고구려 전기의 기마전

Abstract

As described above, this study examined the specifications and combating patterns of Chinese chariots and how they influenced the cavalry battles of Koguryo in connection to Koguryo’s advance to Liaodong and cavalry battles. According to the results of this study, Koguryo’s heavy cavalry appeared with the collapse of the light cavalry system by the attack of cross‐bow, which was shot from the chariots of the Later Han and Wei Dynasties. There were largely two types of tactics in using chariots, one for attacking and the other for defending. First, when they formed a battle array against enemy on a plain, they were divided into the front, middle and rear units, and chariots were deployed at the spearhead, and cross‐bowmen and spearmen were deployed on the front line as well as on the left and right sides. Chariots were deployed also in the rear unit in preparation against the enemy’s surprise attack. In addition, small chariots having a shield as its top were deployed on the left and side sides of the middle unit in preparation against the enemy’s surprise attack. At that time, the cross‐bowmen on the chariots attacked the Koguryo cavalry from a distance, and they inflicted a heavy damage upon Koguryo’s unarmored light cavalry. On the other hand, if the chariots were surrounded by the Koguryo army, the cross‐bowmen and spearmen on the chariots formed square phalanxes with shields and long spears and carried out a close combat. The phalanx was the best tactic for defeating cavalrymen because most of horses were afraid of a long spear. On the contrary, the advantage of Koguryo’s light cavalry was in its mobility but they were easily killed or wounded by cross‐bows shot from the chariots. As an effort to solve this problem, Koguryo created heavy cavalry as proved by historical records on 5,000 armored cavalrymen mobilized by Koguryo in the war with the Wei Dynasty in 246. The heavy cavalry was also called armored cavalry because both the horse and the soldier were clad in mail armor. Spearhead an attack, the Koguryo armored cavalry broke through the front line of the enemy, and when the friendly army was caught in a corner, it as a storming party broke through the besieging enemy forces. Once the heavy cavalry disrupted the enemy’s array, the light cavalry and infantry launched attacks immediately.