Sarmatians warriors in the Roman army

What similarities can the system of knighthood in England share with nomadic tribes that lived on the vast steppes of what is now Russia and the Ukraine? How can any link between them be possible?

There is a theory that knighthood was brought to Britain by Sarmatians, an Iranian language speaking people who displaced the Scythians. Sarmatians tribes migrated from Central Asia to the Ural Mountains around fifth century B.C. and eventually settled in most of southern European Russia, Ukraine, and the eastern Balkans. In fact, their realm was even wider. At some point it extended from China in the east and the Roman empire in the west.

Among other things Sarmatians adopted the dragon motif. They were skillful horse riders and archers, they were also famous for using heavily armored cavalry in their battles. They wore dragon emblems on their shields and armor.

A first big clash between Sarmatians and Romans took place in the third century AD. There was a big battle between them near the mouth of the Danube River on the Black Sea. Romans overcome the Sarmatians but were very impressed with their fighting prowess. That is why, one of the terms of the peace agreement with Sarmatians, included the following condition advanced by Romans. They demanded six thousand Sarmatians warriors and their horses join the Roman army.

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