Chapter 246 War is about to arise
Here at Paphos Port, Anthony put a lot of effort into preparing the reception.
In the city of Paphos, anyone who can wear some beautiful clothes should wear it. The entire port is decorated with colors, flags are flying, garlands are hung in every corner, and the long tables are filled with sumptuous food and drinks.
The "Red Beard" His Majesty Frederick and the fifteen thousand soldiers under his command must be entertained to satisfaction, and then sent to Palestine as quickly as possible.
In a sense, His Majesty "Red Beard" Frederick is indeed a living father.
A living father who cannot be offended by so many people here.
For Germany, "Red Beard" Frederick was a very important figure.
It can be said that it was in the hands of this man that the historical term Holy Roman Empire officially appeared. He is considered to be one of the greatest medieval emperors of the Holy Roman Empire.
To his contemporaries, in the eyes of Anthony, this living father was quite scary.
During his six expeditions to Italy, the first time he went on a killing spree in the city of Rome, killing more than a thousand people during the suppression of the Roman riots.
Considering the bad records of the previous Crusades, Antony could only pray to the other party. Seeing that he had the papal envoy and the envoy of the Kingdom of Jerusalem beside him, he was more or less a human being.
In addition to Antony as the host, Red Beard was also received by a special envoy from the Kingdom of Jerusalem, who is also the current speaker of the House of Lords of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Conrad's father, William, Marquis of Montferrat.
Although Conrad's Monteferra family, as an Italian family, spent a lot of time and energy to prevent the HRE from strengthening its authority in Italy, and even formed an alliance with the Eastern Empire for this purpose.
Conrad himself personally led the army in September 1179, defeated and captured the Archbishop of Mainz, Prime Minister of the HRE.
This is a bridge between the two parties, but another fact is that Frederick and Conrad are actually cousins and they have a common grandmother.
Speaking of relatives, Mr. William is also the uncle of "Red Beard" Frederick.
Mr. William's wife has a bloodline from the Salian dynasty, and she is related to quite a few nobles in Germany.
Therefore, the responsibility of receiving the German Crusaders was entrusted to him.
A red carpet covered the pier, and two standing army companies from the Second Kingdom stood at attention on both sides of the road.
When Frederick passed in front of them, hundreds of them saluted together. This neat behavior and high-spirited and meticulous stance were different from other armies of this era.
Although the hand-raised salute did not appear in this era, etiquette is etiquette.
With this unique yet exceptionally uniform and solemn behavior, coupled with his meticulous face, Frederick could at least be sure that this was not some malicious teasing or ridicule.
"Are they?"
Frederick asked Mr. William on the side.
"They are the bodyguards of the little princess of Anjou over in Jerusalem."
Mr. William replied calmly.
Frederick also nodded. The influence of the Anjou family in Europe is now at the top.
He became king in England, took away half of France, and also controlled the Holy Land.
"Really, impressive."
The discipline displayed by these soldiers was something Frederick had never seen before.
Although the number of people on the other side was small, it still made Frederick feel a little awe-inspiring.
……
Looking down on Acre from the heights of Mount Torun, the view before your eyes is truly magnificent.
Within the city wall, a dense network of workshops, houses, churches and towers stand in an orderly manner. They surround the central fortress, forming a solid defensive circle. The vast sea meanders to the south and west of the city, with sparkling waves reflecting a tranquil atmosphere.
On the land side, a solid stone wall stands majestically, giving people a sense of security, while beyond the stone wall is a flat sandy land that stretches to the sky.
This is the largest port in the Holy Land, a gathering place for wealth, and a loading and unloading place for "ships as tall as mountains."
A Muslim traveler in Andalusia once praised: "The greatness of this city is comparable to Constantinople."
He visited Acre in the autumn of 1184, when Acre was still the jewel in the crown of the King of Jerusalem.
Now it is the winter of 1188. Not only the pearl of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, but also most of the old land of the Kingdom of Jerusalem is in the hands of Saladin.
At this moment, Gerald, the Grand Master of the Knights Templar, was standing on the top of Torun Mountain, and the Templar Knights beside him were watching all this in silence.
Once the Knights Templar were born humble, and now they are humble again.
When Gerald was imprisoned in Acre, he no longer heard the church bells ringing but the Muslim prayers every Friday.
The houses, farms, land...crops and everything else of the temple community were in the hands of others.
Under the management of the enemy, a large tower was added to the palace of the Knights Templar, which stood in the distance, unscrupulously declaring who was the master.
Read the error-free version at 69 Book Bar! 6=9+Book_Bar debuts this novel.
"We will take it all back for God."
War is about to arise.
This time, the knight on the red horse landed on the land of Palestine.
With the arrival of Barbarossa, the Third Crusade officially began.
Previously, the peace agreement, which was on the verge of being invalidated, was completely abolished.
But relatively speaking, Saladin's recruitment of soldiers was much slower.
The area he rules is larger than that of Shinra, and his rule in various regions is even more fragmented than that of Shinra.
When he invaded the Kingdom of Jerusalem, it took Saladin a full year to mobilize his army.
When recruiting again, it will be slower because the Muslim jihadist fanaticism has weakened.
But Saladin had anticipated this and had made arrangements in advance. Under Saladin's instigation, a large number of nomadic tribes moved into Palestine.
By promising the power to tax the land, Saladin obtained an army of nomadic light cavalry that could be quickly recruited and easily maneuvered.
In just a few days, Saladin's army began to snowball.
Gerald glanced at the city of Acre again. In that direction, many nomadic cavalry had noticed their arrival.
Over there, smoke and dust billowed, and hundreds of cavalry could be seen galloping.
It seems that the current owner of Akka City does not welcome his former owner to peek from the side.
"It's time to go, guys."
Gerald said hello, and the Templar knights beside him packed up their belongings and prepared to evacuate.
When he left, he left behind a sentence that disappeared in the wind.
"This is God's land, and I am the agent of God's will..."
(End of chapter)