Chapter 12: Forming an Army From Refugees From Varna

"Sir, there are too many civilians coming from Varna recently. Is the Ottoman Empire going to attack?" Constantine reported the recent situation to Peter.

"It's unlikely. Even if it's the Ottoman Empire, they can't attack every day. Bring someone from Varna to ask."

"Yes"

Constantine ordered his men to go to Mangalia to capture a few people from Varna and ask them. Anyway, the two places are less than 50 kilometers apart and they can come back in one day.

Peter was also wondering in his heart. No matter how Varna is tossed, after all, most of the cultivated land is there, and the farmers will not run away. Unless...

Near dusk, Constantine brought a person in.

"Sir, the person is here. He ran away from Varna half a month ago and should know what's going on."

The man knelt down quickly and paid respect to Peter in Bulgarian. And he might be afraid, so he kept trembling when he spoke.

"May God bless you, sir. I am your humble servant."

Peter looked at the man kneeling on the ground without speaking, and said after a while. "Are you from Varna?"

"Sir, I used to farm in Varna, and I brought my family to Mangalia half a month ago."

"Why come here? I remember Varna is an important grain export area?"

When the man heard this, he burst into tears.

"Sir, I beg you, please save Varna!"

As he said this, he crawled forward. If it weren't for the guards blocking him, he would have crawled to Peter's feet. This also scared Peter.

"What's going on?" Peter thought to himself. And then the words of the civilians solved the mystery.

In fact, as early as five years ago, in 1386. The new monarch of Dobruja, Ivan, succeeded to the throne. This was a child of only ten years old. The power was controlled by those who were close to Genoa, and they sold the pricing power of grain to Genoa.

Genoa, of course, Peter could imagine how low these merchants from northern Italy would lower the price. Coupled with the approach of the Ottomans and the oppression of Catholicism and Islam on the Orthodox Church, everyone had to run.

"Merciful lord, please save Varna and the people there!"

Peter did not speak. He asked his men to invite him down and gave him a few gold coins as gifts before leaving.

His story made Peter's brain start to work at high speed. Although there was exaggeration, it would never be false.

To confirm it, Peter decided to go to Mangalia in person. He handed the affairs of Constanta to Alexander and took Constantine to see another supervisor.

The next morning, