Chapter 1541 The Ross Coalition Forces Have Arrived at the City

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The cavalry warriors led the horses forward lightly, with their armor and even helmets hanging on the saddles.

Each war horse is like an arsenal. In addition to carrying weapons and equipment, the saddle is also loaded with a large number of personal belongings of the soldiers. There are quivers on the left and right sides of the saddle, with thirty arrows stuffed in each. The brown arrow feathers make the horse look like it is transporting a sheaf of wheat.

Compared to a warrior dressed up and riding a horse, the current situation is not a heavy burden for the horse.

This is also true for many infantry soldiers. They made some temporary sleds. They put their equipment on the temporary sleds, carried round shields and hung steel swords at their waists, and used cables to drag their equipment forward. Each flag team thus formed a rather unique formation. Huge queue.

The Rus' army was like this, but what the Danes and Götalanders did was too wild. They did not carry much equipment and supplies. The Ross Army opened the way in front, so they followed behind. It was not that they insisted on delaying. It was not easy to advance in the heavy snow and thick snow. It would be okay if the army was trained like the Russian army. To put it bluntly, the vast majority of soldiers are just wild and armed fishermen. If they can gather together and walk without breaking up, they have done a good job.

The only exception was some of the Götalans who deliberately blocked the river, specifically the Gothenburg Army.

Blue Fox acquiesced to these brothers blocking the river, and King Rurik did not delve into the matter. As a price for acquiescing to this matter, the Gothenburg Army had a group of long boats and had to escort supplies in the already extremely cold river water.

This kind of escort was not a one-time deal. In order to quickly expand the formation, the coalition chose to walk to the city of Metz. Due to the lack of packhorses and vehicles, and being trapped in heavy snow obstacles, they relied on the extremely cold but unfrozen Moselle River. Shipping is the most pragmatic thing to do to provide a steady stream of supplies to the army approaching the city.

Thionville is still the headquarters of the coalition forces, and almost all the local people who chose to surrender, the Luxembourg militia who surrendered, and the Nassau-Koblenz villagers who were happy to make extra money were resettled in place. Rurik left a small number of troops to guard them, and also monitored the camp.

Most of the wounded soldiers, who were injured in battles, suffered frostbite, and suffered bruises in the past, stayed in the camp. It would be difficult for these wounded soldiers to follow the team and participate in the siege battle. It would be difficult for them to even walk to the foot of Metz City. However, the guarding camp was more than capable.

The marching force was extremely large, and Rurik used his best troops for this battle.

Two thousand cavalry of various colors, six standard corps of standing army and citizen soldiers, that is, 3,000 elite infantry, 2,000 Gothenburg Army and 1,000 Wienerstadt Army, and the Nassau Army including two local knights put together 500 people. There are 1,200 Danish troops who have recovered (one hundred senior veterans of Ivar with leg problems), and 100 Finnish longbowmen who have been in the Frankish world for two full years.

The down-and-out Count of Siegburg Palace, for the sake of family interests and a bright future, had no choice but to personally join the coalition with a limited army and personally participate in the battle to attack Metz.

Centurion Arroves, the centurion of the Thionville garrison who had recently surrendered, had to act as a guide for the coalition forces to attack the city of Metz. Since he and his brothers are now loyal to the little princess Gisla of the empire, they can say that they are not betraying, but just loyal to the nobler nobles.

Almost all the craftsmen accompanying the army were dispatched, and a group of strong local villagers from Koblenz walked with the huge heavy weapons.

The snow that was once up to the knees was trampled on a large scale by the soldiers who went ahead, leaving a wide, trampled road behind.

Soldiers came one after another, and finally the team became extremely dense and bloated, and it looked extremely inelegant to be gathered into a long and narrow queue.

If a powerful Frankish force suddenly appeared at this time, the Ross coalition forces without armor would be ambushed and would almost certainly suffer heavy losses. However, this risk would have to occur during a period without snowfall, which is now impossible.

The Ross coalition spontaneously developed into a bloated and dense formation because of the damn snow. The snow delayed the advancement of the coalition, and even more delayed the possible Frank ambush.

