Chapter 1,475 The Russian Army Is Under the City of Cologne

With the Ruhr River to the east and the Rhine to the south, the settlement of Duisburg is sandwiched in this unique delta area.

"It's the Ruhr River. Isn't this the Ruhr Industrial Area? The city of Cologne in the south is busy getting wool, leather, linen, etc., and then processing them into finished products for sale. Wouldn't it be..."

Rurik had a premonition that the fate of the city of Cologne was unknown. Even at this wonderful time in 843 AD, its handicraft industry made it completely unique among the Frankish cities.

Alternative means that there are more efficient ways to accumulate wealth, which is also beneficial to Ross's economic expansion.

Rurik was also pleased to discover that the city of Duisburg did not belong to any noble lord. It legally belonged to the "Archbishopric of Cologne" and was directly managed by priests sent by Cologne.

This was indeed the case in Duisburg in previous years, but now it is firmly controlled by the county of Nassau-Koblenz.

Legally speaking, this county does have such a name, but its inner core situation makes Rurik laugh out loud with joy.

Just as this small town openly flies the proclaimed "St. Andrew's Cross Flag", it is a serious Ross oar flag, and its Norse pronunciation is called "Roots".

Now, with a broken tooth, Eric tells Rurik more details.

"In addition to our family members in Duisburg, there are also some immigrants from Nassau and Coblenz. All the old local residents have moved away. Essen and Mülheim, two cities on the upper reaches of the Ruhr River, There are a group of Saxons and Franks living in nearby villages. They are under the direct management of the priests. They have no clear armed fighters and pose no threat to us. Based on the treaty, we will not attack them on the initiative, nor are we willing to do anything with them. comminicate."

The two settlements Eric "Broken Tooth" talked about, the former "Essen an der Ruhr", its name is simple and crude, which means "eating place by the river"; the latter "Milheim an der Ruhr", which means It is the "gentle waterfront land in the middle". The two settlements actually formed the backbone of the so-called Ruhr industrial area, and today the two cities are also located on the Roman road known by locals as the "Castrobo Road to Hell".

Starting from Duisburg, after passing the stone and wooden bridge of the Ruhr River from the local area, there are actually two Roman roads going north to choose from. Because they both pass through the Teutoburg Forest, they are both nicknamed the Road to Hell.

The Western Route of Hell Road connects Duisburg, Dosten, Münster, Osbrunak, Bremen, and leads directly to Hamburg.

The eastern route of the Hell Road connects Duisburg, Mülheim, Essen an der Ruhr, Bochum, Dortmund, Salzkoten, and ends at Covey an der Weser.

The Ross cavalry marched retrograde along the Western Front all the way to Duisburg. What Rurik saw along the way was a dilapidated scene. Its dilapidation was largely due to the looting of the Ross army many years ago and the Ludwig Northern Expedition. Either active or passive secondary damage.

The eastern front was a different story.

The city of Cologne is a distribution center and processing center for various resources, and a string of settlements on the eastern front provide it with a steady stream of production raw materials.

Especially the small city of Salzkoten, which was personally managed by the bishop sent by Cologne, who not only educated the people but also supervised the local production of rock salt. As its name suggests, it is the only salt city in the entire Cologne diocese, ensuring that the people of the entire diocese do not lack salt.

These details would never have been known to Rurik if his subordinates had not been conducting in-depth investigations here.

"It's a pity that this place has been deeply developed. I can't conquer it firmly and make profits by doing business with them. This way of making profits is cost-effective."

But on the left bank of the Rhine across the river, all the left bank villages were raided by the Russians and Danes. Once the soldiers of the so-called Nassau-Koblenz County entered the left bank area, all pretense would be lost. existence, they became genuine Norman pirates who spoke the Norse language.

As a result, the area about ten kilometers close to the river on the left bank has become a no-man's land. Only Dusseldorf on the left bank will not be attacked by the Normans because it is a pass and fortress directly controlled by the Diocese of Cologne.

In this way, the Roman Emperor Lothair's army, as well as the imperial nobles loyal to the emperor, did not dare to attack the Cologne diocese at all, and they did not dare to sacrilege.

Rurik and his allies will not attack the Cologne diocese due to the treaty.

In these troubled times, Cologne has become a pure land, and the powerful productivity it bursts out allows it to have a vital impact as long as it joins any party in the civil war.

This night, the small Duisburg bonfire was brightly lit, and the clouds in the sky were illuminated red, as if to dispel the coldness of late autumn.

Duisburg is actually still two days' journey from Cologne. Considering the local destruction of the Ross Cavalry three years ago, the villagers who have experienced the disaster are afraid that they will be frightened again if they see the mighty Ross Cavalry again. This Not what Rurik wanted.

That night, a large longhouse served as a temporary command post for the army, as well as Rurik's own residence.

