Chapter 993： The Frankish army gathers

At first, Ludwig was skeptical that the enemy captured a group of Frankish civilians. Now that he saw hundreds of people who were rescued, that suspicion did not disappear, but instantly turned into another kind of doubt.

Why? ! Why did the Normans and traitors free their captives?

Don't they even want a ransom? still is……

Ludwig suspected that there was a fine print, and he ordered the army to inspect the men.

The soldiers suffered defeats and encountered heavy snowstorms. Although they persisted until now, the morale of the army was not high, but they did not have any serious feelings of defeat.

After all, the situation is like this. Whether it is marching or evacuating, everyone has to face endless snow. Even if a lot of military rations are lost, the remaining food in the entire army can support for a period of time, and you don't have to worry a lot until the food runs out.

Soldiers rudely ordered the rescued to explain what they had experienced with the enemy. Many soldiers accused them of being traitors and even betraying their beliefs.

The rescued people cried out for wishes, all vowed not to betray their faith, and at the same time begged for the same thing: that a large number of people are still in the hands of the enemy.

Soldiers always pressed people to the snow, pressed them to the ground and forced them to admit but betrayal.

There were even some soldiers who did something against the women.

It is very unrealistic for the Frankish army to easily believe that they did not betray, and the army also took the opportunity to vent their grievances with brutal "inquiries" to these released people.

Things got messed up, and Ludwig stayed in the warm safe house, indifferent to what his subordinates were doing.

In the end, the Archbishop of Cologne couldn't stand it any longer.

The priests with the dark wooden cross ordered the soldiers to spare all the rescued people. Those people saw inconceivably that the Archbishop of Cologne was actually here, and they came over to plead for the Archbishop's redemption.

"You... are all lost lambs. You are guilty. However, you can repent to me, and God will redeem your souls."

Ludwig had no time to pay attention to the rescued captives, the snow had stopped, the Elbe was completely frozen, and a favorable opportunity for war was in front of him.

He invited his generals and nobles to his safe house and was busy planning the next battle.

Everything was guessed by Rurik, Ludov and others. Ludwig still has a huge army, and it is not easy for his people to assemble their forces, and it is even more difficult to find opportunities for decisive battles.

Although the demands of the released have not been taken seriously by Ludwig, the "gauntlet" has already been held in his hand.

Normans and traitors long for a decisive battle, so fight!

Although it is strange to launch a decisive battle in a snowy world, aside from the enthusiasm of the generals, a very real problem is before everyone - there is not much time for military rations to support.

Looking into the eyes of all the generals, Ludwig pointed out solemnly: "We must resolve this war before Christmas. We have suffered many setbacks in the past because the enemy has the advantage of ships. Now the river is frozen and our war horses are free Ride, cavalry and infantry can go directly through the Elbe. We were worried that the river would not freeze this winter, now God is helping us! Just as Moses prayed that God separated the Red Sea, now God freezes the river for us. God is on our side The whole army must hurry up to prepare, give you three days, and after three days we will launch a general attack."

The turbulent Red Sea and the surging Elbe are deadly moats on the way.

The generals and nobles did not know what the "dividing the Red Sea" described in the scriptures was. Their understanding of the "Red Sea" was literal meaning, in short, it was a miracle of God.

Now after Ludwig's guidance, they believe that the frozen Elbe is also a miracle.

The generals and nobles have unified their minds, and three days later will be the day when the army will be launched, and the ice and snow will no longer be obstructions.

It was not until Ludwig's order was issued that Archbishop Hadbold came to see the king who decided the war.

The safe house is still warm and pleasant, but it is just a private house. A king lives here, and Ludwig feels that it is too out of character.

The Archbishop of Cologne felt that the current situation of the army was terrible. He would think of the hard life he lived as a trainee priest when he was young, and he never thought that he would be frozen in an unknown village when he was old.

"It's the bishop, you are here." Seeing the archbishop standing alone in the room, Ludwig was respectful.

"yes."

"Anything to teach me?"

"I dare not..." The Archbishop still had lingering fears: "It's the people who were rescued. I listened to all their confessions, and I guarantee with my soul that they did not volunteer to do things for the Norman pirates and Saxon traitors."

"Oh?" Ludwig was taken aback. "So they were forced to do something? Sure enough, they were guilty."

"We all have original sins. They didn't betray the faith, they didn't have new sins. They told me a lot about the Normans, and maybe it's in your favor."

"Go ahead."

Therefore, the Archbishop of Cologne recited from his own memory, and he also selectively reported those things that were detrimental to the church, but he did not mention a word.

The Normans have powerful troops and many ships, and the Saxons recognize the Earl of Westphalia as the Duke of Saxony.

