Great Han Empire

Chapter 404 Didn't the Han Dynasty have saddles and stirrups?
Related Works Didn’t the Han Dynasty have saddles and stirrups?
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The Han Dynasty was the first golden period in ancient Chinese history. It preliminarily established the roughly 2000-year territory of the later generations of China. The region and even as far as Central and Western Asia have had a huge impact, making China a stable and powerful empire on the stage of first-level competition in world history for the first time.One of the reasons why the Han Dynasty was able to achieve such brilliant achievements lies in its strong military power. The most important source of this power is its ability to recruit cavalry troops that are good at fighting.As for the very important harness for cavalry, the most critical saddle and stirrups existed in the Han Dynasty, especially the Western Han Dynasty.

Regarding this issue, since there has been no archaeological evidence of saddles and stirrups in the Western Han Dynasty and the evidence of sculptures and paintings for a long time, the traditional view is this way: "In the Western Han Dynasty, saddles and stirrups did not yet appear. The combat effectiveness of the cavalry was greatly affected." ⑴, "... (Western Han) but the stirrup did not appear, which greatly affected the combat effectiveness of the cavalry." ⑵ It should be emphasized that the "saddle" mentioned here and in this article does not refer In its broad sense, it refers to all objects used to separate the human body and the horse's back, but in its narrow sense, that is, the "Takahashi saddle" with both ends upturned.So is this really the case?Here is a brief discussion on this.

The saddle and stirrup are the most important inventions of the complete set of harness after the bit and the bridle.In the era without saddle stirrups, people needed to ride on the back of a naked horse, only by holding the reins or mane and clamping the belly of the horse with their legs to prevent themselves from falling when the horse was galloping.But this method is very unreliable. First of all, long-term riding is easy to fatigue, and it is also difficult to use bows and arrows effectively on the back of a running horse. In close combat, the rider cannot use swords and spears as he likes, chop or A failed assassination, the impact of the blades on both sides, etc., will cause the rider to slip off the horse at any time.Therefore, in this period, in addition to being superior in speed, the combat effectiveness of the cavalry was far inferior to that of the down-to-earth infantry. Therefore, after the cavalry arrived at the destination, they often dismounted and entered the battlefield as infantry. This was the case with the Macedonian cavalry in the Alexander era.

The first innovation (this is only a general view, but the actual order of its invention is not necessarily the case) was the appearance of the high bridge saddle, which changed the ends of the saddle from flat to high, limiting the tendency of the rider's body to slide back and forth, providing vertical stability.The second is the use of stirrups, which provide lateral stability by fixing the feet, and at the same time, with the assistance of the saddle, the man and the horse are integrated, making it possible for the cavalry to use the speed of the horse for a frontal impact.Western scholars commented on the new equipment carried by the Huns who entered Europe: "The saddle is the key to the complete integration of people and horses. The unique saddle of the Huns aroused the surprise of the Romans. Their saddles were not wrapped like the Romans. Made of leather that fits the belly of a horse, the Hun's saddle is special in that it has a wooden bracket that is high at both ends. In this way, no matter how the horse runs, the knight can sit firmly on the horse's back.  … On the contrary , the clumsy riding skills of the Romans caused many riders to lose their balance in battle and fall off the horse. This is usually dangerous and sometimes even fatal.... In addition to the saddle, the Huns also brought from Asia A revolutionary innovation at the time: the stirrup, which no European had ever seen. To keep the legs from getting tired after long rides, bandages, straps, or leg straps made of a type of flax were tied to the saddle. In this way, the feet have a place to step on.... Although this kind of stirrup was not perfect at that time, it gave the riders a sense of security, and at the same time allowed them to stand up on the horse and turn around in all directions. Thanks to the wooden Saddles and stirrups, the Huns riders can shoot arrows in every direction while riding." (8) The introduction of saddles and stirrups is a major event in Europe, and it is it that makes cavalry replace infantry as the main force of medieval warfare, "Once Stirrups became a common thing for the Franks in the [-]th century. Horses could not only be used to quickly concentrate strength, but also be used for combat. Speed ​​can be transformed into assault." ⑷ "The stirrups enabled feudal knights who wore heavy armor in the Middle Ages. "⑸ From this we can see its importance.

