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Arquebusier

An arquebusier was a type of unit of the Imperial Chinese Army that was equipped with an arquebus. The soldiers used the most primitive form of a firearm until the late 19th century, as they were first contacted by the Portuguese in the 1500s. 

History[]

Arquebusier 2

The Portuguese were the first to introduce firearms to the Asian countries of Japan, China, and Korea, having founded small trading posts along the coastlines. In China, the traditional weapon was the composite bow, which was used even into the late 1800s. The Imperial Chinese Army trained arquebusiers as their main infantry unit, with their like included in the Emperor's Army, Black Flag Army, Territorial Army, and Imperial Army. However, when they fought against Britain and France in the 1840s and 1850s they faced repeating rifles, and had outdated weapons that were weak against modernized weaponry from Europe's empires. 

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