A lot of news shows that the enemy's troops are strong, and Ludwig slapped his thigh violently: "Enough! Are you doing things for them? Are they so strong?"

The archbishop hurriedly took a step back, trying his best to hide his timidity: "I'm just repeating. And those people also made a strange news."

"what news?"

"It's Baudouin, Count of Flanders."

"That guy? What's the matter."

"Although I can't believe it, those people pointed out that Baudouin has been captured, right in the city of Hamburg. Moreover, the country of Flanders was attacked not long ago, and the Normans destroyed Antwerp, northern Fries. The Lan area has been occupied by the Normans!"

"This..." Ludwig, who was standing, couldn't stop swaying: "This is ridiculous. Did Baudouin also betray? That guy, I couldn't believe him at all, but I didn't expect him to betray my faith?! If It's true, I... have to this war."

"Of course there will be a decisive battle, but Baudouin was only captured, and there is no evidence that he defected to the Normans. There are still a large number of our prisoners in Hamburg, whose families are controlled by the enemy. I implore God to save those Lamb, therefore, God has entrusted you with this glorious mission. Save them, and you...will be the patron saint."

"The patron saint?" Hearing this word, Ludwig couldn't help but be moved.

"Yes. You will succeed, and I will apply to Rome for you. You will be the guardian of the faith and have reason to be the patron saint."

Ludwig never thought of obtaining the title of "Emperor of the whole Roman people", and he dared not compare with his grandfather Charlemagne. The fundamental reason for launching the civil war now is to resist the elder brother's cut off the clan. As long as the elder brother agrees to abolish the cut clan and agree to a three-division kingdom, his East Frank will immediately withdraw and truce.

It all boils down to infighting between brothers, but with the title "Sant" in front of his name, everything is beautiful.

Ludwig was completely persuaded, and he longed to become a saint.

The two parties seemed to have made a deal, but the inside story of some deals was unknown to the party Ludwig.

Because the Bishop of Utrecht and the Archbishop of the North, whether for security reasons or simply participating in the rebellion, the nobles of the lands in which their diocese were located became rebels.

In particular, the Archbishop of the North, Esquier, is the patron saint. He protects "until the end of the northern world", and the Archbishop of Cologne, Hardbold, is equivalent to his rank.

The areas involved in the rebellion thus overlapped geographically with the entire northern parish. Is it to be said that the saints of the north joined the war against the Franks? And it was, because the rebellious Saxons did not betray their faith.

In principle, it can be said that this war will also involve the entire Holy See. The Archbishop of Cologne, out of rational considerations, does not want the Holy See to be forced to mediate and make things very embarrassing.

After all, these grandsons of Charlemagne are not fuel-efficient lamps, especially this Ludwig, who imprisoned his father, King Louis, who was still alive three years ago, and the Holy See asked for his release, but Ludwig turned a deaf ear. It was a crime to be released only when his father ran out of fuel. It was a pity that the Holy See could not judge the Frankish king who possessed the "emperor of the whole Roman people".

Because the other party involved in the incident is the current legitimate king Lothair, who especially maintains the noble title of emperor, and his troops can take Cologne within three days if necessary.

The Archbishop of Cologne cannot afford to offend these ruthless people. In order to ensure that the Diocese of Cologne continues to preserve its power in all aspects, as well as to ensure the face of the Holy See, the Archbishop needs a decisive battle. As long as Ludwig's Frankish army was victorious, no matter how the rebellion was settled in the future, it would be an infighting only seen by the noble lords, and had nothing to do with the Holy See.

It will be business as usual for the Utrecht and Northern Diocese.

The army is eager for revenge, and the freed are eager to save their loved ones after the battle. The priests were supposed to shun war, but this time the Archbishop of Cologne became a resolute leader, a transformation that surprised and greatly admired Ludwig.

In the Frankish barracks, the minds were completely unified, and the decisive battle was about to break out.

Ludwig will lead the whole army to attack, in order to secure the world in the first battle.

He didn't even want to make way for himself.

So, the day before the scheduled departure, the Frankish army assembled.

Soldiers from all camps gathered at the front camp, so the ground under the snow-covered pine forest was trampled so hard that soldiers cruising and wandering could be seen everywhere.

They each brought their own weapons and equipment, and many of them also dressed up to be bloated. They used more cloth to keep out the cold, and even tore up a group of tents wrapped in sackcloth.

Ludwig knew all this. He had made certain preparations to keep out the cold, but when he was attacked by the university, he knew that his preparations were still ill-prepared.

Even though he suffered a lot of losses in a defeat on the banks of the Elbe before, according to the reports of various generals and nobles, he still has 14,000 people who can participate in the decisive battle.