Since saddles and stirrups are based on the premise that cavalry is the main combat method, some clues can be roughly found from the use of cavalry in ancient China.It can be considered that saddles and stirrups have not yet been produced in China until the Qin Dynasty at the latest.This judgment is made not only because the terracotta warriors and horses in the Mausoleum of the First Emperor have detailed harnesses, but only Gaoqiao saddles and stirrups (Figure 1), but also because the number of cavalry is relatively small in the layout of the terracotta warriors and horses, and They were arranged in the side corners away from the main formation, which shows that before the Qin Dynasty, the role of cavalry was only for reconnaissance, outflanking, harassment, interception, sneak attack and pursuit, and could not become the main force of combat, let alone undertake the entire battle independently.

What can provide evidence for this is Sun Bin’s narration of cavalry combat: “Using cavalry has ten benefits: one is to meet the enemy from the beginning to the end; Cover its food and cut off its military routes; sixth, defeat its Guanjin and open its bridges; seventh, cover its unpreparedness and attack it without stimulating its brigade; eighth, attack its slackness and catch it by surprise; In the city; on ten days, they plundered their fields and tied down their children. These ten are the benefits of cavalry warfare.” ([-]) It can be seen that the cavalry in this period were only performing auxiliary tasks, and it was unlikely to have saddles and stirrups.

So what about the combat situation of the cavalry in the Han Dynasty in historical records?
During the reign of Emperor Wen, "In the winter of 14th, the Xiongnu conspired to enter the frontier as bandits, attacked Nassau, and killed the capital of the North. Shangnai sent three generals to Longxi, Beidi, and Shangjun. The lieutenant Zhou She was the general of the guard, and the doctor ordered Zhang Wu As a chariot and cavalry general, he marched in Weibei, with thousands of chariots and [-] cavalry....So Zhang Xiangru, Marquis of Dongyang, was the general, Marquis Chi of Wei was the envoy, and Luan Bu was the general, to attack the Xiongnu. The Xiongnu fled.” ([-]) Yes It can be seen that at this time, the scale and proportion of the cavalry of the Han army in a single battle increased significantly, and they no longer only played a supporting role.

Since Emperor Wudi, the status of cavalry has further risen: "Next year, in the spring of the fifth year of Yuanshuo, the chariot and cavalry general Wei Qing of the Han Dynasty will ride 7 horses out of the high tower." The Han soldiers went out six or seven hundred li, and surrounded the Youxian King at night.”⑼“In the spring of next year, the Han Dynasty repatriated the general Wei Qing and six generals, with more than 3 cavalry, and went out of Dingxiang for several hundred li to attack the Xiongnu.”⑽“ In the spring of the next year, the Han sent General Hussars Qubing to send Wanqi out of Longxi, crossed Yanzhi Mountain for more than a thousand li, and attacked the Xiongnu. , General Hushi and Heqi Hou rode tens of thousands of horses out of Longxi and North for more than 3 li, attacked the Xiongnu, crossed Tuyan, and attacked Qilian Mountains. "⑾" In the spring of the fourth year of hunting in Yuanshou, General Qing and General Hussars were ordered to send out 14 cavalry each when they were sick. , Locusts. Send Junji Zhao Ponu [-] riders out of Shuofang to attack the Xiongnu, and will not return." ⒀ "In the fifth month of Xia, the general of the second division rode [-] riders out of Jiuquan, fought with Youxian King and Tianshan, and beheaded more than [-] captives. "⒁" In the first month of spring in the fourth year, the princes and kings were in Ganquan Palace. The seven divisions in the world were exiled and the brave men were dispatched. General Li Guangli of the Second Division sent [-] cavalry and [-] infantry out of Shuofang. [-] people left Yanmen, guerrilla general Han said [-] infantry went out of Wuyuan, and more than [-] infantrymen of the strong crossbow captain Lu Bode joined the Ershi." ⒂ "Winter, Liaodong Wuhuan rebelled, with Zhonglang general Fan Mingyou as the leader General Du Liao attacked the seven counties in the north with two thousand cavalry.” ([-]) In these battles, two trends can be seen.First, the cavalry accounted for an ever-increasing share of the total force. As chariots gradually withdrew from the battlefield, the ratio of cavalry and infantry increased from [-] to hundreds of thousands to [-] to [-]. It has obviously replaced the infantry and become the main force of the battle. On the contrary, the infantry has been reduced to the status of the "heel army", that is, following behind to assist in the battle. It is not uncommon for the cavalry to participate in battles independently.The second is that a battle often involves long-distance driving for hundreds of miles or even one or two thousand miles for battles. The fatigue problem caused by long-term riding becomes more and more prominent. Victory is impossible.Such a campaign is almost unimaginable without saddle stirrups.

