Ever since Chinese civilization was founded by the Xia Dynasty (2200 BCE-1600 BCE), organized military forces have existed throughout China. The recorded military history of China extends from about 2200 BC to the present day. China has the longest period of continuous development of military culture of any civilization in world history and had arguably one of the world's most advanced and powerful military for almost 2,000 years until the 18th century. The Chinese armies pioneered the use of crossbows, gunpowder weapons, stirups, and other advanced weapons that enabled them to fend off attacks by their enemies and expand China's influence across much of Eastern and Central Asia. In addition, China's armies also benefitted from an advanced logistics system as well as a rich strategic tradition, beginning with Sun Tzu's "The Art of war", that deeply influenced military thought.

Early Chinese armies, such as that of the Xia, Shang and Zhou, were based on chariots and bronze weapons, much like their contemporaries in western Asia and Egypt. These small armies were ill-trained, poorly equipped, and could not engage in long campaigns. However, by the Warring States Period, the introduction of iron weapons, crossbows, and cavalry revolutionized Chinese warfare. Professional standing armies replaced the unreliable peasant levies of old, and professional generals replaced aristocrats at the head of the army. This occurred concurrently with the establishment of a centralized state that was to become the norm for China. Under the Qin and Han Dynasties, China was unified and its troops conquered terroritories in all directions, and established China's frontiers that would last to the present day. These victories ushered in a golden age for China.

Despite occasional defeats, China maintained a strong and powerful army throughout most of the imperial Era, one that was the most powerful in the world. Although the army became gradually feudal after the fall of the Han Dynasty, a trend that was accelerated during the Wu Hu invasions of the fourth century CE and the Southern and Northern Dynasties period afterwards, a professional army was restored by the Sui Dynasty and Tang Dynasty, bringing a new golden age. Military technology also did not stand still; new equipment and concepts such as gunpowder weaponry and powerful new naval ships were continuously introduced, in order to augment the fighting power of China's military forces. Despite this, China's military supremacy gradually eroded after the establishment of the Song Dynasty, who was distrustful of the military establishment. Under the Song, China's armies suffered disastrous reverses and China was conquered by the Mongols under Kublai Khan. Although the Ming Dynasty restored Chinese power and a new golden age, China's supremacy was ended by a second foreign conquest, that of the Manchu Qing Dynasty in 1683. The put a stop to improvements in military technology in order to maintain their rule. The Qing Dynasty saw disastrous defeats to European powers throughout the 19th century that eroded China's sovereignty and lead to the disintegration of the Chinese Empire.

Early Chinese armies were composed of infantry and charioteers, but the imperial Chinese armies were grand spectacles, numbering hundreds of thousands of men. These armies were composed of crossbowmen, cavalry, and infantry, who were armed with a dazzling amount of equipment. After the Song Dynasty, Chinese armies were also equipped with gunpowder weapons such as muskets and cannons. These armies were usually composed mostly of ethnic Chinese, though the Chinese army also employed many subject peoples in their forces, such as Gokturks, Koreans, and Mongols. The Yuan and Qing dynasties, under whom China were ruled by ethnic minorities such as the Mongols and Manchus, employed large numbers of Inner Asian cavalry troops mostly from their own ethnic group, while the infantry are composed of mostly ethnic Han soldiers.