Chapter 253 New Mission
Barbarossa's death can be said to have once again clouded the originally clear situation in the Holy Land.
For Saladin, the various pressures he faced in the past few months, military disadvantages, and the lack of cooperation from the nomadic tribes...
In an instant, a reversal occurred in a way that had never been imagined.
Even the nomadic tribes, who had been beaten to the point of moral collapse, quickly regained their morale.
A large number of rumors spread to all parts of the Islamic world, saying that the Roman emperor died at the hands of Sultan Saladin. This was the consequences of pagans not believing in the true God and invading the holy land.
Although the loss of those artillery pieces made Saladin very distressed, the death of Barbarossa not only bridged the gap between ourselves and the enemy, but also proved once again that Saladin was protected by God.
As for little Frederick, or Eden.
During these days, I felt that my world had been overturned. When I followed my father, I lacked fear of the world. I always felt that I had nothing to fear except God.
But after his father died unexpectedly, his perspective on the world was suddenly broken.
It turns out that mortals are mortals, and they will die because of the slightest accident.
And outside the mundane world, there really is a more bizarre world.
After experiencing such a strange encounter, little Frederick naturally went to Balian and received a clearer answer.
All of a sudden, regardless of whether little Frederick wanted it or not, he changed his name to Eden.
Then, under Balian's recommendation, Eden went to meet Garris in person.
Different from before, Eden walked through the city of Tire with Balian's company with an almost pilgrim mentality.
They passed through the slightly chaotic dock area, passed through the slums, and stopped in front of an unremarkable door.
Eden couldn't believe that Gareth would live here, but when he wanted to knock on the door, he heard a click and the door opened automatically.
What made Eden even more incredible was that no one greeted him at the door.
So, who opened the door just now?
Eden glanced at Balian, but Balian just shook his head. He didn't know how he did this.
After taking a deep breath, he realized that he was actually on a pilgrimage.
However, this pilgrimage does not need to go to Jerusalem, but to a small corner of the city.
This is not the house of a wizard or a magician. There are no crystal balls, statues, claws, furs or any other decorations.
It can be said that Gareth's residence is very tidy, and of course there are no servants.
In the living room, Gareth has been waiting for a long time.
When he saw Garris again, Eden looked very excited, and he couldn't wait to ask many questions.
But Gareth just hissed.
"Don't worry, I know what you want to ask. Come sit down first and let's talk bit by bit."
Eden sat on a very simple chair opposite Garris. Between the two of them was a low table. On this table that should be called a coffee table, there were some cups placed and some drinks poured. .
Balian also sat beside them.
After several people took a sip of their drinks, Garris signaled that the other party could ask.
And Eden's first words were: "Is what you said yesterday true?"
"You said that my land is not north of the Alps, but between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers."
"Yes or no, it depends on how to understand it."
"I don't understand what you mean."
"The new name I give you is Eden. There are four rivers in the Garden of Eden. Today, the only ones known to mankind are the Tigris and Euphrates."
"Yes."
"I want to tell you that the disappearance of the Pison and Gihon rivers is in itself a foreshadowing and a manifestation of all things deviating from the right track."
"You will establish a new kingdom between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and rebuild the Garden of Eden. When your kingdom can return to its original state, the Pison and Gihon rivers will return."
A mission and destiny were imposed on Eden by Gareth.
But instead of refusing, Eden became slightly excited.
The Garden of Eden is a concept with profound theological, symbolic and cultural significance in the Bible. Not only does it represent the origins of humanity, it also contains core themes about man's relationship with God, free will, sin, redemption, and hope.
"Genesis" records that God created Adam from dust and Eve from Adam's rib, and placed them in the Garden of Eden. It can be said that the Garden of Eden is the pinnacle of God's creation, symbolizing the original perfection and harmony of the world.
Of course, the Garden of Eden was also the place where mankind fell. The serpent (the incarnation of Satan) tempted Eve and Adam to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, causing them to disobey their heavenly Father's command.
Since then, the Garden of Eden has become a symbol of "Paradise Lost", representing mankind's fall from a state of perfection to a fallen state.
Garris said that he was going to Mesopotamia to establish another country and rebuild the Garden of Eden. Combined with the "miracle" of Garris being able to drive freely, this is undoubtedly declaring that the prophecy in the Book of Revelation will come true, and so will people. Reconciled with the Father.
When this matter was implemented in the Crusades, it actually had a realistic counterpart, which was the "County of Edessa", a country that had perished.