On the other hand, from the perspective of specific combat methods, as early as the Chu-Han War, "the Han army was heavily surrounded, and King Xiang called his cavalry and said: "I am the public and take the other general." There are three places in Shandong. So King Xiang shouted down, and the Han army was invincible, so he beheaded a general of the Han....Instead of riding in three places, the Han army did not know where King Xiang was, so they divided the army into three and encircled them. Wang Naichi, killed a captain of the Han Dynasty again, killed dozens of people, gathered his cavalry and killed two of his cavalry ears, and said that the cavalry said: "How is it?" This kind of fighting method of conflict in the enemy's formation shows that the rider already has considerable stability on the horse, otherwise it is very easy to fall.

During the Western Han Dynasty, the bow and arrow were the most important combat weapons of the Xiongnu and Han cavalry, and its use was severely restricted by the harness.When there is no saddle, it is extremely difficult to shoot an arrow on a galloping horse, because the rider has to hold the horse's belly with his legs and keep his balance, and at the same time, he has to pull the bow with both arms and try to make the arrow hit the target as much as possible. For nomads on horseback, this method of combat is also very inefficient and difficult to implement. At this time, the best way is to stop the horse and shoot arrows or simply dismount and launch; when the Takahashi saddle is put into use, it gives the rider a longitudinal arrow. The stabilizing effect of the arrow makes it possible to shoot arrows forward while galloping, but because there is no effective support in the horizontal direction, it is still easy to fall when shooting arrows in the left and right directions or even when turning around, which is very dangerous, as can be seen from the evaluation of Western scholars quoted earlier. out of this.However, there is such a record in historical materials: "The Hun pursuers chased them with hundreds of cavalry, traveled widely to get Hu'er bows, and shot and killed the chasing cavalry, so as to escape." Saddles and stirrups should be available at the time.Moreover, in the historical materials of the Han Dynasty, except for a few people who deliberately expressed contempt for the Han army, there has never been a record of the Xiongnu dismounting to fight. If there is no application of saddle stirrups, this is a very strange phenomenon.

