How much do you know about Ming armor?
In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang established the Ming Dynasty. In the battle to overthrow the Yuan Dynasty, metal armor remained the mainstay. This was especially true of the armor of the cavalry, who generally wore heavy, metal lamellar armor.
However, as the demands of warfare changed, the cavalry was no longer the most important offensive force in warfare. Instead, armies equipped with a variety of muskets became the main attacking force in combat.
Considering the ease of using muskets, soldiers’ armor had to be reduced in weight. Thus, after gunpowder was widely used in warfare, the armor of soldiers changed.
In addition to the common armor, cloth armor also became a common form of armor for the Ming army. These pieces of cloth armor could effectively intercept bullets from entering the body.
In addition to this, the armor equipped by the Ming central and local armies was completely different.
The central army was the most valued and they had access to the best and latest armor. Those local armies, on the other hand, were constrained by the local revenue. They had to wear armor that didn’t look very good but was highly practical.
The changes in the Ming Dynasty armor were closely linked to the economic situation of the Ming dynasty. In times of economic recession, the quality of the Ming army’s armor was worrisome. Some temporarily recruited soldiers didn’t even have armor.
On top of that, the Ming Dynasty did not have its own armor manufacturing factories in the early years of the Ming Dynasty.
It wasn’t until 1380 that the Ming Dynasty officially established a factory specializing in armor manufacturing. Before that, the manufacture of armor for the Ming Dynasty army was handled by the institution responsible for minting coins.
To this day, Ming armor has become an antique. It would be crazy for Ming history buffs to have their own set of armor.
