Chapter 1540: Snow in Metz in December

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"Once again! The Normans are outside the city again. What should we do?" The old Countess of Metz held her young son in her arms. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and they were as red and swollen as two quail eggs.

Archbishop Drogo of Metz sat aside. Compared to the countess's panic and pain, this old guy's mentality was calmer.

Drogo glanced at Archbishop Hutto of Trier, who was taking refuge, and then looked at the noble lady: "The current crisis is not extreme."

"What do you mean? People from Luxembourg say that there are ten thousand Normans. The bandits are already destroying the farms outside the city. Now my husband and son are dead. Now..." She hugged her youngest son: "My Charlie is the last one." Already."

"Don't worry, no matter what happens, we will ensure Charlie's life." Drogo said urgently.

The Countess murmured eagerly: "I want more than this. What if! If the Normans siege in winter, can you still defend my city like you did in summer?"

"Yes! Of course. As long as the militiamen use their lives, Metz can definitely defend it. Besides...as long as the Count of Auxerre and the King of Burgundy's army arrive, everything will be fine."

"But, are they really going to fight for us and the Normans? They are here to reinforce the emperor. They originally promised to come back during the Spring Festival next year."

Drogo couldn't stand the old woman's constant defeatist words. The archbishop stamped his feet vigorously to make his determination clear: "They will come! They will come. If Metz fails, Dijon, Troyes, Chalons and Lyon will follow. The Normans are the apostles of Satan, and only Satan will We know which city they will attack again. Those nobles will not do anything to see us die. To reinforce us is to save themselves."

The countess did not have the wisdom to understand the meaning of death, she was just the most traditional Frank aristocratic woman. Now, since the Archbishop was so determined, she felt a little relieved.

It's just temporary peace of mind.

The Azalbert family has the last boy left, the seven-year-old boy in Madame's arms, and the last boy she took the risk of giving birth to.

Families name their children in alphabetical order. The eldest son, who was supposed to be the heir to the family, would eventually inherit the name Adalbert and be crowned the second. The second son died in infancy, and the third son was this Charlie.

Unfortunately, bad news came from the east at the beginning of the year. The count sacrificed his life for the emperor in the Battle of Kaiserslautern. His eldest son later died of injuries and serious illness. Most of the 9,000 Metz soldiers mobilized were lost, and the remaining soldiers were killed by Emperor Lothair. absorb.

This also meant that several barons and knights who accompanied the army on the expedition suffered heavy losses, and it also meant that the strong labor force in Metz was wiped out on a large scale.

Metz, who once could mobilize 10,000 soldiers at a wave of his countenance, was so powerful that he could be called the top prince in the empire. Now he is so weak that he is crumbling.

The youngest son Charles now automatically inherits the title of Adalbert II. If he dies, the entire family will be extinct.

After leaving the count's residence, the two archbishops returned to the purely wooden Assumption Cathedral in Metz.

At night, the city was quiet, and the villages that had not been deliberately set on fire by the Normans were still burning dimly with weak fires.

"There is still plenty of food in the city now, and we can all wait with peace of mind for the reinforcements from Auxerre, Troyes and Burgundy." Drogo not only said this to Archbishop Hutto who was taking refuge, but he was also warning himself in the future. Strengthen confidence.

Hutto breathed a sigh of relief: "I have witnessed the barbarism of the Normans with my own eyes. My Trier was negligent in defense, allowing the barbarians to sneak in. I almost suffered martyrdom, this time..." He did not say any more. , the sense of crisis and skepticism contained in it is self-evident.

"Hehe." Drogo laughed and cried, "At least we still have the stone wall."

"What if? Those nobles did not come to Metz, even though our stone walls can withstand the Normans. We have done statistics, and now there are 30,000 people pouring into the city, and all the lanes are constructed Refugees in shacks. It’s really bad now! If reinforcements don’t come, will our food last until next spring?”

"At least we can hold on until Christmas. As for after that... we can only endure it." After all, Hutto's words were too realistic, and Drogo had no choice but to tell the truth.

.

Trier under the rule of Hutto had almost no military force, and all it had was a guard with a very small number of personnel, whose responsibility was also to collect taxes.

