Why did ancient Westerners wear armor when fighting, but China rarely had armor?

In ancient China and the West, both wore armor when fighting, but the differences between the two were obvious.

The Chinese pay attention to formations in battle. The combination of shields and spears has produced countless famous formations, just like Go. The formations are interspersed with cavalry and chariots. The mobility requirements are very obvious, and heavy armor is required. Not suitable for ancient Chinese combat style.

European battle formations pay less attention to the combat effectiveness of individual soldiers, so the infantry emphasizes armor, which can effectively avoid the loss of troops.

This characteristic has existed until modern times. Because China has a large population, a vast territory, and numerous terrains, it relies on strategy and formations to fight wars; Europe has a small population, is underground, has a single landscape, and has many plain battles, most of which rely on brute force.

Secondly, everyone in ancient China had armor. However, some soldiers emphasized armor, and most of them still wore leather armor. Cloth armor, which is light and easy to make, is often used in movies and TV dramas to improve the visual effect. Artistically, the armor is replaced by a robe, which looks more beautiful.

Extended information

The evolution of Chinese armor:

1. Armor of the Western Zhou Dynasty

Most of the "trained armor" worn by warriors of the Western Zhou Dynasty was made of silk The silk jacket is made of thick cotton and belongs to the category of cloth armor.

2. Armor of the Warring States Period

The armor of the Warring States Period was mostly made of cowhide. The general's armor was made of cowhide or bronze, and the helmets of soldiers were all made of cowhide. In the middle and late Spring and Autumn Period, Iron armor and metal armor appeared, and by the Warring States Period, metal armor began to be commonly used. The armor of Qin's "soldiers" is made of iron, Zhao's is made of copper or iron and metal, Wei, Chu, Western Zhou and Qi all use metal armor, but Korea and Yan are made of cowhide and rattan, and only a few Partly made of metal.

3. Armor of the Qin Dynasty

The general's armor has no armor pieces on the chest and back. It is painted with geometric colorful patterns and seems to be made of a kind of hard brocade. It may also be made of leather and then painted with patterns. The shape of the armor is that the hem of the front chest is sharp and the hem of the back is straight, with a wide border around it. It is also made of brocade or leather with geometric patterns.

The most common armor among the Qin terracotta warriors, the armor plates on the chest are made of upper pieces pressing down on the lower pieces, and the armor pieces on the abdomen are made of lower pieces pressing on the upper pieces to facilitate movement. Viewed from the midline of the chest and abdomen, all nail plates are stacked from the middle to both sides, and the combination of shoulder nails is the same as that of the abdomen.

The nails around the shoulders, abdomen and neck are connected with nail straps. There are nail nails on all the nails. The number may vary from two, three or four, and the maximum number does not exceed six. pieces. The length of the armor is equal from front to back. They are all 64 centimeters, and their hems are generally round in shape with no additional edges around them.

4. Armor of the Western Han Dynasty

During the Western Han Dynasty, iron armor became popular and gradually became the main equipment of the army. This kind of iron armor was called "Xuanjia" at that time. The military uniforms of the Western Dynasty were generally similar to those of the Qin Dynasty in many aspects. All soldiers in the army, regardless of superiority or inferiority, wore Zen clothes and trousers. The colors of military uniforms in the Han Dynasty were red, crimson, etc. The army of the Han Dynasty was generally equipped with "ring-headed iron swords".

5. Armor of the Wei and Jin Dynasties

Restored pictures of military uniforms during the Wei and Jin Dynasties. On the left is the iron sleeve armor, which is a kind of short-sleeved chest and back braided with fish scale armor. The shape of the sleeve armor is very similar to the iron armor of the Western Han Dynasty. It is worn over the head. This sleeve armor is hard. Incomparable.

The shape of the chest basically follows the Eastern Han Dynasty, with tassels standing high on the top of the chest. On the right side are military uniforms from the Wei and Jin Dynasties, mainly robes and pleated trousers. The robe is knee-length and has wide sleeves. The pleats are as short as the hips, and the sleeves are tight and small. The robe and pleats usually have a straight collar and a right gusset, but there are also round collars.