During the First Crusade (1096–1099), the European Crusaders conquered a vast area including Antioch, Jerusalem and other places, of which Edessa was one of the first places to be captured.
The County of Edessa was founded by Baldwin I, who later became the first king of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Edessa was strategically important as it controlled the key route from Asia Minor to Syria and Mesopotamia.
This location made it a hub for exchanges between Eastern and Western civilizations and an outpost against the forces of Seljuk Turks and Muslims.
Later, the county of Edessa fell to the Muslim Sultan Imad al-Din Zangi in 1144.
This event directly triggered the Second Crusade (1147–1149).
So the direct way to implement Garris's prophecy is actually very clear.
Restore the County of Edessa, and this time not only restore it, but also directly penetrate Mesopotamia. It is best to also go south and enter Baghdad.
For Eden, this was a dual drive of religion and secularity, which almost instantly washed away the confusion caused by the death of Barbarossa.
It also gave the remaining German Crusaders in Tire a clearer picture of the future.
Anyway, most of these Crusaders are the second sons of their families, and they have no place to inherit when they return. It would be a good choice to stay in the Holy Land and start a new country.
In the Mediterranean cultural circle of the 12th century, if Constantinople was the well-deserved Eternal City, then cities such as Damascus and Alexandria ranked second.
Compared with these overseas cities, London and Paris of this era were first-class, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that they were smelly countryside.
After a lot of chatting, Eden left Garris' residence feeling refreshed.
From Eden's perspective, this was essentially a covenant.
If we say that in the Bible, Jehovah made a covenant with Abraham, which resulted in a "promised land" from the River of Egypt to the Euphrates River.
So my previous encounter with Garris in the church can actually be interpreted in a similar way.
He must stay in the Holy Land. This is no longer a matter of secular interests.
It means that you have a place in God's plan.
This was not only about the restoration of Jerusalem, but also about the discovery of the original Paradise.
……
Relying on this arrangement for little Frederick, Geillis felt that he could at least keep some of the German Crusaders in the Holy Land.
Judging from the performance of the previous battle, Saladin's soldiers were indeed not good enough at fighting.
With the relative superiority of troops, even more artillery, and Saladin himself attacking the camp and outflanking it, the result was still a complete defeat.
It can only be said that if Barbarossa had not died, with the elite German Crusaders under his command, he might not have been able to penetrate Palestine all the way, humiliate Saladin wantonly, and take back Jerusalem along the way.
In fact, this situation is not what Garris wants to see happen.
Jerusalem is just one city and one place, but if the German Crusaders stand out too much under Barbarossa's performance during this process, then Gehris will have to get into the trouble of how to deal with the Germans.
But if the German Crusaders returned home directly and no longer participated in the subsequent war, this would also be a loss for Garris.
As far as the subject nation is concerned, in the case of Qairis raising the political status of the Arabs.
If you want to maintain domestic politics without falling into the dilemma of a small nation facing a large country, then you must increase the number of Franks, or the group of Christian believers in Gaelis.
Compared to Muslims who use Arabic script, Germans at least use Latin letters and are relatively easier to assimilate.
Introducing more immigrants from Europe is not a bad thing for the Second Kingdom.
This is especially true when Isabella and Balian insist on simplifying Latin as a unified language in the country.
"Of course, in addition to using the goal of restoring the County of Edessa and leaving some systematic German Crusaders, we also need to absorb some of them and grant them true noble status in exchange for their long-term service."
It was still in Garris's own hut to have some more detailed discussions with Balian.
Currently, the army directly under the Central Government of the Second Kingdom currently has four battalions of standing troops. Counting the troops that can be mobilized, it is essentially six to eight thousand people, which can be assembled.
But in this large number, almost all of them are infantry, which is very problematic in this era.
Unlike the era of hot weapons in the future, in today's 12th century, the human factor can be said to be crucial.
Although cold weapon equipment still occupies a considerable weight, if the people who use the weapons lack the courage to face death, then they are destined to collapse at the first touch.
In the Middle Ages, the blow to morale was often better than the actual killing effect.
One advantage of Western European knights compared to other arms is that when they charge, they can only move forward.
The infantry who faced the impact had to bear a lot of pressure, because in their eyes, it seemed that all the galloping horses were coming towards them.
Once the rout begins, it will be extremely difficult to recover.
Another blow caused by the knight's charge was the destruction of the formation. The number of people actually killed by the knight in the first wave of impact was not very large.
But once the formation of the attackers is disrupted, it means that it will be difficult for them to handle other subsequent attacks.