The use of ancient bows and arrows is also affected by the weather. If the bowstring is wet by rain, its effect will be greatly reduced, and if it encounters severe cold weather, its power will also be severely reduced.The people of the Song Dynasty once recorded: "Khitan sent Yeluxunning to Yuezhe, and rode tens of thousands of horses into Kouyingzhou. They all deployed Liu Tingrang and fought in the gentleman's hall. It will be very cold. Our teacher can't shoot bows and arrows, and the enemy is besieged. ”⒆In the famous siege of Baideng, “therefore, the Han learned soldiers, many infantry, 32, and chased them north. Emperor Gao went to Pingcheng first, but the infantry was not exhausted, so Maodun surrounded Gaodi with 40 elite soldiers in Baideng ” (21) In such a cold environment, the bows and arrows of the Huns and the Han army could hardly be returned to Pingcheng. It will maintain its power, and once the two sides meet, fierce hand-to-hand combat will break out.In hand-to-hand combat, cavalry without saddles and stirrups cannot catch up with infantry in combat effectiveness. If the Huns dismounted to meet them, they would not be opponents of the Han army, which has always been good at foot combat. It is difficult to prevent the Han army from breaking through. The easy seven-day siege becomes inexplicable.What's more, although the Huns' strength in this battle was 40 according to the "Historical Records", it is likely to be an imaginary number, because it was originally mentioned in the "Historical Records" that there were "more than 22 people who controlled the strings" in the Huns during the Maodun period. (40), deducting the troops left behind on the grasslands, how come there are so many troops?Besides, even if the number of "23" is accurate, since the number of nomads participating in the expedition often includes a large number of non-combatants such as women, the elderly, and children, their real combat strength is far from that many. The aforementioned quality disadvantages in close combat made it even more difficult to cope with the breakthrough of the Han army.That being the case, why did Liu Bang, who is not afraid of soldiers and horses, dare not break through?There can only be one explanation for this, that is, the Huns cavalry at that time were already equipped with saddles and stirrups, which had a strong melee advantage and impact on infantry, and taking risks to break through would only lead to the annihilation of the entire army.There is also an interesting phenomenon, that is, the term "sudden cavalry" appeared in the historical materials of the Han Dynasty: "If the Fu plain changes places, and the light carts suddenly ride, the Huns will easily mess up" (24) "Meeting Shanggu Taishou Geng Kuang and Yuyang prefect Peng Chong each sent their generals Wu Han, Kou Xun and other generals to attack Wang Lang" (25) Dismounted and awarded Guangwu, Guangwu stroked his shoulders and went up, Gu Xiao called Geng Yan and said: "It's almost a barbarian." (26) Regarding the meaning of the word "tuqi" in "Hanshu", Yan Shigu commented as follows: "Tuqi, he said that his sharpness can be used to conflict with the enemy." (27) Yan Shigu was from the Tang Dynasty, and his annotations may not represent the true meaning of "Tuqi" in the Han Dynasty, so what is its role in the historical records of the Han Dynasty? Woolen cloth? "Guangwu attacked a group of thieves in the north, and the (Wu) Han often used 28 Tuqi as the army front, and they were the first to capture Chen." ([-]) "Liu Yong recruited more than [-] people from Zhou Jianbie to save Guangle The Han general Qingqi was facing the battle, but it was unfavorable. He fell off his horse and injured his knees, and returned to the battalion. Jian and others entered the city." ([-]) It can be seen that at least in the early Eastern Han Dynasty, the cavalry was able to stand in the front row and charge forward. The task of "falling into the formation" has been established, and the combat method of using the impact of cavalry to smash through the enemy's formation, and the infantry following up to determine the outcome has been established.If it is said that in the close combat with the Huns, cavalry was only used against cavalry, and the two sides were in the same situation, and the requirements for the stability of the cavalry were not necessarily high, then what we had to face here was the enemy with infantry as the main force. If you want to attack the battle head-on, you can only do it if you equip both saddle and stirrups.

Although there is so much documentary evidence proving the existence of saddle stirrups in the Han Dynasty, it is an indisputable fact that there is a lack of archaeological evidence.The earliest cultural relics found in China showing Takahashi’s saddle are works from the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, such as the riding figurines unearthed from the Leitai Han Tomb (Figure 2) and the painted wood carvings of pommel horses; and the earliest sculptures with stirrups are from the tomb of the second year of Yongning in the Western Jin Dynasty in Changsha The equestrian figurines (Fig. 3), because those with stirrups in this batch of figurines only have a triangular stirrup under the saddle on the left side of the horse, which is only half the height of the calf, but not on the right side, and the rider's feet are also It has not been stepped on in it, so it is considered to be the prototype of the stirrup, that is, a utensil for riding a horse; as for the earliest real double stirrup, it is a gilt-copper-wrapped wooden stirrup from the tomb of Feng Sufu, Northern Yan in the 4th period of Beipiao, Liaoning (Fig. [-]).But so far, for the Takahashi saddles and stirrups of the Western Han Dynasty and the early Eastern Han Dynasty, no real objects and works of art that can prove their existence have been found.

Not found does not mean none.Since their existence can be inferred from the history books, we should think about it from the perspective of "why these things didn't appear".

It is certain that saddle stirrups originated in East Asia, but did their invention come from the Han region of the Central Plains?From the point of view that demand leads to invention, it is hard to imagine that an agricultural people who live on crops would have a more urgent need for this than a nomad who rides on horseback all the year round.Therefore, it can be inferred that the honor of being the first to invent the saddle stirrup should belong to the Huns and other northern peoples.In this way, the direction of finding why the physical evidence does not exist should turn to the Xiongnu.

