The Vedic Period
The Rigvedic tribes of Indo-Aryans were led by their tribal chieftains (raja) and engaged in wars with each other and other tribes. They used bronze weapons and horse-drawn spoke-wheeled chariots described prominently in the Rigveda. The main share from the booty obtained during cattle raids and battles went to the chief of the tribe. The warriors belonged to the Kshatriya varna.
The Vedas and other associated texts dating to the post-Rigvedic (Iron Age) Vedic period (ca. 1100–500 BC) contain the earliest written references to armies in India. The earliest known application of war elephants dates to this period; the animals are mentioned in several Vedic Sanskrit hymns.
The two great epics of India, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, center on conflicts between the emerging Mahajanapadas and refer to military formations, theories of warfare and esoteric weaponry. They discuss standing armies and the use of chariots, war elephants and even flying machines in wars. The Ramayana describes the fortifications of Ayodhya in great detail. The Mahabharata describes various military techniques like Chakravyuha used in the Kurukshetra War.
Read more about this topic: Military History Of India
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