The introduction of the light chariot in Egypt has been attributed to the Hyksos, who invaded the Nile Delta around 1650 B.C. Lighter than the Hittite model, and crewed only by two men (a driver and an archer), their lightness could be an advantage when needing to maneuver quickly on the battlefield.
The use of horses to draw two-wheeled battle chariots began during the rise of the Hittite Old Kingdom around 1650 B.C. Later, massed ranks of three-man chariots became a feared symbol of Hittite power in their 13th-century B.C. heyday.
By the ninth century B.C., the Assyrians started to make war chariots sturdier, at the expense of speed. Their crews could number between three or four men, whose firepower and bulk would make for an intimidating sight.
Developing from wheeled wagons, war chariots became widespread in Mesopotamian cities of the third millennium B.C. They would have been pulled not by horses, but by donkeys or mules. Four wheels were made of solid, heavy boards, which made maneuvering cumbersome. Depictions of Sumerian chariots often feature a quiver mounted on the exterior.
