Chapter 187 The Army Arrives in Tire (Two in One)
The atmosphere was somewhat silent.
The awkward antics of these monks made Archos smile.
The unsmiling Paladins were already ready to draw their swords.
It took Mishka a while to see the faces of Garris's gang clearly, and then he realized what the problem was.
not good! These people are not Saracens!
Garris looked at these monks, and the monks stood up awkwardly, trying to pretend that the previous scene had never happened.
Then, several Paladins behind Garris took off their rain-proof robes, revealing what they were wearing underneath.
It was a suit of chain mail, and then there was a burqa over the chain mail.
Generally speaking, this kind of burqa can prevent the chainmail from overheating due to direct sunlight, or reduce the possibility of it rusting due to moisture.
Of course, the most important thing is that this kind of robe is usually embroidered with the family crest, color or coat of arms of the knight or lord, which is used to distinguish friendly forces from enemy forces in battle.
The robes worn by these Paladins, as warriors of the order, still have a red cross on a white background as their symbol.
In terms of appearance, this red cross is actually similar to the red cross of the Red Cross Society in another timeline.
However, the red cross of the Red Cross is derived from the Swiss flag, and the white background red cross of the Paladin is a color-changing version of the Greek cross.
It is characterized by four equal-length arms and is considered the most basic form of the cross logo.
Of course, no matter what the cross is, it at least means that the group of people in front of you are not Saracens or Islamic believers, but Christians.
Mishka coughed lightly a few times, then straightened his posture and said loudly: "May the Lord be with you"
Mishka wanted to appear high-profile. After all, as the abbot of a monastery on a holy mountain, he still had a particularly high status.
As long as these strange Christians can be surrendered, today's scandal may not be spread.
Seeing the other person being polite and hesitant, Garris smiled again. He showed Mishka the seal ring on the ring finger of his left hand.
The pattern on the seal ring is a lion-like shape, set on a capital letter A, symbolizing the Anjou family.
Well, the Anjou family, the current royal family of Jerusalem, is also the guardian family of the Holy Land.
As far as the current performance of this group of monks is concerned, it is no different from apostasy. They are directly burned at the stake, and no one can complain on their behalf.
Mishka's face froze, then he took a step back to the side of the road, slowly lowered his head, made a half-bow gesture, and used gestures to invite Garris to enter the monastery.
Garris did not comply with Mishka's invitation. He just took off the little white hat from Mishka's head, and then waved it in front of Mishka.
Sweat slid down Mishka's forehead, and then he and the monks behind him suddenly fell to the ground one by one.
"We, this is for survival! To protect the monastery!"
"Sir! We have not given up our faith, we are just... pretending! To delay time!"
Listening to the monks' words, Garris clapped his hands a few times to express his praise for the monks' superb face-changing skills.
Then he said: "Pretend? Jesus taught us to keep our faith, whether life or death."
"What's more, I don't remember that we have teachings similar to the Islamic principles of taqiyah."
The principle of Taqiya means that when Muslims face persecution, threats or life danger, Muslims can temporarily hide their beliefs or ostensibly renounce their religion to protect themselves.
This principle is generally used more by Shia Muslims.
But Christianity does not have such a hidden belief.
At most, you can use "repentance and forgiveness of sins" to return to the church.
Of course, as the prophet of Islam, Gairis would not really do anything to these monks.
But that doesn't mean that he won't take advantage of it.
Garris took two steps forward and passed by Mishka, then he turned his head and said:
"Now, this monastery belongs to me. Do you have any opinions?"
Mishka, the abbot, just kept shaking and didn't dare to raise any objections.
The opponent has the handle, and he can't afford to offend him. What's more, the knights behind Garris are all trying to draw their swords. They are obviously really angry.
What if I said "no" and the nobleman in front of me waved his left hand, and the knights behind him rushed up and chopped up their melons and vegetables?
If the other party wants a monastery, then give it to them. At any rate, our group should be able to survive.
Gareth took over the monastery without any hindrance.
This monastery has a main building for living, a church for worship, and other small buildings such as mills and bakeries. There are also vegetable fields, sheep pens, and wells within the walls. Outside the walls, there is a small area. Terraces and orchards.
In terms of living conditions, it is actually relatively ordinary, and it is considered a monastery that operates strictly according to Benedictine rules.
These Benedictine monks have to make three vows, namely Jue Se (not to marry), Jue Cai (no selfish wealth), and Jue Will (strict obedience).