He was the King of Rus, and the palace was where the king was, so Duisburg became the king's palace. In an instant, "Broken Tooth" Eric and the guys who were stationed here felt bright in their faces.

After clarifying the basic situation of the region and some wonderful details, Rurik, who was enthusiastic and energetic, summoned the generals of each team and especially made special arrangements for the experienced general Fisk.

Faces looked at Rurik with smiles, and they all listened.

"Our friends have explained the situation. The brothers sent many years ago are like pioneer farmers. They have achieved great success. Now I must take the initiative to contact the Archbishop of Cologne. Without further delay, I must send the most trustworthy, People who know the local area well go to Cologne to visit.”

Rurik's eyes couldn't help but glance at Fisk, who understood.

Fisk wiped his shiny bald head with a smile: "Who else is more suitable than me? I will rush over with a group of brothers. As long as the king gives the order, I can arrive at the city of Cologne before tomorrow evening."

"Very good, you are very smart, so I don't have to give you detailed task arrangements..."

Rurik's plan is also simple and crude. The army will not stay in Duisburg for even one day. The whole army will set off tomorrow morning. The difference is that Fisk's troops will move as quickly as possible, and the rest of the troops will follow the Rhine River step by step. Move forward, planning to camp on the way.

The small meeting ended quickly. After returning to the team, the captains who received the order immediately conveyed the spirit of the meeting to the soldiers, and without hesitation ordered the horses to be fed immediately to prepare for the continued march tomorrow.

Fisk walked back to his camp in high spirits. He summoned the lazy soldiers overnight and ordered in a stern tone: "To hell with your fatigue! Tomorrow I will lead you to break away from the large army and reach Cologne as quickly as possible. It’s like we did it three years ago.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a group of veteran soldiers were ready to make a move.

"Ha! Has anyone thought about the battles we fought back then? Haha, we set fire to kill everywhere, those villages were plundered by us, and we were unmatched. But! This time we go to Cologne with a peaceful attitude, and the king will arrive first The honor of Cologne is entrusted to us. I order you to prepare your most splendid costumes until the city of Cologne orders those cowards to submit again."

Those were the glorious days of the brothers. From then on, they lost their fear of the Franks and instead developed a sense of arrogance when they turned to the offensive.

So they fed the horses an excessive amount of oats. The horses of the 1st Cavalry were in excellent condition and showed no signs of fatigue when they set off the next day.

A huge cavalry group gathered by the river. Rurik happily held the reins and drove his mount, saying his final farewell to Fisk before marching.

"Your Majesty, you can rest assured that Archbishop Hudbold must entertain us with delicious meals and wine. Otherwise, I will let him recall the horrors of the past."

"Eh?" Rurik shook his head: "That old guy is too old to withstand your threats. Who should we talk to if he scares us to death? Now..." As he spoke, Rurik ordered his subordinates to take out a cloth bag. , and delivered it to Fisker personally.

Fisk put the bag away, and it felt like there was something like a scroll inside. "What's this?"

"It was my letter to Hadbold. I took the time to write it in Latin last night, and the old fellow can understand it."

"I see."

"Remember. Try to hand it over to him directly. If the locals are not happy, use force to scare them. You still have to remember not to go too far. We don't need to cause misunderstandings in Cologne after all." Rurik finally stressed. .

"I will try my best to do a good job." After putting away the bag, Rurik nodded slightly and flicked the reins: "Let's go!"

The 1st Cavalry galloped toward the upper reaches of the Rhine with the sound of bugles.

They did not have to stick to the winding course of the Rhine River. The whole team of three hundred riders tried their best to keep straight, racing through the meadows and deserted beaches along the river, and then passed through some necessary clusters of woods before the sun set. Arrive at the outskirts of Cologne smoothly.

Of course, their appearance cannot help but attract the attention of nearby villagers, and the flying "Saint Andre Flag" is alarming. The villagers who witnessed Ross's cavalry began to hide. They had just fled into the woods and found that the cavalry had simply passed through, and then gradually returned to the village without any losses.

But the next day, the villagers began to flee again, only because a larger cavalry team appeared!

In the city of Cologne under the setting sun, the thick rock walls are illuminated orange, and the church in the city rings the bell at dusk as usual, heralding the beginning of night life.

There is no curfew in the city of Cologne. Since the local rulers are all priests, they have no need for nightlife. As a result, there is no night life in Cologne as a whole. The vast majority of residents in the city adhere to the agricultural lifestyle. After nightfall, the whole family goes to bed, unless manual work forces them to light oil lamps and continue working after dark.

At least the leather craftsmen in the city will continue to work amid the stench and dim light of the oil lamps.

Because they treated sheepskin and cowhide with highly corrosive dog urine, and then used Glauber's salt for tanning.

