About the Chariot in the Zhongshan Kingdom and Other Semi-barbaric Early States

According to a number of researchers, the peoples of the eastern part of the Steppe Eurasia from the 9th—8th centuries BC moved on to the nomadic way of life, resulting in a cultural change and militarization of society. It was believed that these nomads already at an early stage formed units of mounted archers attacking land farmers of Western Asia and China in the 9th and 7th cent. BC. However, no presence of the ‘northern nomads’ was identified in this territory in the 9th—8th cent. BC. The exception is the Scythian-like Yuhuangmiao culture, formed in the second half of the 7th cent. BC. based on the culture of the ‘upper layer of Xiajiadian’ and foreign nomads from the north. Sedentarism of the local ‘nomads’ was quite high, which largely explains the wide use of two-wheeled carts and military chariots by the cattle herders of Northern China at least from the 9th to 3rd—2nd cent. BC. Moreover, the first chariots with horses and early harness elements were introduced to the Shang Kingdom in the 13th and 12th cent. BC by some groups of people living north of Shang. The western rongs traditionally used combat chariots, and even created their own variants of single-axle wagons for the transport of goods. At the same time, the western rongs and the small Zhongshan Kingdom still used mounted archers who fought effectively against their enemies, as well as serving in neighboring kingdoms. Respectively, Sinification of such associations of ‘barbarians’ was not a one-way assimilation of the population. In some cases, the local elite may even rise to the level of the Chinese aristocracy in the course of mutually beneficial interaction.