The military defense of Trier was completely entrusted to the likes of the Counts of Metz, the fortresses of Luxembourg and Koblenz. No one could have imagined that the two emperor's jurisdictions had been uprooted by the Normans in three years, and the locals were enslaved by the Normans ( Hutto could not admit that the natives had switched allegiance to the County of Nassau and Coblenz).

Hutto himself became the super accountant of the diocese while serving as archbishop. He was good at calculations. Now living in Metz, he did help Drogo with logistical statistics. The same is true. Metz's current personnel and material situation were basically clear to him without having to ask Archbishop Drogo.

He knowingly asked just to find out Drogo's attitude.

Obviously, Metz still has the strength to defend the city for one month. What will happen in January next year? If the Normans do not retreat and reinforcements do not arrive by then, Metz will have to live in pain for another two months.

The worst could happen! Areas south of the Vosges Mountains often experience heavy snowfall in December, and then large-scale snowmelt in January. The ground will not become hard again until February.

This is the focus of Hutto's concern. The reinforcements are most likely to be unable to respond to the reinforcement issue due to weather conditions. Of course, we must also consider that the Normans suddenly arrived with an incredible 10,000 people. Do the reinforcements believe it? If you believe it to be true, you will even more consider whether to fight against this group of powerful bandits.

The situation in Metz is not optimistic, and there are many crises under the current calm surface. The two archbishops had a moral imperative to open the city to allow refugees to flow in, but they actually did not want so many people to come in.

The city of Metz was originally a fortress military camp of the Roman Empire. Now it is centered on the church. The Frank nobles entered with a group of technical personnel, and then a group of guards and family members also moved in.

The city of Metz was originally designed to accommodate two regular brigades of the Roman legions and the legion command center. It was not expanded, so it was designed to accommodate two thousand adult men.

More than five hundred years have passed. The old Roman city walls were renovated by the Franks in their own way. The quality is not as good as that of their predecessors, but in appearance they still maintain the dignity of Metz's majestic spirit.

If children are included, the city can support nearly 3,000 people on weekdays. In fact, it only has a large influx of people during festival masses.

Now, under the threat of war, 30,000 people have poured in. They fled almost empty-handed. Ten times the population is full of mouths waiting for food. The city of Metz had to release grain, and then a series of problems suddenly occurred.

After all, it is a cold winter and there may be heavy snowfall at any time. There are limited water wells in the city, limited housing, and even more limited fuel.

The count's residence could not be opened to the lower peasants and the humbler serfs, nor could the holy churches and monasteries be opened to them.

Refugees built shacks everywhere, and the shortage of resources caused numerous roosters, dogs, and thieves throughout the city. The sudden riots in the city ended only after the guards captured and hanged some thieves.

Then there was defecation everywhere, and filth began to appear in some corners. Thanks to the fact that it was winter, the odor could be quickly dissipated by the north wind. If it were summer, the entire Metz would definitely stink.

It would be better if it was summer, so that a large number of refugees would not suffer from the cold. They were now more afraid of a heavy snowfall than the Norman attack. From their understanding, the snowfall in December was destined to happen in a few days. It just depended on whether it was a light snowfall or a blizzard.

On the other hand, the Ross Army coalition is actively organizing mobilization.

Based on intelligence, Rurik could conclude that Metz became a refugee camp.

There were at least 10,000 people crowded there? There may be more. After all, there are many villages near the city. Ingvar's subsequent investigation found a large number of vacant villages and a lot of abandoned property. People must have fled into the city.

The city is obviously not big, and it is very likely to collapse upon the sudden influx of a huge population. Besieging the city and waiting for them to collapse due to internal friction may be a good strategy. The Russian coalition forces are now several times more powerful than the enemy. According to Sun Tzu's Art of War, sieging the city is the best option.

But since we have an absolute advantage in strength, attacking with force and winning quickly is a good strategy.

Rurik chose to attack by force.

All Torque Slingshots

The torque unit of the trebuchet and the trebuchet were all removed, and the seal oil and deer oil that had solidified in winter were put in wooden barrels. The oil was first boiled in a large iron pot until it melted, and the oil temperature was about 50C, and then a large amount of torque cables were placed Go in, just for every fiber strand to be fully infiltrated.