The daily monastic life generally consists of chanting sutras in groups every day, reading seriously, and doing labor in their spare time.
It would actually be very convenient for this kind of monastery, which has a certain degree of self-sufficiency, to be converted into a military stronghold.
And from the top of the main building of the monastery, you can directly see dozens of kilometers.
Of course, whether or not you can see clearly is another matter.
All in all, this is an excellent observation post and the terrain is easily defendable and difficult to attack.
If you want to enhance your protective capabilities, you can also hire Greek farmers at the foot of the mountain to help strengthen the wall.
As long as one company of troops is stationed here and equipped with artillery, there are thousands of enemy troops, and they may not be able to conquer it in a short while.
Looking out from here, the enemy's movements within a radius of more than ten kilometers can be clearly seen.
At that time, with the smoke and beacons here, the city of Akka can be seen clearly, and the city of Tire, which is further away, can also learn about the enemy's mobilization through one or two relays.
From a military perspective, this is indeed a treasure.
Today, the monastery belongs to Gallis.
……
In the monastery dining room, where sunlight shines through stained glass, the aroma of food hangs in the air.
The long dining table was filled with sumptuous dishes. The monks, dressed in rough robes, were busy delivering steaming food to the table.
The freshly baked bread is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and the aroma of the stew is exuding. When paired with the tempting and delicious lamb chops, it will make you want to eat.
Coupled with the wine brewed by the monastery, the soldiers who had marched for seven consecutive days and fought hard all morning were finally able to eat a decent meal.
Of course, Santa Marcovia Monastery could not actually station an army of a thousand people, and at most a hundred people could be squeezed into the restaurant in the main building.
These hundreds of people were all soldiers who were considered to have made outstanding contributions, performed bravely, or were slightly injured in this battle, so they were fortunate to be able to participate in this banquet.
As for other soldiers, they were also repairing around the monastery, taking the ingredients from the monastery to make a fire to cook or watching over the prisoners of war.
There was laughter and laughter in the restaurant, and the monks served silently beside them. Many of them had distressed expressions on their faces.
Just such a banquet, plus the supplies provided to the armies outside, was enough to eat 15 of their sheep!
As for the wine that they themselves were not willing to drink on weekdays, they brought out barrels of wine for these soldiers to drink happily.
"Today we gather together to celebrate this glorious victory! Let us raise a toast, wishing us victory in every battle, and may we continue to move forward courageously in the future journey! Cheers!"
After a brief toast, the banquet kicked off.
Even Gareth drank happily with Balian and the others.
It can be said that this battle really excited Garris.
Although Garris had concluded that this battle would not be defeated before the battle, the final result was that no one died and only a dozen people were slightly injured, which was particularly gratifying.
It can be said that this battle has indeed proved how powerful artillery and vehicle barriers will be in this era.
Unlike General Jan Jeschka in the Hussite Wars, Gehrys did not deploy his troops around tanks.
At least today, Garris's entire wealth only consists of 12 short cannons, which cannot be distributed to every tank.
Therefore, for now, among the seven companies under Garris, one company is a mixed infantry company, and the second company is a cavalry or mounted infantry company.
The other five companies are companies that are integrated into chariots, that is, each platoon is assigned two carriages, and every two squads operate one together.
These carriages were used to transport supplies on weekdays, but on the battlefield, they were turned into vehicle barriers to provide cover.
This kind of chariot is modified from a farm cart, and its side panels and wheels can be equipped with strong iron cladding and removable wooden boards.
When the enemy lacks artillery or trebuchets, normal human weapons are simply difficult to destroy.
The top of the vehicle is actually a retractable defensive panel. It can be folded up to protect it from wind and rain. When it is put down during combat, it forms a defensive panel that is higher than the body.
Several triangular gun holes are drilled into this panel, and the shooter can safely hide behind and shoot with heavy crossbows, bows and arrows, and artillery.
The chariots are connected with iron chains, allowing infantrymen holding heavy shields to withstand them. When the enemy's morale is reduced in the face of artillery, or a large number of cavalry are shot and killed, their own infantry and cavalry can be filed through them. And out.
The cavalry can outflank the enemy's flanks, while the infantry can clear out the dead cavalry, thus establishing victory.
The current period is an excellent bonus period for car base tactics.
Before the enemy understands the car base tactic, all kinds of amazing exchange ratios can be easily achieved.
