Chinese armour

Shang dynasty (c. 1600 BC–c. 1046 BC)

Helmet covered with ornate decorations from the Zhou dynasty tomb complex of King Wu of Zhou, circa 1020 BC.

During the Shang dynasty armour consisted of breastplates made of shell tied together. Later on bronze became popular and bronze helmets appeared. Initially, armour was exclusively for nobles; regular folks had no protection except for a leather covered bamboo shield.^[1]

Zhou dynasty (c. 1046 BC–256 BC)

Armour in the Zhou dynasty consisted of either a sleeveless coat of rhinoceros or buffalo hide, or leather scale armour. Helmets were largely similar to Shang predecessors but less ornate. Chariot horses were sometimes protected by tiger skins.^[2]

Warring States (c. 475 BC–221 BC)

Qin dynasty Terracotta Army soldier wearing lamellar armour

In the 4th century BC, rhinoceros armour was still used. In the following passage Guan Zhong advises Duke Huan of Qi to convert punishments to armour and weapons:

Ordain that serious crimes are to be redeemed with a suit of rhinoceros armour and one halberd, and minor crimes with a plaited leather shield and one halberd. Misdemeanours are to be punished with [a fine of] a quota of metal [jin fen 金分], and doubtful cases are to be pardoned. A case should be delayed for investigation for three [days] without allowing arguments or judgements; [by the time] the case is judged [the subject will have produced] one bundle of arrows. Good metal [mei jin 美金] should be cast into swords and halberd[-heads] and tested on dogs and horses, while poorer metal [e jin 惡金] should be cast into agricultural implements and tested on earth.^[3]

— Guan Zhong

Han dynasty (206 BC–220 AD)

Han lamellar armour

Han dynasty armour was largely the same as the Qin dynasty with minor variations. Infantry wore suits of rawhide, hardened leather, or iron lamellar armour and caps or iron helmets. Some riders wore armour and carried shields but substantial horse armour is not attested to until the late 2nd century.^[14]

During the late 2nd century BC, the government created a monopoly on the ironworks, which may have caused a decrease in quality of iron and armour. Bu Shi claimed that the resulting products were inferior because they were made to meet quotas rather than for practical use. These monopolies as debated in the Discourses on Salt and Iron were abolished by the beginning of the 1st century AD. In 150 AD, Cui Shi made similar complaints about the issue of quality control in government production due to corruption: "...not long thereafter the overseers stopped being attentive, and the wrong men have been promoted by Imperial decree. Greedy officers fight over the materials, and shifty craftsmen cheat them... Iron [i.e. steel] is quenched in vinegar, making it brittle and easy to... [?] The suits of armour are too small and do not fit properly."^[15]

Composite bows were considered effective against unarmoured enemies at 165 yards, and against armoured opponents at 65 yards.^[16]

Three Kingdoms (220–280)

Three Kingdoms and Jin shieldbearers

By the Three Kingdoms period many cavalrymen wore armour and some horses were equipped with their own armour as well. In one battle, the warlord Cao Cao boasted that with only ten sets of horse armour he had faced an enemy with three hundred sets.^[17] The horse armour may however have just been partial frontal barding.^[18]

Beginning in the 3rd century, references to "dark armour" (xuan kai or xuan jia 玄鎧/玄甲) appear. This is probably in reference to the association of high quality steel with black ferrous material.^[19]

Jin dynasty and the Sixteen Kingdoms (265–439)

Jin soldiers holding shields.

Cataphract-like horse armour appeared in northeastern China in the mid 4th century during the Eastern Jin dynasty, probably as a result of Xianbei influence. By the end of the 4th century murals depicting horse armour covering the entire body were found in tombs as far as Yunnan.^[20]

Sources mention the capture of thousands of "armored horses" in a single battle.^[17]

Northern and Southern dynasties (420–589)

During the Northern and Southern dynasties period (420-589), a style of armour called "cord and plaque" became popular, as did shields and long swords. "Cord and plaque" armour consisted of double breast plates in the front and back held in position by two shoulder straps and waist cords, in conjunction with the usual lamellar armour. "Cord and plaque" wearing figurines are also often depicted holding an oval or rectangular shield and a long sword.^[21] Types of armour had also apparently become distinct enough for there to be separate categories for light and heavy armour.^[22]

In the 6th century, Qimu Huaiwen introduced to Northern Qi the process of 'co-fusion' steelmaking, which used metals of different carbon contents to create steel. Apparently sabers made using this method were capable of penetrating 30 armour lamellae. It's not clear if the armour was of iron or leather.