6. Armor of the Northern and Southern Dynasties

Restoration pictures of warriors of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The front row in the picture is two crotch armors, which are as long as the knees. Above the waist is a chest and back armor. Some are made of small pieces of armor, and some are made of a whole large piece of armor. There are two pieces of armor on the front and back, shoulders and two Side fastenings. The armor worn by the two people in the back row in the picture is Mingguang Armor, which is related to the round guards on the chest and back. Because most of these round guards are made of copper, iron and other metals, and the polished aurora looks like a mirror (heart mirror).

7. Armor of the Sui Dynasty

The most commonly used armors in the Sui Dynasty were the two-crotch armor and the Mingguang armor. The structure of the two crotch buttons is improved compared to the previous generation, and there are also some minor changes in shape. Generally, the body armor is made of small armor pieces in the shape of fish scales, and the length has been extended to the abdomen, replacing the original leather armor skirt.

The hem of the body armor is crescent-shaped and lotus-leaf shaped, used to protect the lower abdomen. These improvements greatly enhance defense below the waist. The shape of Mingguang's skirt is basically the same as that in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, except that the leg skirt has become longer and more gorgeous. The military uniform of the Sui Dynasty was a round collar robe.

8. Armor of the Tang Dynasty

The armor of the Tang Dynasty was mainly used for actual combat, mainly iron armor and leather armor. In addition to iron armor and leather armor, silk armor was also commonly used in Tang Dynasty armor. Silk armor is armor made of textiles such as silk. It has a relatively light structure and beautiful appearance, but has no defensive capabilities, so it cannot be used in actual combat and can only be used as a general's daily clothing or ceremonial attire.

The armor and military uniforms of the early Tang Dynasty basically followed the styles and shapes of the Sui Dynasty.

After Zhenguan, a series of reforms in the clothing system were carried out, gradually forming military clothing with the style of the Tang Dynasty.

In the Zhou Dynasty of Zhize Tianwu, the national power was at its peak and the world was at peace. The luxury trend of the upper class became increasingly serious. Most of the military uniforms and armors were separated from their functional functions and evolved into beautiful, luxurious and decorative items. Ceremonial clothing.

After the "An-Shi Rebellion", it returned to the practical state that was conducive to combat in the era of Jin Ge and Iron Horse. Armor, in particular, had formed a basically fixed form in the late Tang Dynasty. The armor of the Tang Dynasty, according to " "Liu Dian of the Tang Dynasty" records that there are thirteen types, including Mingguang, Guangyao, Xilin, Shanwen, Bird Hammer, White Cloth, Zaojuan, Cloth Back, Infantry, Leather Armor, Wooden Armor, Chains, and Vest.

Among them, Mingguang, Guangyao, Suozi, Shanwen, Bird Hammer, and Fine Scale Armor are iron armors, and the last three are named after the styles of armor plates. Leather armor, wood armor, white cloth, soap armor, and cloth back are named after the materials used to make them. Among armors, bright light armor is still the most commonly used.

Ninth and Five Dynasties Armor

The Five Dynasties period basically followed the system of the late Tang Dynasty. Mingguang armor has basically withdrawn from the stage of history. Armor was once again made entirely of armor pieces, and the shape became a two-piece suit. . The shawl and shoulder pads are connected into one piece; the breastplate and leggings are connected into another piece, which are connected front and back by two shoulder straps and put on the shawl and shoulder pads. The other five generations continued to use leather armor, made of large pieces of leather, and wore hoods and neck protectors.

10. Armor of the Song Dynasty

In terms of weight, the infantry armor (infantry armor) of the Song Dynasty was the heaviest armor in Chinese history. According to the "General Martial Arts", The Northern Song Dynasty infantry armor is made of iron armor leaves connected with leather strips or nails, which is a typical Zha armor.

The weight of European chain mail in the 12th century was only 15 kilograms, and the Gothic full-body armor in the 15th century was only 20 kilograms. Although the heaviest armor in the 17th century reached 42 kilograms, ordinary heavy-duty three-quarter armor was only in the range of 20-30 kilograms. Its protection range included the whole body. In terms of protection range, it was the closest to European heavy armor. Chinese armor, but it does not reach the airtight level of protection of European heavy armor.