Because detailed intelligence pointed out that the possibility of an ambush did not exist, the soldiers endured it despite knowing that continuing to advance in such an environment would be extremely uncomfortable, just like walking in mud with shoes on.

At least the brothers won't be attacked by surprise.

Because the snow here is indeed different from the snow in the north.

Scandinavia becomes extremely dry in winter, and it is inevitable that heavy snow will cover the ground. However, the local snow is dry and fluffy. Once the snowflakes fall, they basically do not melt for several months, and snowmelt is often concentrated in the short days after spring.

The bad wet snow here in Metz made the going much more difficult than it looked.

Traveling on snowy terrain of more than ten kilometers is far more difficult than walking thirty kilometers in the north.

Only by personally setting foot in this damn wet snowy Rurik can one feel the malice of nature and the lack of consideration when deciding to attack.

But think about it again, if we don't attack now, the situation will become even worse when it is delayed until January - no one wants to move in the real mud after the snow melts.

A small river blocked the way of the coalition forces. It was called the Orne River.

It is only twenty meters wide in the current dry season, and both sides of the river are completely yellow and covered with snow-covered reeds. The river bed is extremely shallow, and even in the wet season, locals always walk across it.

Rather than saying it is a road, it is more appropriately called an irrigation canal. There are many small rivers like this in the Metz area. It is precisely because of the abundance of small rivers like this that the region's excellent agricultural environment is nourished.

Even the length of the Orne River far exceeds the width of the long boat. Because there was information about its existence, a batch of prepared logs were immediately laid out, and one temporary wooden bridge after another was built almost instantly.

Rurik was not worried about the people and horses crossing the river quickly. The soldiers would remind each other not to accidentally fall into the river. After all, the inside of the leather boots was full of sweat, and the cold feeling was already uncomfortable. If the toes were really touched by ice water, their toes would Frostbite, necrosis and shedding are no joke.

Even if the temperature in the area has just dropped below freezing due to snowfall and the environment is too humid, the coalition forces from the north who have sufficient experience in fighting extreme dry and cold conditions are clearly aware of its malice.

Only the river-crossing operation of the five heavy weapons worried Rurik the most.

To this end, he stood by the river and personally supervised their crossing.

"Hey, everyone, be careful and don't let the wheels get stuck."

"You have to move quickly and don't stay on the bridge too long..."

Rurik just rolled up his sleeves to pull the cable, and King Rus stayed with his craftsmen. The five assembled cow trebuchets successfully crossed the river and passed the only troublesome obstacle on the offensive route.

Heavy weapons left deep tracks in the snow, followed by the marks of a large number of wheelbarrows.

Due to the pressure caused by the trampling of personnel, the dead grass under the snow became moist due to the instantaneous melting of the snow. The soldiers continued to move, and the more they walked, the more wet their pants felt.

Ross Army has mass-produced leather boots, and the leather has a certain water-blocking ability. The situation of the Danes and Götalanders is getting worse. If they were not promised to get rich after breaking the city, they would never want to walk on the snow. They would rather endure the trouble of a big boat jam on the extremely cold Moselle River. The ice floes on the huge river are advancing slowly.

The sky is still gray, the earth is pure white, and the air in the whole world is very clear, but the light gives people a somewhat dim and uncomfortable feeling.

Every Ross soldier has at least one pair of wooden-framed sunglasses, which are usually properly stored in some kind of hard container and can be hung on the ears by assembling the stand. In the past, people had to endure the dazzling whiteness under the sun during winter activities. With sunglasses, the most eye-damaging situation is gone.

They won't be able to use this snow artifact for the time being, which is not a good thing. Because of the dim, cloudy and snowy environment, coupled with their troublesome snow march, the high morale of the soldiers was severely weakened after arriving at the city of Metz.

If the sun appears, everyone will feel much better after seeing the sun.

The overall condition of the Ross coalition is good. Looking at Metz, the snowfall that the defenders least expected to encounter has already dealt a major blow to this huge refugee camp, which is rare in this era.

