Chinese armor

China has a long history of armour and weapons development. China has many varieties of armour, but the most common were of the lamellar, coat of plates, brigandine and scaled varieties.

Initially, armour was exclusively for nobles. Later, bronze and leather armour was introduced, and simple one-piece breastplates, coat of plates and lamellar cuirasses began to appear. Most of these were highly elaborate and decorated, and were often very heavy. The majority of noblemen fought mounted on war chariots, so the weight of the armour was not a major factor in its construction.

After the fall of the Shang dynasty, the Zhou dynasty used many weapons and types of equipment that originally came from the Shang. However, the Zhou incorporated some of their own different styles of armour. One type was the gé jiǎ (), a sleeveless coat of animal hide formed on a wooden dummy. The hide used was of buffalo and rhinoceros. Because of the disappearance of the rhinoceros in the region, buffalo came to be most common material. Another type of armour used by the Zhou was the wei jia, made of boiled leather with a fabric backing. Red lacquer was often used to form a protective layer for most armour used by the Zhou.

Chariots were used extensively during the Spring and Autumn period. The chariots were mainly used as a shock weapon and a platform for archers. Since the chariot was restricted to flat terrain, charioteers could be defeated when battling well-organized infantry. Shang chariots were often drawn by two horses; later, the Zhou introduced a four-horse chariot. The crew of the chariot was made up of noblemen, so all would have worn armour.

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 blanket made of animal skins, with tiger skin being most popular, though sometimes horses wore lamellar peytral made of leather, which protected the horses' chests and necks. Chariot use declined during the Warring States period, probably because of the introduction of the crossbow and cavalry.

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