or bronze, or a combination of both. The metal that was used most for military purposes was bronze. Wrought iron began to appear in the 5th century BC, but didn’t begin to replace bronze until the 2nd century BC. Alternative meaning: Warring States Period (Japan) The Warring States Period (traditional Chinese: 戰國時代, simplified Chinese: 战国时代 pinyin Zhànguó Shídài) takes place from sometime in the 5th century BC to the unification of China by Qin in 221 BC. It is nominally...
 A diagram of the Chinese mountain-scale armor type. Most infantrymen wore lamellar cuirass. The lamellar cuirass worn by these men was made of hundreds of small overlapped metal and/or leather plates laced together to make a flexible and light protection. Shoulder guards and helmets were often used, but leather caps seem to have been more common. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 336 × 598 pixelsFull resolution (434 × 773 pixel, file size: 93 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ...
Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 336 × 598 pixelsFull resolution (434 × 773 pixel, file size: 93 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ...
Armour for cavalry was rare during this time, most cavalry units served in the role of skirmisher, so armour wasn’t necessary. Heavy cavalry tended to have lighter armour than the infantry, usually constructed entirely of leather and without shoulder protection.
Most evidences for armour development during this period comes from the Terracotta Warriors of Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇). Some terracotta warriors wore no armour; it is suggested that these were skirmishers or support troops for the chariots, they are usually placed at the front of the formations. Of the terracotta warriors thus uncovered, Pit 1 shows approximately 61 percent of the soldiers wearing armour, Pit 2 over 90 percent, and pit 3, being in a command compound, 100 percent. Inside a building showing part of the re-assembled Terracotta Army standing in ranks in the pit. ...
The monarch known now as Qin Shi Huang (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chin Shih-huang) (259 BCE – September 10, 210 BCE),[1] personal name YÃng Zhèng, was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 247 BCE to 221 BCE (officially still under the Zhou Dynasty), and...
Traces of black paint on these figures suggest that Qin may have used black lacquered coat of plates and lamellar for their armour. Many different styles of armour was found, but examples of these armours from ancient China are rare. Qin Shi Huang ordered weapons, and probably armour too, to be destroyed by fire. This is likely the reason that so few examples of ancient armour exist today.
With the fall of Qin in 207BC came the rise of the Han dynasty in 202BC. By the time of the Han, the primary metal used was iron. Early Han soldiers would have used armour and weapons captured from the Qin. The Western Han army numbered possibly in the hundreds of thousands, so armours were standardized to meet the need. Armors used by the Han included coat of plates and the liang-tang, or "double-faced" armour, a lamellar cuirass made of leather, that was worn over the shoulders with cords. This armour was used by both the infantry and the cavalry. A much heavier and expensive version, consisting of iron plates laced together, was worn by officers. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, a new style of armour was adopted, a scale corselet made of leather. The Han Dynasty (Traditional Chinese characters: 漢朝, Simplified Chinese characters: 汉朝, pinyin Hàncháo 202 BC - AD 220) followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. ...
The Han Dynasty (Traditional Chinese characters: 漢朝, Simplified Chinese characters: 汉朝, pinyin Hàncháo 202 BC - AD 220) followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. ...
Shields were used by both infantry and cavalry. These shields were usually made of wood and often reinforced by a metal center and rim.
Armour for horses began to appear around the end of the Han dynasty, but the earliest armour yet found dates back to the year 302 AD. Full armour for cavalry appeared during the 4th century AD. During the Three Kingdoms Period (三国), fully armoured cavalry were extensively used for shock. Early horse armour came in one piece, but later armour came in multiple pieces: chanfron (head protector), neck, chest, and shoulder guards, flank pieces and crupper. Most cavalry served as mounted archers, and sometimes removed their arm protection to used their bows or crossbows.
Image File history File links Size of this preview: 432 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (700 × 972 pixel, file size: 121 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) +/- File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Forbidden City User...
Image File history File links Size of this preview: 432 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (700 × 972 pixel, file size: 121 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) +/- File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Forbidden City User...
The Qianlong Emperor (born Hongli, September 25, 1711 – February 7, 1799) was the fifth emperor of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China. ...
Auspicious Objects, 1723-35, by Lang Shining (郎世å®) The Qianlong Emperor Viewing Paintings, 1746-c. ...
Medieval armour The pinnacle of ancient Chinese armor development is perhaps the Shan Wen Kai or "Mountain Pattern Armor". It began to appear during the Tang Dynasty and was further perfected during the Ming dynasty. It is made from a multitude of small pieces of steel that are vaguely shaped like the Chinese character for the word shan (Mountain). This would thus explain its name. The pieces are then interlocked and riveted to a cloth or leather backing. It effectively covers the torso, the shoulders and the thighs while remaining comfortable and flexible enough to allow movement. For the band, see Tang Dynasty (band). ...
For other uses, see Ming. ...
Late Chinese Armour By the 19th century, most armour was worn mainly for ceremonial purposes and was an indicator of rank. The kind of armour that was largely used was the brigandine, a type of armour consisting of a leather or cloth garment lined with metal plates inside. Sometimes, the plates were made in different sizes and shapes to maximize protection. The Chinese brigandine comes in five pieces: the vest, pauldrons, skirting, underarm, and groin section. By contrast, the Korean version of this armour is a single piece. Brigandines were first seen in China and Korea in the 12th century AD and were used up to the 19th century. Armour use began to decline after the introduction of firearms, but shields continued to be used. Most Chinese soldiers of the times went without armour of any kind and mostly wore civilian clothing. A brigandine, a form of body armour, is a cloth garment, generally canvas, lined with small oblong steel plates riveted to the fabric. ...
A pauldron is a component of plate armour, which evolved from spaulders in the 15th Century. ...
(11th century - 12th century - 13th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 12th century was that century which lasted from 1101 to 1200. ...
Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...
A firearm is a kinetic energy weapon that fires either a single or multiple projectiles propelled at high velocity by the gases produced by action of the rapid confined burning of a propellant. ...
Addendum There are two common Chinese translation for the word armor. More may exist but Jia and Kai (in pinyin form) are the most encountered. If one looks at the traditional Chinese characters for both of these words, it may be observed that the character for the word metal appears in the one for Kai. The same cannot be said about the one for Jia thus implying that these armors are made from materials other than metals.
References - «Anceinet Chinese Armies: 1500-200BC» C.J. Peers, Illustrated by Angus McBridge, Osprey Publishing «Men-at-arms», ISBN 0-85045-942-7
- «Imperial Chinese Armies (1): 200BC-AD589» C.J. Peers, Illustrated by Michael Perry, Osprey Publishing «Men-at-arms», ISBN 1-85532-514-4
- «Imperial Chinese Armies (2): 590-1260AD» C.J. Peers, Illustrated by Michael Perry, Osprey Publishing «Men-at-arms», ISBN 1-85532-599-3
- «Midieval Chinese Armies: 1260-1520» C.J. Peers, Illustrated by David Sque, Osprey Publishing «Men-at-arms», ISBN 1-85532-254-4
- «Late Imperial Chinese Armies: 1520-1840» C.J. Peers, Illustrated by Christa Hook, Osprey Publishing «Men-at-arms», ISBN 1-85532-655-8
External links - some pictures of brigandines.
- Ancient Chinese armours pictures ordered by dynasties
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