After all, the temperature dropped to freezing point in a short period of time after a cold wave. After just one night, a group of refugees living in large sheds in the winding streets had become as hard as wood and covered with snow after the day. The deceased had already become hypothermic and had become equal to the ambient temperature. His blood had frozen into ice. However, the deceased was curled up in a ball and frozen.

Dying in one's sleep is not too miserable than dying in a siege due to violent killings by the Normans.

Because there were suddenly so many dead, the two archbishops, out of compassion, had tried their best to find cloth as shrouds and some wooden boxes as coffins.

A frightening number of more than a hundred people froze to death that night, and an even more frightening number of three hundred people froze to death on the second night.

The small city of Metz is forced to accommodate refugees that are fifteen times the city's designed maximum residential population. During this severe winter and heavy snowfall, if the overall situation in the city does not improve, the death toll will rise rapidly. Because the temperature does not have to be below freezing for someone to freeze to death. Even if the temperature remains at 5 or 6 degrees, refugees with thin clothes and no shelter will still die from hypothermia.

The wood found was used for heating, and the wooden boxes that originally contained the dead bodies were also controlled by the angry refugees. After stripping the bodies, they smashed the wooden boxes and used wood blocks to make fires.

What else could Archbishop Drogo and Hutto do?

Because the urban militias themselves are in a difficult situation, it is no longer realistic to expect the militia to curb the looting behavior that has begun to reoccur among the people.

When the weather is warm, petty thieves are punished with cruel methods, so order can be quickly maintained in times of war.

When the survival of 30,000 refugees and local residents is threatened, the more forcefully used to stop it, the more likely it is that things will turn against them.

The number of soldiers who are loyal to Count Metz is already too small. They are the last guard of the Count family. Now they not only have to defend the Count's mansion and the Count family, but also have to allocate manpower to defend the cathedral and take care of the city's defense.

They could only pray that such bad weather would force the main force of the Norman army, which had already reached Thionville, to stop, and also pray that the nearest army of the Earl of Auxerre and the little king of Burgundy would be able to do so for the sake of God and the king. On the way, they ignored the bad snowy weather and forcibly assisted Metz.

The city of Metz is facing a serious crisis.

At present, the Normans have not appeared again to cause damage. For the time being, a large number of dead bodies have to be wrapped in various rags and straw mats and left collectively in an empty barn. The advantage of this is that the dead will not appear in front of the people who are suffering. The disadvantage is that the barn is at least warmer than outdoors. A large number of dead bodies are placed here (the dead who were later brought in did not even have straw mats to cover them), and the horrific decay is happening. Happening slowly.

But people were still dying. Due to the fear of the Normans and all the gates of the city being closed, the vast majority of the 30,000 refugees hiding in the city had no shelter. They could only use various things to protect themselves from the cold wind and cold weather. Due to the accumulation of snow, these measures are of no avail in combating the cold.

Every morning, a batch of frozen people were carried to the barn, and gradually the barn was full.

The survival of young children and the elderly is facing severe challenges. Even the physically strong farmers and militia members are still in physical condition traumatized by the sudden cold. In addition, they have witnessed their relatives freeze to death...

The priests claimed that all suffering was caused by people not being pious enough to God and that God sent disasters. Although everyone prefers that the source of all the suffering of the priests comes from the Norman invasion.

But they saw that the Earl's family and the cathedral were still warm... Reason and faith forced them not to dare to make mistakes, but they were suffering from the injustice in their hearts.

People's anger, sadness, powerlessness... all kinds of negative emotions are piling up. There is snow all over the sky under the hazy sky. Such a bad environment has exacerbated the people's suffering.

The Norman army was close to Thionville, and their vanguard was already raging outside the city. However, most people have never seen the legendary army of 10,000 people.

What is the concept of ten thousand people? Ordinary farmers do not use large numbers in their lives. "One thousand" is considered a large number, and people have ten fingers. Therefore, "ten thousand" represents "an unexplainably huge number of people" in local slang. .

They didn't understand what an army of 10,000 was, but hundreds of people died every day on snowy days. When the snow stopped, people were still freezing to death.