Huaiwen made sabres [dao 刀] of 'overnight iron' [su tie 宿鐵]. His method was to anneal [shao 燒] powdered cast iron [sheng tie jing 生鐵精] with layers of soft [iron] blanks [ding 鋌, presumably thin plates]. After several days the result is steel [gang 剛]. Soft iron was used for the spine of the sabre, He washed it in the urine of the Five Sacrificial Animals and quench-hardened it in the fat of the Five Sacrificial Animals: [Such a sabre] could penetrate thirty armour lamellae [zha 札]. The 'overnight soft blanks' [Su rou ting 宿柔鋌] cast today [in the Sui period?] by the metallurgists of Xiangguo (襄國) represent a vestige of [Qiwu Huaiwen's] technique. The sabres which they make are still extremely sharp, but they cannot penetrate thirty lamellae.^[23]

The Northern Wei employed the "iron-clad" Erzhu tribe who fought as armoured cavalry.^[21]

Sui dynasty (581–618)

The Sui dynasty made prodigious use of heavy cavalry. Both men and horses were heavily armoured.^[24]

The History of Sui provides an account of the "first cavalry battalions" of the dynasty's 24 armies. They wore "bright-brilliant" (mingguang) armour made of decarburized steel connected by dark green cords, their horses wore iron armour with dark green tassels, and they were distinguished by lion banners. Other battalions were also distinguished by their own colors, patterns, and flags, but neither the bright-brilliant armour or iron armour are mentioned.^[25][26]

Tang dynasty (618–907)

A Tang dynasty sculpture depicting cord and plaque armour, a combination of lamellar and plate.

Tang soldier in cord and plaque armour

By the Tang dynasty it was possible for armour to provide immense personal protection. In one instance Li Shimin's cousin, Li Daoxuan, was able to cut his way through the entire enemy mass of Xia soldiers and then cut his way back again, repeating the operation several times before the battle was won, at which point he had so many arrows sticking out of his armour that he looked like a "porcupine."^[27] The effective range of a composite bow against armoured troops in this era was considered to be around 75 to 100 yards.^[28]

Infantry armour became more common in the Tang era and roughly 60 percent of active soldiers were equipped with armour of some kind.^[29] Armour could be manufactured natively or captured as a result of war. For instance 10,000 suits of iron armour were captured during the Goguryeo–Tang War.^[30] Armour and mounts, including pack animals, were supplied by the state through state funds, and thus considered state property. Private ownership of military equipment such as horse armour, long lances, and crossbows was prohibited. Possession was taken as intent of rebellion or treason.^[31] The army staff kept track of armour and weapons with detailed records of items issued. If a deficiency was discovered, the corresponding soldier was ordered to pay restitution.^[32] The state also provided clothing and rations for border garrisons and expeditionary armies. Soldiers not on active duty were expected to pay for themselves, although "professional" soldiers were given tax exemptions.^[33]

Li Shimin's elite cavalry forces were known to have worn distinctive black "iron clad" armour,^[34] but heavy cavalry declined as Turkic influence became more prevalent and light cavalry became the dominant mode of mounted warfare. Tang expeditionary forces to Central Asia preferred a mixture of light and heavy Chinese horse archers. After the An Lushan rebellion of the mid 9th century and losing the northwestern pastures to the Tibetans, Chinese cavalry almost disappeared altogether as a relevant military force.^[35] Many southern horses were considered too small or frail to carry an armoured soldier.^[36]

Mail was already known to the Chinese since they first encountered it in 384 AD when their allies in the nation of Kuchi arrived wearing "armor similar to chains". However they did not procure a suit of mail until 718 AD when Central Asians presented to the Tang emperor a coat of "link armour". Mail was never used in any significant numbers (typically belonging to high ranks and those who could afford it) and the dominant form of armour continued to be lamellar. ^[37]

Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907–960)

Tang soldier

Liao dynasty (907–1125)

Armoured Song cavalry

The Khitans of the Liao dynasty employed heavy armoured cavalry as the core of their army. In battle they arrayed light cavalry in the front and two layers of armoured cavalry in the back. Even foragers were armoured.^[45]

Song dynasty (960–1279)

During the Song dynasty (960–1279) it became fashionable to create warts on pieces of armour to imitate cold forged steel, a product typically produced by non-Han people in modern Qinghai. Warts created from cold work were actually spots of higher carbon in the original steel, thus aesthetic warts on non-cold forged steel served no purpose. According to Shen Kuo, armour constructed of cold forged steel was impenetrable to arrows shot at a distance of 50 paces. Even if the arrow happened to hit a drill hole, the arrowhead was the one which was ruined.^[46] However crossbows were still prized for their ability to penetrate heavy armour.^[47]

The History of Song notes that Song "tools of war were exceedingly effective, never before seen in recent times,"^[48] and "their weapons and armor were very good",^[48] but "their troops weren't always effective."^[48]

Western Xia (1038–1227)

Western Xia mail armour.