This is even more obvious and highlighted in the history of the Crusades.
During the First Crusade, at the Battle of Dorilaium, the infantry was left in the camp, and only the cavalry fought alone.
In this battle, the infantry could not even guarantee the safety of the camp.
The outflanking Turkic forces successfully entered the camp and massacred hundreds of non-combatants.
At that time, the Crusaders were only familiar with one tactic, which was to rely on knights for impact operations.
In their view, infantry can only open the battle by firing arrows at each other before the two sides formally engage in battle, or it can only be used to guard the camp.
However, during the Battle of Dorilaium, they were told that the infantry in the Crusaders might not even be able to hold the camp.
[We are like sheep in a flock, crowding each other, already out of our minds. Although they were surrounded by Turks, they did not have the courage to break out from any direction. 】
However, at this desperate moment, the situation was suddenly reversed.
Earlier in the day, Bohemond had sent couriers to find the right wing (which seemed to have lost contact at that time), and finally the couriers found the right wing camped six or seven miles away.
After learning of the battle, Godfrey of Boulogne, Raymond of Toulouse, and other generals who later became the "Guardians of the Holy Sepulchre" immediately led all their knights in neat uniforms and rushed to the battlefield at high speed.
When this group of knights arrived on the battlefield, the Turks had already gathered their troops and exposed their flanks in order to approach the camp.
Godfrey of Boulogne, with his 55 retainer knights, took the lead in attacking the Turks, and other knights followed closely behind.
Hundreds of knights brought a fierce impact. The Franks swept the Turks' left wing and attacked their army from the rear.
The Turks were unable to withstand such an impact and were instantly defeated. Only the Sultan's guards held on for a short time so that the Sultan himself could escape.
Bohemond also launched a desperate charge at this time, making the victory more complete.
From this moment on, the Crusaders suddenly realized that as knights, the charge effect they created was far beyond what those lightly-armed nomadic Turkic cavalry could match.
Coincidentally, in several subsequent battles, the knights' group charges played the role of the winner. A well-placed impact is enough to undo all the previous mistakes.
The charge of the knights could effortlessly stop the detours of the light cavalry.
Even in the just-concluded battle of Acre City, Barbarossa achieved this effect.
Just like Mengisa, Saladin once again lost to the knights' desperate charge. Compared with the European infantry at the time, the Saracen infantry also lacked professional training, and even infantry did not appear at all in many battles.
On the contrary, the Crusader countries quickly established their own heavy infantry groups, relying on the cooperation between infantry and cavalry to arbitrarily attack cities and territories in the early days of the Crusader countries.
In this case, the Second Kingdom would naturally be very thirsty for a very elite army of knights.
This means that combat will become very simple a lot of the time.
Of course, Gareth has his own opinions. Although he does not reject an army of knights, he cannot tolerate the Second Kingdom becoming the so-called country of knights.
Garris didn't care about honorary titles, or honorary noble status, and he would give them as many as he wanted.
While chatting with Balian, Balian also smiled bitterly.
"A flawless family lineage is the real nobility."
"Have you?"
"No." Balian was very candid.
Read the error-free version at 69 Book Bar! 6=9+Book_Bar debuts this novel.
"After my father made his fortune, he said that he was a descendant of the Chartres family in France, but he also confessed to me that he was actually Italian and had the power to hold a sword by chance."
"I suspect that he is actually a serf knight. Otherwise, there is no way to explain why he is so skilled in martial arts but never mentions the identity of his ancestors."
Balian spread his hands, and this was actually the current situation of many nobles in the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Taking Garris himself as an example, he actually couldn't tell where his ancestors came from.
It can only be said that because of the Crusades, the ancestors of Garris had the opportunity to develop and conquer the small nobles.
Many of the thousands of knights led by Barbarossa were in a similar situation to the ancestors of Garris and Balian.
"The kingdom lacks direct cavalry, which is very inconvenient in war. If they are willing to become professional cavalry, then things like knighthoods, or noble annuities, etc., can be negotiated in any amount."
Garris does not intend to directly abolish the aristocratic system. As far as the current situation is concerned, Garris feels that he cannot do it in one step.
Since we cannot achieve it in one step, we must recognize and utilize certain systems.
According to Garris, if everyone is an aristocrat, then everyone is not an aristocrat.
The word aristocrat itself has no entangled meaning.
Therefore, he felt that instead of directly abolishing the aristocratic system, it would be better for everyone to have an official position and become a noble together.