What is very bad is that in the past few days, everyone has to rely on found wood for heating. Due to the huge number of people heating at the same time, the unowned combustibles in the city have almost been burned out. The next step is to tear down the wooden houses for heating. The result immediately resulted in small-scale internal conflicts.

Defend the Count's House

The guards killed a group of troublemakers in the street, and relied on brutal actions no less than that of the Normans to curb the destruction.

Because the house that was demolished by the refugees was the guard's home! Letting the refugees into the city is already a kindness worthy of gold from the earl family and the archbishop. Why do the refugees still want to cause trouble?

The situation was still deteriorating day by day. What Rurik didn't know was that if he deliberately waited for a few more days, the city of Metz itself would be in civil strife. The so-called civil strife does not mean that a large number of refugees fight against the guards of the Count family for resources, but that the refugees will leave the huge living tomb in Metz City in order to survive. Even if the city gate is blocked by various debris, they will just jump off the stone wall. , but also had to endure falling and staggering away.

Even if you continue to walk upstream along the Moselle River, you are actively looking for hope of survival, instead of staying in the city and freezing to death or starving to death.

Because, although the priests are still distributing food. Only part of the hard bread reserves was reserved for the militia, and simple oats, wheat, and rye were distributed to the people.

People are running out of materials to burn firewood for heating, and cooking wheat has become impossible. More and more refugees are simply chewing raw wheat like horses. This is extremely painful and the food is difficult to digest. They have no choice but to do this in order to survive.

It was under such circumstances that a huge army broke out of the cover of the last woods.

The Norman army finally appears!

Look! A sudden mass of eerie blue appears in the snow. Look carefully, it is the flag of the Normans, exactly the same as the flag flown by the Normans who came to the city half a year ago.

"No! It's the Normans! The Russians, the Danes, they've appeared!" The little priest rushed into the Assumption Cathedral in the city.

Archbishop Drogo rolled his eyes at the little priest and scolded: "Attention! This is a serious occasion. Pay attention to your identity. Tell me what you saw."

"Yes." The little priest patted his body and tried his best to regain his seriousness, but his whole body was shaking involuntarily. Fortunately, his mouth was still fluent: "They are Normans. There are Normans everywhere. Those flags are exactly the same as those half a year ago. They came from The Normans from the direction of Nassau are coming again."

"It's them." Archbishop Hutto of Trier, who was taking refuge, held back his anger. He approached his colleagues and said, "Today has finally come. The Normans attacked Thionville and now they are going to attack Metz."

"It's simply fate. We are really targeted by the devil." At this point, Drogo closed his eyes, raised his head, and whispered: "Up to now, we still haven't waited for reinforcements. We can only rely on ourselves. "

"It looks like we are going to be martyred."

Hutto was already calm when he said this. In a sense, he had reconciled with this burning world. The civil war in the Franks reached an unexplainable level, and the priests were recording the past history. Senior priests with important status, such as Hutto, knew what happened when Rome was destroyed.

Also included is the history of the city of Metz.

Exactly four hundred years ago, the attack of the Hunnic army turned the whole of Europe upside down, frightening the Saxons and Angles to begin immigrating to Britain, forcing the Goths to flee, and forcing the Franks, a tributary of the Roman Empire, to fight the Huns.

The Goths, who were afraid of the Hunnic army and were forced to flee as a whole, divided into two groups. One group was unable to escape along the Vosges Mountains and the Moselle River all the way to the Mediterranean. These were the Ostrogoths. , and finally captured the ship and simply fled to North Africa.

The city of Metz once served as the garrison of a Roman legion. By the mid-fifth century, the poorly maintained city walls were already crumbling, and the mortar used to reinforce the stones had been severely damaged by weathering for more than 400 years.

In order to provide supplies for their continued escape, the Goths sacrificed their lives to climb the old Metz city wall, which was not very high. The Gothic army looted the city. When they left, they were left with a city full of stinking corpses, wealth and food. An empty city without a trace.

At that time, all Frankish men served Rome, and even a large number of centurions in Aetius's Roman legions were Frankish petty leaders.