Similarly, bow strings are also treated in this way.

The Russian army relies heavily on the advantage of long-range weapons. It can be said that the Danes rely on archery to kill enemies without any glory in hand-to-hand combat. How can manpower compare to the power of heavy weapons? No matter how muscular a man is, a skinny man can pull the pin and control the torque slingshot to snipe him from a distance.

Now that we know that the enemy has prepared arrow towers, those damn towers must be destroyed first before attacking the city.

Just like other Frankish cities, there are mostly wooden buildings within the walls. Even the stone houses have mostly haystacks on their roofs.

Such roofs can easily burn.

An excess amount of fat was prepared to serve heavy weapons, and the large amounts of horse fat cut off from the killed horses could be further boiled into oil.

The local clay pots in Thionville were requisitioned, and they were stuffed with soil and used as solid bombs to be hit by trebuchets.

If it is stuffed with grease and then sealed with a cloth, after it is fully soaked, the trebuchet can launch fireballs. Just like what the Roman legions used to do eight hundred years ago.

The coalition forces left Trier with a large amount of stones, especially some long ships loaded with fist-sized stones.

Considering that the enemy will take the initiative to counterattack with arrows, if we suppress the enemy through large-scale archery, if the siege fails, wouldn't our own arrows help the enemy?

The Ross army, which already had sufficient experience in siege, made three preparations.

One, bombarding stone walls with boulders from a cow trebuchet.

Second, other siege weapons were used to fire projectiles to suppress the arrow tower, and then the pioneer warriors were forced to violently climb the wall carrying the long ladder made by surprise.

Third, assemble the siege vehicle prepared from Ross’s hometown, especially the key bronze ram head.

Rurik also noticed that the Ghotalans' ships were too far forward, and they blocked the narrow Moselle waterway so that only one ship could pass through.

Then don’t take the water route.

Still based on intelligence, Ingvar claimed that he quickly drifted to the city of Metz, so there was nothing wrong with the army lining up directly and escorting all kinds of heavy weapons and walking over in a short time.

This situation fully proves the value of the Rus' army's advance preparations and the wisdom of Rus' King Rurik.

Bits and pieces were thrown onto the longboat, and when they were unloaded they began to be assembled. The wheels covered with iron sheets and bronze axles are directly installed on the wooden shafts. The assembled wheels are placed on the prefabricated wooden boards, and the handles are assembled and fixed with pins, and a trolley is completed.

The soldiers of a flag team marched lightly, with armor and baggage placed on handcarts. Each flag team was responsible for their own things.

The reindeer and spare war horses were all draft horses, and their task was to tow five heavy weapons.

The small bull trebuchet and torsion slingshot are all mounted on vehicles. Especially with the Torque Slingshot, it immediately becomes the perfect launching platform as soon as the cart comes to a stop, and the process from deployment to firing the stone projectile is almost instantaneous.

The large number of carts seemed to the Yotalans to be nothing out of the blue, and the large-scale accumulation of all kinds of heavy weapons was an eye-opener for the Ross warriors themselves.

One hundred torsion slingshots, fifty small bull trebuchets and five heavy trebuchets.

Rurik could have brought more, and the Russian army also had a stronger reserve of heavy weapons - just unload the weapons on board.

But suddenly the weather changed dramatically.

At first, a cold wind swept across the valley area, and the army that was eager to go out suddenly encountered a bone-chilling chill.

The locals of Thionville hid in their houses one after another, and the coalition soldiers also hid in their respective shacks.

The sudden weather change was also within Rurik's expectation. This place was a former enemy base. After a large amount of logging, with the operation of the two-man saw, four pillars of wood quickly appeared, and the massive branches became good fuel. Local people also benefit from this.

The weather was hazy after strong winds, and the lowest temperature at night reached freezing point in an instant.

It's not surprising to be averse to the cold, let alone this kind of

Extreme cold is not a concern for Russians. However, they soon discovered something unusual.

As long as you dress thickly and stay dry, people who are active in the north will not feel cold. But here they must sweat when walking long distances. Due to the high local humidity and cold and humid environment, sweat vapor evaporates slowly. This cold water sticks to the feet, making the feet feel cold and the whole body feels cold.