After all, the power of arrows these days, especially those of the nomadic cavalry, is actually quite impressive. At a distance of thirty steps, not to mention whether it can penetrate chain armor, even leather armor or cotton armor can effectively reduce the damage caused by arrows.
As long as they weren't the unlucky ones who were hit in the face by an arrow, most of them were just injured.
As for firearms, although they are slow to load and troublesome to use, the lethality they display is no longer on the same level.
In this battle commanded by Balian, a total of 14 people on Galis' side were slightly injured, 300 enemies were killed, and 448 people were captured. As for other soldiers, it was indeed impossible to capture them.
This battle was not a battle of annihilation after encirclement. In fact, if the Jordan River had not blocked some Turks, Gairis and the others would not have been able to capture more than 400 prisoners.
As for the other Turks, they abandoned their helmets and spared no effort to escape. Those on horseback could not catch them, and those without horses could hardly catch them.
According to reports from lower-level soldiers, it cannot be easily grasped unless a sword is placed around the neck or tied up.
……
Garris's force repaired on Mount Tabor for three days, and finally left one company and five artillery pieces to strengthen the protection of the monastery here.
According to Gellis' plan, using Mount Tabor as the boundary, trying to regain the lost territory in the north, thereby confronting Saladin, and waiting for the subsequent Third Crusade to pursue other plans, is the safest way at the moment.
Even Garris himself needs time to develop, even with the car base tactics and artillery.
But in the final analysis, weapons-only theory is undesirable. Weapons are indeed an important factor in war, but they are not the decisive factor. The decisive factor is people, not things.
Ultimately, it depends on the person how the weapon is used.
Even if a commander who is not very wise has weapons that are one or two generations ahead of his enemy, he will fail due to the will to fight, the timing of the fight, or various unpredictable accidents.
Based on the current cost comparison between Garis and Saladin, if the troops under Garis' command failed in a large-scale battle after leaving Garis, they would lose everything.
Guy's busy pursuit of success was actually the main reason for his failure.
If he had been cautious enough at the time, he would not have thrown all the mobile forces of the Kingdom of Jerusalem into a hopeless battle.
After completing the repairs, the other six companies began to move north. They first bypassed Nazareth, the hometown of Brother Jesus.
Then it enters the coastal plain of the Eastern Mediterranean, passes outside the city of Acre, and follows the coastline to the city of Tire.
The Tire territory covers an area of less than 450 square kilometers. It is a fairly rich plain and hilly land. Excluding the port city, there are about 120 to 130 villages.
It was completely captured by the Venetian fleet and the Kingdom of Jerusalem in 1124, and was then treated as a royal domain.
Due to the Venetian contribution in the battle, some villages in Tire were granted as fiefs to some Venetian nobles.
The Republic of Venice is also entitled to a certain percentage of port taxes, but at the same time some Venetian nobles will also serve the kingdom as knights.
If we talk about the Franks in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, they are similar to the Eight Banners lords of Manchuria during the pre-Israel period. They were extremely virtuous and relied on the Saracens for farming.
Then the Italians in the Italian city-states were Shanxi merchants who lent money to the Eight Banners masters and resold goods.
It can be said that in all previous Crusades, Italian city-states were often the important promoters.
These city-states promoted the Crusades, which made it easier for them to obtain goods from the East and to obtain commercial privileges for themselves.
But these are all in the past, and now Tire is just an isolated city, filled with the defeated soldiers from the Battle of the Jordan River.
These remaining defeated generals relied on the assistance of Italian city-states to survive.
Garris, Balian and others stood on the high ground and observed the Saracen military camp outside Tire.
Currently, Saladin's army is still in the south of the kingdom. The main purpose of the Saracen military camp outside Tire is to block the isthmus and prevent the defenders in the city from rushing out to harass Saladin's rear.
The locations where the defenders were stationed were actually very interesting.
They were stationed in the ruins of an ancient Roman arena.
As the most important sea port of Damascus and a transit station on the Silk Road, Tire was once one of the most prosperous Roman cities on the Eastern Mediterranean coast.
Even now, at the end of the 12th century, Tire is still prosperous in commerce and provides high customs taxes to the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Thus maintaining the kingdom's rule over Palestine.
After confirming the situation with Balian, Garris began to arrange an attack on the Saracen military camps outside the city.
The whole battle process was actually very lacking in Chen Shan.
It is not much different from the previous battle process. First, it shows the enemy's weakness to lure the enemy to attack, and then relies on the opponent's unfamiliarity with artillery to win by surprise.