Breaking the iron barrier between common people and nobles is the key point.
What's more, are the nobility these days valuable?
Especially the nobles here in the Kingdom of Jerusalem are even more ridiculous.
The so-called nobility was a word that two hundred years ago, even a landowner or a farmer would dare to use for himself. The real gold content was the aristocratic lord, not the aristocrat.
As for things like knighthood, it's even less valuable. It's just a name anyway.
"As long as they can serve stably for a long time, we will provide them with subsidies. After they retire, they will receive a lifetime annuity allowance based on their military merit, service years and military rank."
"If I die, I can designate one person as the beneficiary according to the closeness of his blood relationship. It will also be a life-long annuity, and he will be absorbed into the system first."
For Garris, as long as it is not a hard-core crop that will increase exponentially, there is nothing to hesitate about sending money to subsidize it.
Anyway, military rank is a lifelong honor, so of course knighthood can also be regarded as a lifelong honor, but it is only an honor.
It is impossible for Garris to take the initiative to confer any manor lord, nor will he actually confer a noble lord on his own initiative.
"Then how do you plan to use them?"
"The Order Knight is actually pretty good."
"Edict Knight?"
"Yes."
……
"I have to say, the wine here in Tire is really good."
In front of Leon, Lucas raised the wine glass towards him and showed the expensive wine in this expensive wine vessel.
High-strength rum has become the favorite of many German knights.
Especially in the current situation, Barbarossa's unexpected death has caused quite a few German knights to fall into a confused state, not knowing where to go.
Those knights who owned land in their hometowns were naturally thinking about how to get it back quickly.
And those middle and upper class second sons of big families were hesitating whether to fight to the death in the Holy Land, after all, the emperor had already died.
Lucas is the latter, but the opponent seems to have a new outlet recently and has a lot of money in his pocket.
Able to drag myself in the city of Tire, drinking rum.
"Have you heard about Prince Frederick changing his name to Eden?"
"Yes, they also talked about going to the source of the two rivers, rebuilding Edessa and pursuing the Garden of Eden. Many knights who are closely related to His Highness have been persuaded by now."
"But they didn't look for you?"
Leon nodded, and then couldn't help but sigh.
Among the German Crusaders, except for the knights who own land, or the second generation of nobles like Lucas.
A "knight" like myself is the most embarrassing.
For someone like him, there is no way to prove that he is a true knight except for his skill in wielding a sword and riding a horse.
Of course, he is indeed not a real knight. In terms of political status, he is actually a serf.
In Germany, or in northern Italy, even serfs in manors can actually give birth to quite wealthy families. In terms of ecological niche, they are actually closer to free people.
It is actually possible for such a family to provide cavalry service or take on knightly duties.
Of course, it was impossible to escape one's status as a serf, or to become a real knight with a territory, in Germany itself.
The Crusade gave people like Leon an opportunity.
According to the rumors that Leon has heard, the Holy Land is a place of opportunity, where swords and horses are the capital of struggle, and no one will care about your ancestors.
Therefore, they tried every means to package themselves as "knights" and sneak into the ranks of the Crusaders to seek a future.
But now Barbarossa is dead!
Although Prince Frederick is also trying to win people's hearts, due to his own financial and prestige limitations, he doesn't care at all for a low-level knight like him who has no family reputation.
After all, Barbarossa could offer a large amount of money to buy off their loyalty, but Prince Frederick did not have the funds.
When he first set out for the expedition, Barbarossa gave everyone 100 gold coins to start with!
It was precisely because of such generosity that Barbarossa was so prestigious in the German Crusaders, and the morale of the big guys was so high.
Directly charge into the artillery position and give Saladin a little knight shock.
But Prince Frederick obviously did not have the financial resources, so he could only recruit some knights who were close to him as his team.
An unknown little knight like Leon fell into a situation where no one cared about him or asked questions.
"Aren't you going to go back to your hometown?"
"Well, the boat ticket requires at least 5 gold dinars. I can't afford the money anymore, brother."
"Tsk..."
Lucas sighed, but he also knew that his business was once again within reach.
"You want to stay in the Holy Land, right? Do you want to make a difference here?"
"Of course."
"Here in the kingdom, Balian and the others are preparing a secular knighthood. If you are interested, I can help you introduce it."
"No ancestry certificate required?"
Leon was a little surprised, but since Lucas was an acquaintance of his, there was no need to hide too much from him.
"If you can ride a horse, use a sword, and kill people, you are a good knight in the Holy Land..."
