's tomb Elephants were used for warfare in China by a small handful of southern dynasties. The state of
Chu used elephants in 506 BC against
Wu by tying torches to their tails and sending them into the ranks of the enemy soldiers, but the attempt failed. In December 554 AD, the
Liang dynasty used armoured war elephants, carrying towers, against
Western Wei. They were defeated by a volley of arrows. The
Southern Han dynasty is the only state in Chinese history to have kept a permanent corps of war elephants. These elephants were able to carry a tower with some 10 people on their backs. They were used successfully during the Han invasion of
Ma Chu in 948. In 970, the
Song dynasty invaded Southern Han and their crossbowmen readily routed the Han elephants on 23 January 971, during the taking of Shao. That was the last time elephants were used in Chinese warfare. Chinese armies also faced off against war elephants in Southeast Asia, such as during the Linyi-Champa Campaign (602–605) and
Ming–Mong Mao War from 1366 – 1388. In 605,
Champa used elephants against the invading army of the
Sui dynasty. The Sui army dug pits and lured the elephants into them and shot them with crossbows. The elephants turned back and trampled their own army. During the Mong Mao campaign, the elephants were routed by an assortment of gunpowder projectiles. ==Drastic decline==