Genghis Khan's fame was accompanied by an unstoppable and invincible Mongol army that swept in all directions like a whirlwind.
So, what was the reason for the invincibility of the Mongol army?
Now, let's explore the weapons and equipment of the Mongol cavalry.
As the saying goes, "people are not as strong as guys", which shows that advanced equipment has a multiplier effect on people doing things with half the effort. Of course, the advancement of weapons in war cannot be said to be a decisive factor (the Chinese People's Liberation Army led by the great Chairman Mao is a living example), but it is also an important factor in determining the outcome of war. So, where was the weapons of the invincible Mongol army?
Riding equipment --- Mongolian horses
First of all, we should understand that the core strength of the Mongol army is, of course, the Mongol cavalry.
Therefore, let's briefly introduce the riding equipment of the Mongol cavalry--- the Mongolian horse.
Native to the Mongolian plateau, Mongolian horses are in a semi-wild state of survival, they have neither comfortable stables nor exquisite feed, they eat and sleep in the grasslands where foxes and wolves are infested, they endure hot mosquitoes in summer, and they can withstand the cold of -40 ° C in winter. The Mongolian horse is small in stature and has no place on the modern racecourse. However, the Mongolian horse did not lose its male equestrian nature in the windy, frosty and rainy steppes, they had a short head and neck, a strong body, a wide chest and a long mane, thick fur, and could withstand the Siberian blizzard; they could kick the head of the fox wolf with their hooves. This has created the Mongolian horse's super endurance and the habit of not being afraid of the cold. Therefore, fighting in a wide space enabled the Mongol cavalry to carry out long-distance attacks, encirclements, and detour flank attacks, while the European cavalry was almost lost in the confrontation due to the lack of endurance of the warhorses and the effective radius of movement.
At the same time, the Mongolian horse has almost the lowest requirements for the environment and food, whether in the alpine deserts of Asia or in the European plains, the Mongolian horse can find food at any time, the vitality is extremely tenacious, and it is an overwhelming advantage for other horse breeds. Arguably, the Mongolian horse has the strongest adaptability. It can survive in the wild in both cold and heat, and Mongolian horses are always capable of riding and pulling heavy loads.
Because of the special advantages of the Mongol horse, the Mongol army had a speed and mobility that was unmatched by any army at that time.
In the 21st century, the Chinese People's Liberation Army, the only remaining military horse farm with a military formation is the Hongshan Military Horse Farm. The reason for this is that the Mongolian horses of the Hongshan Military Horse Farm are very hardy, and even in the extremely cold weather of minus 40 degrees Celsius, they can still move freely and have very good endurance.
(Here, let's make a brief comparison with sweaty BMW.) Sweat and blood BMW, scientific name Akhal-tekehorses (Latin scientific name: Akhal-tekehorses), head and neck height, slender limbs, thin skin and fine hair, light steps, strength, speed, endurance. Loved by Chinese and the world.
However, although the sweat and blood horse is faster, but it is slender, relatively speaking, the ability to bear weight is not strong, in the ancient era of cold weapons, soldiers on horseback combat, body armor, hand weapons, the total weight is quite large, more willing to choose stout horses. And because of the harness, the sweat horse could not be driven, while the stout Mongolian horse did not have this disadvantage, and finally almost all the stallions introduced from Central Asia and West Asia died out. ）
In addition, their stirrups are also a key factor in their victory. There are military historians who say that the Mongols can conquer the world, and the short stirrups are indispensable. The Mongols used short stirrups, which allowed the Mongols to stand on horseback so that they could slash and slash their enemies flexibly on horseback, while European and Arab cavalry used long stirrups, which were only places to put their feet, and the cavalry could only sit on horseback. In this way, their flexibility was greatly reduced, and their combat effectiveness was inferior to that of the Mongol army.
The main weapon of the Mongol cavalry --- bow
When the Mongols are against the enemy, they first release arrows at a distance, and when they retreat, they also release arrows to block the enemy army, and only after killing and injuring a large number of arrows or even defeating the enemy army will they go to short-term contact, and the Mongols' "riding and shooting essence" played an extremely huge role in the war dominating Eurasia.
The main weapon of the Mongol soldiers was the bow, and each soldier carried at least two or three bows, or at least one good bow, and three huge quivers filled with arrows.
The bow used by the Mongol cavalry at that time was a compound bow, which was long and large, required about eighty kilograms of force to pull, and had a long range, which was almost the most important weapon of destruction for the Mongol cavalry. The Mongolian composite bow is usually made of birch wood, and the buffalo horn or rock sheep horn is pasted with glue made of animals or fish maws, and its effective range can reach about 300 meters, and according to a Mongolian stone inscription, at a banquet after the Western Expedition to Huarazm, Hazar's second son also shot a target of about 500 meters (335 Yu in Yazhong).
The arrows of the Mongol cavalry, the arrows were very sharp, and the sides of the arrows were sharpened, like a sword with blades on both sides. And they generally carry two kinds of arrows, one is lighter, the arrow is small and sharp, used for long-range shooting; the other is heavier, the arrow is large and wide, used in close combat. The materials used to make arrows are iron, steel, horns or bone, the length of the arrows is about 5 centimeters, and the arrow shaft is made of sand willow.
Such a strong bow, such a sharp arrow, can basically shoot through the enemy's armor, causing great casualties and psychological shock to the enemy.
Melee weapon of the Mongol cavalry
Genghis Khan never had a strict division of weapons for the arms of the armies, so the Mongol cavalry usually carried a variety of weapons with them.
The melee weapons carried by the Mongol cavalry were usually sabers, short knives, spears, axes, maces, etc., either hanging from their waists or placed on their saddles.
Among them, some of them also have spears (spears are the precursors of guns, the obvious difference between the two is that the spear is longer, the longest of the blades, and the gun has a gun with a gun). The spear had a hook on its iron neck, and they used it to pull the enemy off the saddle.
In simple terms, the main weapon of the light cavalry is the bow and arrow, and the main weapon of the heavy cavalry is the spear. Each cavalry carries basically the same melee weapon, and there is not much special or use of any particularly good.
The peculiarity is only that the Mongol cavalry is often equipped with other new and unique weapons according to personal preferences, such as the rope sleeve of the horse and the net cover of the net horse, which is difficult for the enemy to guard. This is rare in the regular military.
Armor of the Mongol cavalry
The armor of the Mongol cavalry was mainly leather armor, and some war horses were also wearing leather vests. As the Mongols gathered more wealth in their conquests, they began to equip themselves with more iron armor, and as the Mongols conquered the Central Plains, Khwarazm, Rus' and West Asia, their armor formats became more diverse.
Heavy cavalry engaged in assault operations, war horses covered in leather vests, soldiers wearing full armor, and their legs covered with armor, the armor is usually made of leather, and it is twice or three times the thickness; or lock armor captured from the enemy. They wore the simple helmets commonly used at the time.
Light cavalry, in addition to wearing a helmet, they have a relatively simple, light and tough armor, or do not wear armor on their bodies, making them more free and flexible, and it is easy to maintain long-term combat effectiveness. The tasks of the light cavalry were reconnaissance, cover, fire support for the heavy cavalry, clearing the remnants of the enemy, and tracking the pursuit.
One of its more distinctive and practical armors is that conditional Mongol soldiers wear a silk robe before the battle begins. This silk is made of raw silk and is woven very finely. Genghis Khan found it difficult for arrows to penetrate this silk coat, and would only insert them into the wound with an arrow belt cloth, which could effectively reduce the lethality of the arrow. Moreover, the arrow can be pulled out of the wound by simply pulling the silk out of the treatment, and then the medicine can be applied.