In the Song Dynasty, according to the regulations of the fourth year of Shaoxing in the Song Dynasty (1134), the infant armor consisted of 1825 armor leaves, with a total weight of 29KG. At the same time, the protective power could be improved by increasing the number of armor leaves, but the weight would rise further. For this reason, the emperor personally issued an order stipulating that infantry armor should be limited to 29.8KG.

After that, the armor weight of spearmen was set at 32-35KG; because archers were often involved in close combat, their armor was set at 28-33KG; and the armor of crossbow shooters was set at 22-27KG. Legend has it that the gold-plated armor worn by Song Taizu weighed 60 kilograms. At the same time, the armor type of European infantry cavalry was mainly chain mail, which did not reach such a weight.

The ten years or so in Shaoxing was the period when the Song Dynasty’s army was most powerful. Famous generals such as Yue Fei and Han Shizhong led heavy infantry with iron armor, spears and crossbows as their main equipment, and repeatedly defeated the Jurchen Jin Dynasty cavalry with dense formations.

Including weapons, the heavy infantry load of the Song Army at that time was as high as 40-50KG. Due to overweight equipment, mobility was affected. For example, in the Battle of Egao in the 11th year of Shaoxing (1141), the infantry was the main force. The Song army was overloaded with heavy armor and oversized weapons, so it was unable to completely annihilate the Jin Dynasty cavalry.

11. Armor of the Yuan Dynasty

The armors of the Yuan Dynasty include willow leaf armor, iron ring armor, etc. The inner layer of iron ring armor is made of cowhide, and the outer layer is iron mesh armor. The armor pieces are connected like fish scales and cannot be penetrated by arrows. It is extremely exquisitely made. There are also leather armors, cloth armors, etc.

There is only one kind of national costume for Rongfu, which is Zhisunfu. The style is a tight-fitting narrow-sleeved robe. There are cross collar and square collar, long and short. The long one is below the knee and the short one is The ones are only knee-length.

There is also a kind of braided thread jacket that is exactly the same as the Zhisun suit, except that the hem is wide and densely folded, and a wide apron made of braided thread is sewn on the waist, and some even have buttons. , commonly known as "braided line jacket" or "waist line jacket". This kind of clothing is also the Mongolian military uniform of the Yuan Dynasty, and can be worn by military generals, palace guards, and warriors.

12. Armor of the Ming Dynasty

There was a kind of fat coat worn by soldiers in the Ming Dynasty. It was made: "knee-length, narrow sleeves, and made of cotton inside." The color was red, so Also known as "red fat jacket".

Knights usually wear double lapels to facilitate riding. Doudou used in combat are mostly made of copper and iron, rarely leather. The armor worn by generals is also made of copper and iron. The shape of the armor pieces is mostly a "mountain" pattern. It is precision made and light to wear. Soldiers wore chain mail below the waist, an iron mesh skirt and mesh trousers, and iron mesh boots.

13. Qing Dynasty Armor

General helmets in the Qing Dynasty, whether made of iron or leather, were all painted on the surface. There is a beam on the front, back, left and right of the helmet, and a piece of eyebrow covering protrudes from the middle of the forehead. There is a dancing bowl and a bowl on it. On the bowl, there is a helmet plate shaped like a wine cup. In the middle of the helmet plate, there is a stick for inserting tassels, carved feathers or otter tails. Iron or copper pipe.

A silk collar, neck protector and ear protector in azurite and other colors hang down from the back, embroidered with patterns and embellished with copper or iron nails. Armor is divided into armor clothes and apron. There are shoulder pads on the shoulders of the armor, and armpit protectors under the shoulder pads; a metal breast shield is worn on the chest and back, and a trapezoidal belly protector is worn at the seam of the front under the mirror, which is called "front guard" . The "left block" is worn on the left side of the waist, and the "left block" is worn on the right side, which is reserved for carrying a bow and quiver.

The apron is divided into two parts, left and right, and is tied around the waist with a belt when wearing it.

In the middle between the two aprons, there is a tiger head covering the knees made of the same material.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia - Armor