Chapter 16: Stirrup

The structure of the stirrup is not complicated, so it is often surprising that it appeared so late - such a simple and practical thing did not appear until the Western Jin Dynasty.

Anyone who has seen a stirrup can easily copy it.

The only problem was the material. It was the same old problem: the Indians lived in a stone age society and could not smelt metal, while a proper stirrup had a metal structure.

Since it was difficult to find suitable metal at the moment, the horse whistle had to be made with wooden boards instead. It could be made, but its durability was less.

For cavalry, the role of stirrups is self-evident. With this seemingly inconspicuous tool, the cavalry's adaptability to horseback will be greatly improved.

But unfortunately, the Indians did not fully understand the value of stirrups, or even had no understanding at all. Even though all white cavalry were equipped with stirrups, few Indian tribes were willing to follow suit.

To a certain extent, it can be said that this is the arrogance of the nomadic nation.

In a very short time after the introduction of horses to the American continent, the nomadic Indians quickly evolved into a mature horse-riding nation. Even without stirrups, their riding skills were not inferior to those of the white people.

In their view, stirrups are a symbol of low-level cavalry. Real cavalry do not need stirrups or even saddles.

This view is undoubtedly blind.

Ma Shao believed that there was no such thing as a nation born on horseback. The reason why Indians were able to quickly adapt to horseback riding was entirely due to the compatibility of their social structure.

In more developed civilizations, agriculture and industry are the pillars of society, and workers and farmers have almost no chance to use horseback. However, many Indians, as nomadic peoples, were born to live with horses. In this case, it would be strange if they were not used to horseback.

The lack of materials and the arrogance in their mentality have resulted in the Indians not being able to popularize stirrups, which has hampered their combat effectiveness.

Ma Shao did not have this mentality and knew how to look for alternative solutions, so as soon as he got his own horse, he decided to make stirrups and saddle.

As for the saddle, there is no need to rush just yet.

Firstly, the saddle is less useful, and although the Indians did not have saddles, they at least had "horse pads", which were simple leather pads on the horse's back; secondly, the saddle is more difficult to manufacture and much more troublesome than stirrups.

The simplest stirrup only needs a leather ring to work, but if the saddle is not made well, it will hurt the horse's back and the person's buttocks, so it is better not to have it.

After a short while, Ma Shao successfully made a pair of stirrups and installed them on Hei Feng.

He rode on it and tried it out, and found that it indeed saved a lot of effort. He nodded with satisfaction and decided to promote it within the tribe.

"Hey, isn't this what white people use?" The little beast looked at it and suddenly recognized the stirrup. "Brother Shaozi, why do you want to learn from those white people? Their riding skills are worse than my sister's."

"I'll give you one tomorrow, and you'll know when you try it." Ma Shao didn't say much. Facts speak louder than words.

"No way! I will never learn how to ride a horse like a white man!" The little beast said disapprovingly, "Even if it really works, I won't use it. I would rather fall off the horse!"

the next day.

The little beast rode the pony with the simple stirrups installed, turned around the camp, and couldn't help but exclaimed in surprise: "It's really useful!"

With Ma Shao's active promotion, the Mianxiong clan quickly accepted stirrups, which became a necessary horse equipment.

Looking at the warriors of the Sleeping Bear Clan equipped with simple stirrups and improved bows and arrows, a thought flashed through Ma Shao's mind: Could these be the most elite warriors of the Indians at the moment?

No, after all, some Indians in the East were already proficient in using firearms and even created a writing system, so they should be stronger.

Of course, the Indians in the East suffered more severely because they were more likely to come into contact with white people, and many were dispersed and driven to reservations.

The most densely populated Indian reservation is just a few hundred kilometers south of the area where the Sleeping Bear clan is located. Later generations called it Oklahoma.

Although the warriors of the Sleeping Bear Clan are not the most elite Indian warriors, after the improvement of their equipment, they can definitely be regarded as a team with outstanding strength.

Thinking of this, Ma Shao couldn't help but sigh secretly.

It's a long road ahead…

…

The year 1844 was not peaceful in America.

The focus of the conflict is on the relationship between the United States and Mexico.

In the early years, in order to develop the sparsely populated Texas, Mexico relaxed its immigration policy, resulting in a large number of Americans entering Texas, which completely changed the local population structure.

Americans have become the mainstream of the Texas population, and the US government will certainly not miss this opportunity.

As a result, with internal and external cooperation, Texas successfully separated from Mexico in 1836 and established the "Lone Star Republic".

Since then, the Lone Star Kingdom has been trying to integrate into the United States, but for various reasons it has not been able to do so. Until this year, the United States and the Lone Star Kingdom finally reached an agreement and prepared to merge.

To be precise, the President of the United States and the Lone Star State have reached an agreement, but the US Congress has not yet agreed.

As long as the US Congress agrees, the deal will be done.

Once the Lone Star State becomes the state of Texas in the United States, the conflict between the United States and Mexico is bound to intensify, and many people have already sensed the scent of a war.

At the same time, the world of North American Indians was also in turmoil.

The Arapaho, the most warlike Indian tribe, once again launched an attack on several southern tribes.

The Apaches, as one of the Arapaho's main enemies, were naturally not immune.

"We have to fight the Arapaho again..." The old chief sighed at the clan meeting.

"Do we need to go to the tribe?" someone asked.

"Of course we need to." Shaman Stone Crow nodded. "Because we were attacked by white people before, the tribal chief allowed us to rest and recuperate. Now we don't have this privilege. We must once again join other clans to fight against the Arapaho."

"How many people should we send this time?"

"How about thirty?"

The old chief shook his head directly: "Too many, about twenty people... We haven't recovered yet, the chief won't blame us."

The Sleeping Bear Clan recovered well, but the chief was a person who was rather averse to war, especially this kind of war between Indians, so naturally he sent as few warriors as possible.

Stone Crow nodded: "Then let's have twenty people, and I'll be the leader."

Then he looked at Ma Shao: "Do you want to join and fight the Arapaho?"

"Of course." Ma Shao did not refuse.

Stone Crow: "Every mature warrior needs to endure the test of war. I believe this experience will make you grow a lot, and -"

His words stopped abruptly, as if something had interrupted his thoughts.

"What's wrong, teacher?" Ma Shao couldn't help but ask.