Of course, this problem can be overcome, and the coalition forces quickly changed into their prepared winter clothing. As the snow began to fall, the march had to be temporarily put on hold.

The snow fell heavier and heavier, and the snowflakes were quite moist. Some wooden sheds were crushed due to being overwhelmed. It was also this unlucky temporary wooden house that caused those who were warming up in the house to be covered in snow. The unlucky guys then moved to another shed to continue warming up while their companions laughed.

As a last resort, Rurik could only order the soldiers to allocate personnel to take turns clearing the snow.

The snowfall was only very serious on the first day. It was like a short-term blizzard, and then fine snowflakes fell densely in the weak north wind.

The whole world has changed. The land is white and the sky is gray. The abandoned wheat fields of Thionville are covered with knee-deep snow. The snow is quickly trampled by soldiers.

The Saint-Maximin Monastery in Thionville served as Rurik's command post because it was the best house in the area.

The holy land was occupied by the Normans, and the priest was unhappy but did not dare to express it.

The surrendered garrison centurion Alovis is now nominally a member of the Blue Fox. As a local, this man needs to provide more information about the city of Metz as a declaration of surrender.

Now, he also needs to provide a realistic description of the local climate conditions.

In front of his eyes were all the blond Norman nobles, and for a moment those legendary Norman leaders were right in front of him. Alovis endured strong psychological pressure.

“The snow in December often lasts for many days, and the wet ground will be frozen. The small rivers will freeze so that you can walk across them. Even ice floes will appear on both sides of the Moselle River, but the center of the river will not freeze.

If you intend to attack, do it now, otherwise in January, once it doesn't snow that month, there will be a massive warming and the wet plains will be full of silt. "He introduced.

"So the weather window gives us only this month to attack?" Rurik asked.

"Yes. If you still can't break the city before one month, then you can only wait in front of the mud until February or even March. But by that time..."

"They must be Burgundians. I already know it." Rurik clenched his fists and said to himself: "I really want to have a fight with those guys."

Knowing that Burgundy and other nobles would come to help, Rurik had already informed the entire army that they might fight with the main force of the Empire in the near future.

Eliminating the imperial troops loyal to Lothair was already part of the Ross army's strategy. After defeating them, Lothair would be truly isolated and helpless. By then, there would be no actual enemies of the Ross coalition in Western Europe.

Maybe they can join forces with Robert, who followed the immigrants near the Loire River, and the forces of the Earl of Tours, which are allied.

One possibility is to meet his fully fledged son Reglaf.

Of course, the situation now has more possibilities. Deep in Rurik's heart, he began to feel that it was not impossible to travel through Burgundy, drink the Mediterranean, and taste Provence wine.

"Those reinforcements are nothing to worry about." Rurik's attitude was exciting: "I will not delay the war until January. We will attack immediately when the snowfall is over. Our army will advance by water, and the main force will go by land. We will directly carry heavy weapons. Go to the city of Metz, use the village there as a military camp, and then attack the city."

"Ho!" People present raised their fists in the air.

"But!" Rurik suppressed everyone's excitement and warned: "Intelligence shows that there are a large number of people in the city. Those who resist will be killed, and those who do not resist will be prisoners. You are not allowed to privately seize slaves. Go back and tell You are free to plunder your own people! You are not allowed to attack local noble residences, and you are not allowed to destroy the monastery. The money in the monastery is under my control, and you can take the other wealth for yourself."

Such an agreement really surprised everyone. Since the king has such an attitude, the king of Denmark present is meaningless.

, everyone had no choice but to agree.

Ordering not to kill indiscriminately was Rurik's limited mercy and also out of practical considerations.

Rurik had already intended to exile the residents of the city. As long as the refugees were given a way to escape, they would definitely be extremely active in escaping on their own.

In this way, the coalition forces get an empty city that contains wealth, and they can evacuate it without causing trouble.

But towards the Earl of Metz family, Rurik did not show any kindness or kindness. He intended to capture him alive and then give him a dignified execution, such as hanging in a secret room.

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