The Western Xia made modest use of heavy cavalry, of which it had 3,000 at its height.^[49]

Jurchen Jin dynasty (1115–1234)

Jurchen Jin cavalry in full armour

The Jurchens had a reputation for making high quality armour and weapons.^[49] Both metal and quilted armour were worn by Jurchens. The Jurchen army was organized into units of a thousand and a hundred. Every hundred was composed of two fifty men social and economic units called punian. Each punian was supposed to have 20 men equipped with armour and lances or halberds. These 20 men formed a standard two rank five deep battle formation while the others formed three ranks of archers.^[50]

In 1232 the Jurchens used cast iron bombs against the Mongols at the siege of Kaifeng. The History of Jin states that the fire created by the blast could penetrate even iron armour.^[51]

Yuan dynasty (1271–1368)

According to Meng Hong, the reason for the Mongols' success was that they possessed more iron than previous steppe peoples.^[52]

Both Chinese and European sources concur that Mongols wore substantial armour capable of stopping arrows. A Song source notes that one way to pierce heavily clad Mongol warriors was to use small arrows capable of entering the eye slits of their helmet.^[53] According to Thomas the Archdeacon, Mongol arrows were capable of penetrating all known types of armour at the time, but their own leather armour could withstand the arrows of their enemies. However he also mentions that the Mongols feared crossbows.^[54]

Ming dynasty (1368–1644)

A Ming warrior wearing mountain pattern armour.

Guan Yu in mountain pattern armour

Ming guards wearing scale/mail, lamellar, and mountain pattern armour.

During the Ming dynasty, most soldiers did not wear armour, which was reserved for officers and a small portion of the several hundred thousand strong army.^[55] Horse armour was only used for a small portion of cavalry, which was itself a minute portion of the Ming army.^[56]

Brigandine armour was introduced during the Ming era and consisted of riveted plates covered with fabric.^[56]

Partial plate armour in the form of a cuirass sewn together with fabric is mentioned in the Wubei Yaolue, 1638. It's not known how common plate armour was during the Ming dynasty, and no other source mentions it.^[57]

Although armour never lost all meaning during the Ming dynasty, it became less and less important as the power of firearms became apparent. It was already acknowledged by the early Ming artillery officer Jiao Yu that guns "were found to behave like flying dragons, able to penetrate layers of armor."^[58] Fully armoured soldiers could and were killed by guns. The Ming Marshall Cai was one such victim. An account from the enemy side states, "Our troops used fire tubes to shoot and fell him, and the great army quickly lifted him and carried him back to his fortifications."^[59] It's possible that Chinese armour had some success in blocking musket balls later on during the Ming dynasty. According to the Japanese, during the Battle of Jiksan, the Chinese wore armour and used shields that were at least partially bulletproof.^[60] Frederick Coyett later described Ming lamellar armour as providing complete protection from "small arms", although this is sometimes mistranslated as "rifle bullets".^[61] English literature in the early 19th century also mentions Chinese rattan shields that were "almost musket proof",^[62] however another English source in the late 19th century states that they did nothing to protect their users during an advance on a Muslim stronghold, in which they were all invariably shot to death.^[44]

Some were armed with bows and arrows hanging down their backs ; others had nothing save a shield on the left arm and a good sword in the right hand ; while many wielded with both hands a formidable battle-sword fixed to a stick half the length of a man. Everyone was protected over the upper part of the body with a coat of iron scales, fitting below one another like the slates of a roof; the arms and legs being left bare. This afforded complete protection from rifle bullets (mistranslation-should read "small arms") and yet left ample freedom to move, as those coats only reached down to the knees and were very flexible at all the joints. The archers formed Koxinga's best troops, and much depended on them, for even at a distance they contrived to handle their weapons with so great skill that they very nearly eclipsed the riflemen. The shield bearers were used instead of cavalry. Every tenth man of them is a leader, who takes charge of, and presses his men on, to force themselves into the ranks of the enemy. With bent heads and their bodies hidden behind the shields, they try to break through the opposing ranks with such fury and dauntless courage as if each one had still a spare body left at home. They continually press onwards, notwithstanding many are shot down ; not stopping to consider, but ever rushing forward like mad dogs, not even looking round to see whether they are followed by their comrades or not. Those with the sword-sticks—called soapknives by the Hollanders—render the same service as our lancers in preventing all breaking through of the enemy, and in this way establishing perfect order in the ranks ; but when the enemy has been thrown into disorder, the Sword-bearers follow this up with fearful massacre amongst the fugitives.^[61]

— Frederick Coyett

Rocket handlers often wore heavy armour for extra protection so that they could fire at close range.^[63]

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  Ming helmet, breastplate, and mask from the Wubei Yaolue
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  Ming arm guards, thigh armour, and back plate from the Wubei Yaolue
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  Ming breast and back plates
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  Ming breastplate
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  Ming helmet
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  Ming shieldbearer

Qing dynasty (1636–1912)

In the 17th century the Qing army was equipped with both lamellar and brigandine armour.^[64]

During the 18th century, the Qianlong Emperor said, "Our old Manchu customs respect righteousness and revere justice. Young and old, none are ashamed to fight for them. But after enjoying such a long period of peace, inevitably, people want to avoid putting on armor and joining the ranks of war."^[65]

By the 19th century most Qing armour were purely for show. They kept the outer studs of brigandine armour for aesthetic purposes but omitted the protective iron plates.^[66] According to one English source in the late 19th century, only the emperor's immediate body guard wore armour of any kind, and these guards were all nobles of the imperial family.^[67]