Compared with the loss of 10,000 people before departure, such a loss ratio is too outrageous. Fortunately, the strength of his elite army is particularly strong. The lost troops are either from the Sorbian slave soldiers or peasant soldiers. Those soldiers could not fight **** battles. The key to everything is whether your elite can still fight.

Ludwig took a good look at it. His own elites were not bad. The harsh winter did not dampen their spirits. The number of elite soldiers in armor was still close to 5,000.

"Those Saxons are also armed peasants, and it will take a long time to train before they become strong soldiers. The key is the Norman army, they are probably not as strong as me, when they completely lose the cover of rivers and ships, when my army Disperse them and I will win!"

No one gave Ludwig any advice, and he had no staff by his side.

The European aristocratic wars of this era were generally simple, and they all relied on the individual plans of the aristocratic generals. Ludwig passively became a dictator of military planning. He didn't think it was inappropriate. He only thought that he had come up with a simple and rude plan to solve the problem.

Now, the icy forest is full of Frankish troops, they are densely gathered, the total number is as many as 14,000.

All the men who were rescued were recruited and given arms to fight as militias. Ludwig gathered all those who could fight, and those who suffered from severe frostbite were thrown into the camp as if they had been abandoned.

The elite soldiers gathered together to listen to the final pre-war mobilization of Ludwig wearing the golden crown.

Before that, the army had prepared both materially and psychologically. Although many people were very worried before the decisive battle, when they thought of the shame they had encountered before and what this war meant, most of those who were worried put their fear of death on their hands. Forget it.

This is a glorious showdown!

Uphold the sacred faith! Crusade barbarians and traitors!

Glory belongs to Frank, for rescuing his brethren captured by barbarians.

...

Ludwig emphasized many slogans, and the soldiers kept cheering them.

They didn't run far after the first defeat, and in fact they didn't have the ability to run far.

If the earth is not covered by this heather forest, standing on the heights of Hamburg City, you can see the Frankish camp in the distance.

The Frankish army was cheering, and the shouts of tens of thousands of people turned into a dull roar, as if the sound came from the earth.

The coalition forces guarding Hamburg couldn't ignore the rumbling, but everyone didn't understand what it meant. Some people said that the sound came from the earth, some said it was a dull thunder in the distance, and some people speculated that it was the cry of soldiers.

The coalition forces had already prepared for battle, and the five hundred prisoners who had served as messengers had been released, and the soldiers had entered the final stage of pre-war preparations.

Most of the soldiers had already made spikes, and even the average Saxon peasant soldier made their own spikes from the dismantled parts of the captured Frankish armor. The appearance of spikes is varied, and the materials used are also used for what purpose. In the end, it is generally guaranteed that they will not slip easily when walking on ice.

The rumbling sound made Rurik highly nervous. He immediately removed his white velvet cap, put on a tin helmet, and first issued an order for the assembly of the Rus army.

The warriors who had been prepared for a long time immediately acted. Sword and shield, bow and crossbowmen, spearmen, and heavy weapons troops assembled with all their might The Rus army did things with great fanfare, and Ragnar's Danish army immediately followed.

Ross's blue-and-white flag is flying, and Denmark's black-and-white raven flag is flying.

Then, a large number of white cross flags were raised, and the army of the Duchy of Saxony and the army of the Netherlands joined in.

There are also some special flags here, the red-yellow checkered king of Northumbria, accompanied by the king Ernred. Ernred and Prince Ella appeared purely as observers. When he thought that what would happen next would be a big battle involving more than 10,000 people, this battle was too extreme, and Ernred's inner excitement **** everything else.

There is also a distinctive blue raven-patterned flag, which is a symbol of the Viking York Kingdom, where King Biyonny and his younger brother Floki appear.

Soldiers began to gather outside the city, looking at the forest on the south bank of the frozen Elbe, expecting the appearance of the enemy.

Liudov hurriedly changed into his battle armor, and hurried out of the city with his cronies, and soon Rurik, King of Rus, who was looking from afar, would reconcile.

He was panting heavily, his breath full of thick mist: "The enemy... the enemy is really here?"

"Come on. Listen! The rumble is their cry."

"Is it the day of the final battle?"

"At least they absolutely chose a decisive battle. Everything is in our plan. What to do next, I can't help repeating it."

"I understand!" Ludov gritted his teeth and assured: "This is mainly the battle of our Saxons, thank you for your assistance to our country. In order to survive, we Saxons will never back down."

Rurik nodded, "You and I were still enemies a few months ago. Your courage shocked me. I hope you will show the exact same courage this time."

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