Yu Da You's Du Lun Che (獨輪車) — Part 5

Other carts in Yu Da You's division
Du Lun Che (獨輪車) was not the only type of war cart in the war cart division. Yu Da You (俞大猷) also designed several other war carts to be used together with Du Lun Che.


Shuang Lun Zhan Che (雙輪戰車, lit. 'Two wheeled war cart')

Basic layout of Shuang Lun Zhan Che, from 'Zhen Qi Tang Ji (《正氣堂集》)'.

Shuang Lun Zhan Che is more stable and compact that its one wheeled counterpart. It is pushed by six crews instead of eight, with two of the pushers stationed inside the cart. Yu Da You mentioned that it has the same armament as Du Lun Che, however the illustration shows that it has seven spearheads instead of the usual four.


Shuang Lun Liang Che (雙輪糧車, lit. 'Two wheeled grain cart')

Basic layout of Shuang Lun Liang Che, from 'Zheng Qi Tang Ji (《正氣堂集》)'.

Shuang Lun Liang Che is the supply cart of the war cart division. It is almost identical to Shuang Lun Zhan Che, except being slightly smaller and only has five spearheads. It is not known whether this supply cart is armed with firearms or not.


Xin Zhi Shuang Lun Zhan Che (新製雙輪戰車, lit. 'New model two wheeled war cart')

Basic layout of the Xin Zhi Shuang Lun Zhan Che, from 'Zheng Qi Tang Ji (《正氣堂集》)'.

After the success of war cart at Datong garrison, Yu Da You also tried to introduce the war cart to Jing Ying (京營, lit. 'Capital regiment') stationed at the capital. He succeeded in raising a sixty thousand strong war cart army in in his elderly years.

Xin Zhi Shuang Lun Zhan Che is the war cart designed for imperial guards. It is slightly larger that its Datong garrison counterparts, has two wooden screens instead of leather shields, and comes equipped with five spearheads and three Fo Lang Ji (佛狼機) cannons. It also has two iron chains that can be used to link multiple war carts together.



Other blog posts in my Du Lun Che series:
Yu Da You's Du Lun Che (獨輪車) — Part 1
Yu Da You's Du Lun Che (獨輪車) — Part 2
Yu Da You's Du Lun Che (獨輪車) — Part 3
Yu Da You's Du Lun Che (獨輪車) — Part 4
Yu Da You's Du Lun Che (獨輪車) — Part 5