As mentioned earlier, the Huns who invaded Europe in the 4th century AD used wooden saddles, and the primitive stirrups they used were nothing more than bandages, belts or leg bands woven from a kind of flax.Since most of the areas where they lived or passed through on the way to the west are savannahs and deserts, lacking trees, this will inevitably limit the number of high bridge saddles made and only be used by nobles and combat soldiers; In the case of wood used to make saddles and bows, it is unlikely to be improved to make wooden stirrups, so that the metal mainly used to make weapons is even more scarce, and it is even more impossible to make stirrups from it.Therefore, the soft original stirrups in the 4th century should not be much different from the Xiongnu stirrups in the Han Dynasty.On the other hand, the double stirrups in Feng Sufu's tomb are already well-formed, so they are naturally not the ancestors of the stirrups of later generations.Then before this, it must have gone through a rather long period of primitive state.Because the "bandage"-shaped soft stirrups of the Xiongnu in Western records have the function of fixing the feet of the later generations, it is more likely to be a real stirrup than the single stirrup of the Western Jin tomb in Changsha. However, the stirrups used for getting on horses only provided an improved example for the real stirrups. Because the double stirrups also have the function of helping to get on the horse, the single stirrups were replaced after it was improved.Speaking of which, it is clear at a glance that the original pure wooden saddle and the stirrup made of leather and hemp fiber (or just a kind of "bandage"), and even the later use of wooden stirrups without metal skin, are all It is extremely perishable and difficult to preserve to this day. Even if it can be preserved, it is even more difficult to accurately judge the use of those items that only look like a piece of linen or a belt.This is why no saddles, especially stirrups, have been found in the Han Dynasty.

In addition to these, there are also some foreign archaeological discoveries and domestic controversial works of art.For example, in the excavation of the cemetery of the Huns in Mongolia at the beginning of the last century, "particularly noteworthy are the funerary objects in a tomb chamber in the Nuoyin Ula Mountains. This tomb was accidentally discovered by a Mongolian gold mining engineer in 1912. Excavations....Fortunately, a Chinese lacquer cup was found with two inscriptions on it, so the age of tomb No. 1924 can be determined: around the beginning of the first century AD. In fact, this is the tomb of Hun Shanyu Wuzhuliu ...The main means of transport are saddled horses. The bridle, bit and saddle are similar to those in the Altai region of the Scythian era. The saddle usually consists of two leather pads stuffed with wool, although a few saddles have A wooden frame with saddle heads and stirrups at the front and back. The saddle with stirrups symbolizes a great progress." (29) Wuzhuliu Danyu died in the early Eastern Han Dynasty. If it can be proved that this is really Wuzhuliu's tomb , undoubtedly added a powerful evidence to the existence of the saddle stirrup in the Han Dynasty.In addition, it is said that there is a Guishuang (1st-5th century AD) copper pot in the British Museum. There are two equestrian knights holding spears in relief patterns on the wall of the pot, and there are rope-like stirrups on the horses. (30) On the top of the ancient Dian Culture bronze war scene shell storage vessel found in Shizhai Mountain, Yunnan Province, there is also a gilt statue of a rider without a saddle, with the big toes of both feet covered by rope loops hanging in front of the saddle Among them, it plays the role of a stirrup (Fig. 5). Although its shape determines that it can only be used by bare-footed peoples, its existence at least shows that the early shape of the stirrup should be similar to this, rather than being developed from a horse-mounted utensil. It also shows that the invention of the Takahashi saddle does not necessarily predate the stirrup.Among the stone sculptures in front of Huo Qubing's tomb in the Western Han Dynasty, there is a recumbent stone ox with a saddle stirrup engraved on its back. The stirrup riding on it was engraved by later generations.However, the literature and art works that reflect the saddles of the Western Han Dynasty and the stirrups of the Two Han Dynasties have not been found.It is an objective reality that saddles and stirrups are not easy to preserve, but why are there no shadows of them in sculptures, paintings and other works of art in the Han Dynasty?This question is rather puzzling, but at least one explanation can preliminarily explain the reason, and that is the aesthetic reason.In the historical tradition, it may often take a long time for a new object to be aesthetically accepted by people—especially art craftsmen—after it is put into use, and many works made before that still retain its appearance. The previous appearance, that is, the "inertia" in artistic creation.If you look carefully, there are also works showing riders and horses without saddles or stirrups in China after the Jin Dynasty.For example, the lance-wielding cavalry in Figure 6 and the armored knight in Figure 7 have no traces of saddle stirrups, while the combat methods using long lances and the emergence of heavy armored cavalry that aggravate the instability of riders are all based on the use of saddle stirrups. based on.Another example is that in the Tang Dynasty, the use of stirrups was very common. The stirrups on the "Six Horses of Zhaoling" clearly illustrate this point (Figure 8). It’s okay to say that the common people lack financial resources (in fact, a pair of stirrups is not necessarily an expensive thing), but here is a majestic royal family traveling in costumes, and the distance they travel will not be very short, otherwise the scale is so huge It is meaningless to hold many banners, so why do all the people suffer with their feet hanging there?This can only show that the person who drew this picture ignored the existence of the stirrups. Maybe he felt unsightly, or there were other reasons, but he did not paint them after all.

