Chapter 58: The Desolate Castle

Chapter 58: The Desolate Castle

After a month of "mascot", the old Huffman also had few friends of the same grade to show off. So he agreed to leave Marin.

Marin ran away quickly, took his men and horses, hurried to the horse, and went to the Netherlands ...

The speed of riding is obviously not comparable to walking, and Marin and others are equipped with a single horse and two horses. So, three days later, Marin and his army arrived at the small seaside port of Den Helder, opposite the island of Texel.

Den Helder is only 4 kilometers away from the fishing village of Tholencher, the southernmost port of Texel. However, Den Helder is not yet a port city, but a larger fishing village with a small fishing port.

If they are carrying people, the small fishing boats in these fishing villages can easily transport everyone to the other side. However, Marin brought 1030 horses and several large carriages, and the small fishing boat could not be loaded. As a result, Marin had to send someone on horseback to nearby important seaport Amsterdam and hired several large ships.

In this way, after waiting for four or five days, Marin was on a big ship hired by Amsterdam and landed in the fishing village of Tholencher.

After landing, Marin sent a local villager to find a local dialect businessman (businessmen are not easy this year, they have to learn to speak many dialects), and helped to declare loudly that he was the new Texel The fact that the baron was the lord of the lord, and issued a sheepskin instrument and seal issued by the emperor.

Facing Marin's 400 warriors like wolf, what other ideas do the villagers have? So they swore allegiance to Marin and stated that they were willing to pay taxes.

Considering the end of 1495, the fish flood in the North Sea will begin next spring. So Marin demanded that taxes be levied next spring.

Then, Marin continued to lead people northward and arrived at the administrative center of Texel Island-Den Burg ...

What disappointed Marin was that he didn't see the majestic castle in his imagination, but instead saw a desolate castle ...

Yes, the desolate castle ...

This castle is very small and completely incomparable with the photos of European castles that Marin saw on previous Weibo. Of course, the castles that are tourist attractions are either the king's or the duke's. Denborg, strictly counted, was just a palace of the Earl of the Netherlands. Therefore, the size of this castle is like two or three villas. At best, it's a luxurious country house. It's just that there are more tall and solid walls than the villa.

Not to say that there are only 1,000 Eugrams on the island that can be cultivated for farmland. Instead, the island has fewer people and can only plant such a large area of land. If there are more acres, the labor force is simply not enough. Even because of insufficient labor, only half of the 1000 Ugram land on the island is cultivated each year, and the other half is left fallow and abandoned.

Moreover, the 200 Ugram fields on the island belong to the church's property on the island. The remaining 800 Eugrams belong to three families-the Colin family, the Mahir family, and the Roni family.

However, these three families also have a lot of land on land. They don't really care about the farmland on Texel. Because the affairs on the island, because of the inconvenience of traffic, are too cumbersome to manage.

"Bishop Dalian, are these three families willing to sell their fields?" Marin thought about it and decided to buy the land that the three families didn't value. As a lord, if there is no field, it becomes a joke.

"You are already a lord, of course you can do this. And, you can buy from these three families at a reserve price. Because, in name, you are the owner of this island!" Bishop Dalyan suggested kindly.

For the island of Texel to become an independent baron leader, Bishop Dalyan is very welcome. why? Because a baron used this island as a territory, he would definitely take good care of it, and even recruit exiles to open up wasteland together. At that time, there are more people on the island, and his assistant bishop can be promoted to be a true regional bishop. Moreover, with more people, there are more "tithing" in the church.

In the Middle Ages of Europe, the church had the privilege of collecting tithes from the people. This privilege, until modern times, still remains. However, in Protestant countries, this tax was later accepted by the government.

Following the advice of Bishop Dalyan, Marin decided to pay for land ownership in three agricultural villages and several ranches on the island. According to the estimate of Assistant Cardinal Dalian, the total value of the land of three agricultural villages and several ranches on the island is only 10,000 gold coins. This is a piece of cake for local tycoon Marin.

Then, Marin took 400 men to the desolate old castle-Denborg ...

I saw the old castle covered with dust, and only the town's sheriff often sent people to clean the lower facade. As for the interior of the castle, it has always been locked. The thickness of the dust inside is a pit ...

And many of the wooden furniture in the castle fell apart. Obviously, they were corrupted ...

"Mom, Kohler, tomorrow you'll find someone to clean the castle again. Remember, let everyone wear a mask, it's so ugly, it's really uncomfortable ..."

Because the castle was too dirty, Marin had to order his men to camp near the castle and live in a tent for a few days. As for Marin himself, at the invitation of Bishop Dalyan, he lived in the church room ...