The main purpose is to force the enemy's morale to collapse, use artillery to frighten the horses, and destroy the enemy's formation.
Then the infantry attacked and the cavalry outflanked.
If there is any difference, it is that Garris personally participated in this battle, so the soldiers behind him rushed more vigorously.
On the battlefield, he showed a fierce and fearless fanaticism, rushing and fighting fiercely.
With a force of several hundred men, he pursued an enemy force several times his own.
And this scene was also seen by the generals guarding the city on the city wall, as well as the knights guarding the city.
Conrad wiped his eyes hard. As a veteran of many battles, he had seen many strange scenes.
However, he has never seen an enemy force that is five times his own with hundreds of infantrymen chasing him!
Therefore, he immediately opened the city gate and took the knights and cavalry under his command to participate in the pursuit.
How could you not take him with you for such a good thing? !
With Conrad taking the garrison in the city to join the battle, the Saracens whose morale had collapsed for no apparent reason ran faster than the last.
Anyone with slow legs and feet will be stabbed a few times if they are not careful.
The situation on the battlefield was tragic, but there were not many real wounded or dead. This was also a characteristic of this era. Most of the troops ran away as soon as their morale collapsed.
There is no chance for the system to surrender. After all, everyone knows each other's behavior.
Killing prisoners these days doesn't even have any moral pressure.
Anyone who surrenders and is killed simply deserves it. It is nothing more than karma and retribution, and he will suffer the consequences.
Of course, Garris and the others did not pursue them too far. After roughly confirming that they had defeated the opponent's formation, they began to clean up the battlefield.
It was also at this juncture that Balian came to Garris with a fully armed knight.
In terms of appearance, this man is somewhat different from the ordinary Frank. He is slender, tall and straight, with clear facial features and a handsome face.
But this difference was not clear to Gareth for a while.
Until this knight spoke with a unique accent, a cadence of tone, and kept moving his hands and making various gestures.
Only then did Gareth realize what was going on.
The guy in front of him who calls himself Conrad is an Italian.
"My Conrad is the son of William V, Marquis of Montferrat. He used to be the Caesar of the Eastern Roman Empire, but now he is just a fugitive who was elected as the commander of the city defense by the nobles in the city."
< br>
In this era, the Eastern Empire Caesar is no longer what it originally meant.
The original title of Caesar was the title of the emperor of the Roman Empire, and then gradually developed into the title of the emperor's heir and became the deputy prince of the Roman Empire.
In this era, the Roman Caesar is essentially an honorary title, enjoying a very high reputation, but it does not mean that he can inherit the throne.
Gareth held out his hand to Conrad to shake.
Then he introduced himself: "Gareth de Villeroy, a knight of His Majesty Baldwin."
Compared with Conrad's origins and past titles, Gareth's self-introduction was really unremarkable.
After Conrad heard this, he frowned slightly, but he didn't care. A person's past identity doesn't mean much, especially in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, a land full of turmoil and opportunities, where anyone can have the chance. Make great achievements.
The fact that Balian could specially bring him to see Garris was enough to show how special this young man was.
An army of nearly a thousand people escorted hundreds of Muslim prisoners of war and escorted the carriage into the city of Tire.
These troops, who came from Transjordan not far away for hundreds of miles, received the warmest welcome from the citizens of the city.
Considering the current situation in Tire City, any fresh force is valuable.
The army led by Garris directly helped the city of Tire to relieve the siege.
After communicating with Conrad, Garris also learned about the situation in Tire City.
The garrison in Tire is mainly composed of two parts. On the one hand, it is the city guard formed voluntarily by citizen groups in the city. The other part is from the defeated generals who led their troops to break through during the Battle of the Jordan River.
The nobles in the city are also divided into two groups. One part is some nobles from the surrounding areas of Tire. When faced with the pressure of Saladin's army, they hid in the city of Tire, which was easy to defend and difficult to attack, in order to protect themselves.
The other group was the group of nobles who paid for their freedom when the city of Jerusalem was destroyed.
The former nobles were busy going out of the city to check whether their estates and property had been damaged.
When the latter nobles saw Balian, their expressions were quite bad.
Especially Irakli, Patriarch of Jerusalem.
When he saw Balian on the street, he remembered the scene in the mansion in Jerusalem when Balian kicked him to the ground and put a sword on his neck.
"Iraqluo, it's been a long time no see."
The extra update plan failed, and I was depressed for the whole day, just sitting there.
(End of chapter)