It is also worth noting that not only in China, but also in Western art works after the Middle Ages, there is a tendency to ignore saddles and stirrups. For example, Attila the Hun in Figure 10 has neither saddle nor stirrup.It is well known that it was the triangular arrows, tall bridge saddles and primitive stirrups of the Huns that defeated the large shields, lances and short swords of the Romans.If such "negligence" is not intentional, it is difficult to justify it.This kind of "inertia" unique to Eastern and Western artistic creation has played a considerable role in hindering and delaying the saddle stirrup's entry into artistic works.

Through the observation of the above documents and archaeological relics, it can be seen that although there are no physical objects or works of art to prove their existence, the two important inventions of the Takahashi saddle and stirrup for cavalry were invented in the Han Dynasty. Times should still be applied.It was they that made the Xiongnu the overlord of the grasslands, and it was they that promoted the political and military expansion of the Han Empire, laying the groundwork for spreading the political and cultural influence of the first stable empire in Chinese history to North and Central Asia. base.It is believed that with the further development of archeology in the Han Dynasty, the saddles and stirrups of the Han Dynasty will finally unveil their hazy veil.

⑴ "The Complete History of China in Hundred Volumes_Military History of the Qin and Han Dynasties of China", edited by Shi Zhongwen and Hu Xiaolin, edited by Yan Wuxun, People's Publishing House
⑵ "Ancient Chinese Military System" published by Huang Shuihua Commercial Press

⑶ "The Legend of Attila-The Huns Invasion of Europe" [Germany] Eike_Schmitz collected in the "Sphinx-Secrets of History" series [Germany] Christian_Huff Editor-in-Chief
⑷ "Wars in European History" [British] Michael Howard

⑸ "General History of the World" [US] Stavrianos

⑹ "Tong Dian" Volume [-]
⑺ "Historical Records" Volume Ten_Xiaowen Ji
⑻, ⑿ "Historical Records" Volume [-]_Biography of General Wei Hussars

⑼, ⑽, ⑾, ⒇, (22) "Historical Records" Volume [-]_Biography of the Huns
⒀, ⒁, ⒂ "Han Shu" Volume [-]_Wu Di Ji

⒃ "Hanshu" Volume [-]_Zhaodi Ji

⒄ "Historical Records" Volume [-]_The Chronicle of Xiang Yu
⒅ "Historical Records" Volume [-]_Biography of General Li

⒆ "Continued Zizhi Tongjian Changbian" Volume 27_Taizong
(21) "Historical Records" Volume [-]_The Chronicle of Emperor Gaozu
(23), (26) "Hanshu" Volume [-]_Yuan Ang Chao Cuo Biography

(24), (25) Volume [-] of "Book of the Later Han Dynasty"_The Chronicle of Emperor Guangwu
(27), (28) "Book of the Later Han" Volume [-]_Biography of Wu Gai and Chen Zang
(29) "The Nomads of Eastern Central Asia" N_Ishjanc is collected in the second volume of "Central Asian Civilization History" Janosh_Harmata editor-in-chief
(30) E.Errington and Cribb, The Crossroad of Asia, London: the Ancient India and Iran Trust, 1992, pp.163~164, excerpted from "Westerly Wind on the Ancient Road—Chinese and Western Cultural Exchanges in New Archaeological Discoveries", written by Lin Meicun, published by Sanlian Publishing Company in March 2000

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