"Of course, there aren't that many manors here, but the kingdom will give you more salary subsidies. That money is enough for you to recruit some followers for yourself, so that you can truly enjoy the life a knight should have."
Lucas raised his glass again and extended an invitation to Leon.
The crystal wine vessel in his hand and the sweet liquor seemed to be the symbol of knight's life, making Leon swallow his saliva unconsciously.
And this scene has been staged countless times in Tire City.
"Of course, because of the war with the Muslims here in the Kingdom, it is not just a forty-day service period, but a year-round war preparation requirement. This is quite different from my hometown."
The origin of the Order Knights came from the middle and late stages of the Hundred Years' War. In the face of continuous wars, the traditional 40-day service in the feudal system was simply not enough. No matter how you tried to extend it, it was still not enough. And if you rely too much on mercenaries, it will cause quite serious social problems.
The quality of mercenaries often varies greatly, but generally speaking they are professional thugs who burn, kill, loot, refuse to disband, and extort ransom... which causes great damage to the social economy.
In the end, the French king chose to form a standing army composed of nobles, replaced the manor land with generous salary allowances, and required the knights to serve year-round.
In 1439, Aaron VII signed an edict to establish a royal army to wipe out the mercenary gangs roaming and looting in France. They were called the Compagnied'ordonnance.
In 1445, Aaron VII once again passed an edict to establish these troops as permanent standing armies, and the heavy cavalry themselves were gensd'armes, known as gendarmes d'ordonnance, which is translated as edict knights.
Different from the feudal conscription of knights in the old era, the imperial knights who received training all year round had to be more disciplined. An initial imperial company was theoretically organized into a hundred cavalry teams.
The so-called cavalry, in layman's terms, means knights and their retinue.
Traditional duties of a squire would include polishing the knight's armor and weapons, helping the knight don and remove his armor, taking care of his belongings, and even sleeping at his door as a guard.
The cavalry team will be more specific. Generally speaking, in addition to the knights, it will include an armed squire with slightly inferior equipment, apprentice squires and servants who do not participate in the battle, and two to five mounted crossbowmen, for a total of six to eight people. .
Lancers in History
When fighting, it is not said that a cavalry team is swarming up. In fact, the knights of the order will be assembled and used, and their retinues will be deployed separately.
To be precise, they were heavily armored knights and mounted infantry.
Out of an obsession, Gareth decided to rename the Lancers the Ban.
There are a total of eight people in a squad. The so-called Knight of the Order will serve as the squad leader. Among them, the armed attendant with less equipment will serve as the deputy squad leader. Two attendants will take care of the horses and be responsible for weapon maintenance. Four mounted infantry will use bows, crossbows, swords, shields and spears. A support force that follows the knights into battle.
Since knight combat is different from other infantry combat, under Garris's suggestion, it is not actually a company formation with a four-four formation.
Rather, it is in the form of squadrons and brigades.
There are 10 squadrons in one squadron and 4 squadrons in one brigade. In this way, under one brigade there are 40 order knights, 40 armed attendants with slightly worse equipment but who can charge together, 160 mounted infantry, and 80 A squire who handles logistical issues.
Such a 400-man brigade is quite reasonable in the eyes of Balian and other knights. It can be said that the knights' combat capabilities are maximized.
It doesn't take much to order a knight brigade like this. As long as there are three, they can launch an earth-shattering charge on the battlefield.
This means 240 elite cavalry and 480 mounted infantry who assist in combat.
In addition, Balian also made suggestions.
Because Balian had used artillery several times before, he was already very familiar with the effects of that new weapon.
"We can also install artillery. After installing lighter cannons on the carriages transporting supplies, this can give our knight brigade a more intense firepower projection."
"If each brigade is equipped with four artillery pieces, a brigade will be a complete combat unit. Such a combat unit is highly mobile, has firepower, is supported by mounted infantry, and has the ability to launch a decisive charge and pursue the enemy. .”
"A brigade of about four hundred people, all on horseback, is deployed at the border. Compared with the previous border infantry battalion, such a brigade can only protect a longer border. This can also effectively reduce Saladin's The losses caused by launching a war of harassment against me.”
Garris nodded. As far as the current situation is concerned, Balian's suggestion is undoubtedly pertinent.
"However, a key problem with forming such a force is that it... is too expensive."
Compared with the traditional feudal knights, such an imperial knights group has 400 people, everyone must have a horse, 40 knights serve all year round, plus 4 artillery.
This is undoubtedly a huge test of the kingdom's financial strength.
(End of chapter)