Cologne is a key archdiocese in the empire. It has the historical task of spreading the gospel to the northern Saxons, Danes, and many Slavic tribes. This requires the city to preserve a large number of classic books, which makes the city's book copying industry more important. To be developed, the supporting special leather industry must also be developed.

Using corrosive ink to copy classics on parchment paper allows many "Gospels" to have a long shelf life, but the smell produced by the series of processes of making parchment paper is not pleasant.

As night falls, residents carry excrement buckets and dump their excrement and urine (people are unwilling to dispose of filth in broad daylight for the sake of dignity). Cologne at this event not only gives people a sense of laziness under the twilight clock, but also It's a familiar smell that I've gotten used to.

Now, the sudden arrival of the Ross cavalry and their high flags shocked the people outside the city!

Many people didn't even dare to recycle the wooden barrels containing filth. They threw them down and ran towards the city gate.

Those who had arrived at the small dung hill outside the city did not think much about the situation and rushed towards the woods outside the city, planning to make a large circle back from the south gate of the city.

"Ha! Why do I see so many people fleeing? Ah... three years later, this city still hasn't changed." Fisk glanced at the church steeple and the cross at the top that could not be covered by the city wall and said with emotion.

One of his subordinates asked: "Boss, what should we do? Keep walking?"

"Just keep walking. Put up our guard of honor. Follow me and the cubs have to go to their north gate."

The city of Cologne protected by stone walls has four gates. The west gate faces the Rhine River, where the dock is located. Cologne is a city built in the Roman era. For this reason, Cologne is an honest successor to some of the mechanical structures left by the Romans. Its four gates can be described as advanced. In addition to the heavy wooden doors, the iron can also be lowered at the gate opening through a winch. Net.

By the standards of today's era, due to the lack of heavy siege weapons by all parties, such a large city protected by stone walls also has a powerful city gate defense system in the past. Even Ross cannot violently break the city.

But if it's a siege, it's another matter...

The Russian army had no reason to use force against Cologne, and Cologne itself had also changed.

Just as Fisk's team was strutting towards the open north gate, when the panicked people fled back, a group of men dressed as warriors walked out quickly not long after.

"Calm down." Fisk raised his right fist and calmly ordered: "Hold your bows and be careful."

The soft light of the setting sun blurred the phantoms of the soldiers leaving the city, but the Ross cavalry still keenly noticed some unique features of those people, and couldn't help but think of the news they learned in Duisburg yesterday.

"Ah? Could it be that they are really a group of Danes who have taken refuge with them?" Fisk said with emotion.

The feathers on the top of their helmets of the 1st Cavalry were also illuminated orange by the setting sun. As the commander, Fisk's helmet top feathers were also the most gorgeous. The soldiers' robes had blue stripes on their chests. The soldiers they saw leaving the city also had similar robes, except that they had a huge black cross on the chest.

Learning war during the war, Archbishop Hadbold, who was captured at the time, observed the attire of the regular Russian troops and had to admit that the clothes were uniform and neat. The stripes sewn on the diagonal were the St. Andrew's Cross, so he reestablished the City Guard after returning to Cologne, and the first thing he did was make a fuss about his clothing.

With Cologne's financial resources, it was possible to assemble a large number of chainmails, and then put on robes with cross patterns sewn on them and iron helmets. When these warriors gathered in the city square, their presence made the priests and The people feel at ease and at ease.

The soldiers who once made up the city guard came from the nearby countryside, but now Cologne has better options - Danish families who immigrated and converted.

The Normans who left their homeland suddenly became the defenders of Cologne. The soldiers received high salaries and regarded the fat archbishop as their "leader." Since there was no real enemy to deal with, some people were so happy that they found that their life was a bit too comfortable. At ease.

At first, the people strongly resisted the appearance of these Norman warriors. Everyone still believed that the Normans were the incarnation of Satan. It was not until they had more in-depth contact with individuals that they realized that the Normans were also ordinary people similar to everyone.

Under the city of Cologne in the sunset, the Danish converts and the Russian generals met with a smile.

"Are you the real Rus people? You are not... the army of the legendary King of Rus, are you?!"

"Who are you?" Fisk leaned over and asked, "Aren't you also those northern brothers who are said to have been loyal to the Archbishop of Cologne?"

"That's right. I am Karl, and now my other name is Paul. Our brothers are responsible for guarding the security of the city, especially guarding the gate in front of you. So, you..."

Fisk stopped talking nonsense and nodded: "Let me tell you clearly! The King of Russia will arrive tomorrow. I am Fisk, the general of Russia. I am ordered by the king to deliver the king's personal letter to Archbishop Hadbold of Cologne. How about it? Let's go in city?"

With that said, Fisk showed the letter and opened it openly...