Frank finally inherited everything in Western Rome. They organized the mountains and rivers, and tried their best to repair Trier and Metz, which had been destroyed by the Ostrogoths. Ordinary people have also forgotten the cruelty that happened here

History, only the priests have the knowledge, know that Metz has been ill-fated, and what is happening now is as described in those ancient parchment manuscripts preserved by the church - the Normans were as intentional as the Goths Destroy Metz.

However, this group of Normans suddenly appeared outside the city. The two archbishops stood on the city wall. Their intuitive feeling was that these barbarian troops were not as barbaric as they were stereotyped to be, because they looked uniformly dressed and magical. There are a lot of cavalry.

Archbishop Drogo has climbed to the top of the city, and the countess and her young son are also standing here.

The boy Charles, or Adalbert II, is legally the new Count of Metz. The boy has not yet reached the age to learn to ride horses and fight, and what is even more tragic is that there are very few veterans who are loyal to him.

The boy pointed and said casually: "Are those the Normans? No, they look like father's army, like our people."

The boy's misjudgment cannot be blamed on his naivety. Even the vast militiamen could not believe that the Normans still had a large number of cavalry. In their understanding, the cavalry unit has long been exclusive to Frank, because in the past, Count Metz's capital for showing off his power was his cavalry unit.

The boy's mother was shaking unconsciously in fright. She was so angry at her son's ignorant remarks that she slapped him in the face.

"Ah! Mother, why did you hit me?" The boy covered his red face and wondered why.

"Silly boy, those are Normans! They are Normans on horseback. They are devils coming out of the lowlands. This... this will be our tomb..." At this point, the Countess was already crying. She was originally A large number of them were in grade, and due to extreme sadness and fear, the wrinkles on their faces were scarier than the cracked earth.

The boy had never seen his mother cry so hard and he still didn't understand what was happening.

Indeed, as the third son, little Charlie's destiny was to go to a monastery to study on his own after his eldest brother inherited the title. He most likely grew up to be a prelate and spent his life as such. Adalbert, Count of Metz, also did not want his two surviving sons to have fratricidal fights over inheritance issues in the future, and he did not want the ongoing human tragedies of the Carolingian royal family to occur in his family.

Such a boy unexpectedly had the final right to inherit. Little Charlie, who was trained as a future high priest, was legally the supreme commander of the Metz city garrison.

He is Count Metz! You have the obligation to defend this city with your life! It would be cruel to treat a boy who couldn't even tell the difference between his own cavalry and the enemy's cavalry.

A large number of militiamen now had no time to worry about the tragedy that had already occurred. They stood on the city wall with a variety of weapons, and archers began to station on the arrow towers.

All the problems of the city of Metz, which had become increasingly corrupt, came to an abrupt end with the appearance of the Norman army.

The unbearable wait was finally over, and even death could be a happy ending. What if? If the Normans were struck to death by thunder from the archangel, or if reinforcements arrived, everyone would be able to return home safely after the Normans were defeated, and the suffering would be over.

The appearance of the Ross coalition gave these people hope, which was really a bit of black humor.

All the bronze bells in the cathedrals and monasteries in the city were blazing, which were warnings of battle.

However, seeing a large number of Normans and the enemy being too well-equipped was a huge mental blow to Drogo, and the lingering sound of bells in his ears was like a death knell for the entire city's soldiers and civilians.

Drogo was also determined to be a martyr. He was not afraid of death, but at this point, what he feared most was fear itself. His trembling was completely out of his control.

Archbishop Drogo of Metz wore a high bishop's hat inlaid with gems and sewn with gold thread throughout, and a black robe with many gems. His entourage carried a copper-clad cross inlaid with gems. He did not lie to the Archbishop of Cologne that what he was holding was the True Cross. This time he led the priests to the city wall with the attitude of saying mass. This was him expressing his attitude again - even if he was martyred, he should do so in the most glorious way. The image of martyrdom.

He finally said with trembling lips: "It is not unjust to fight the devil, and it is not unjust to kill the Normans. All men, guard this city."

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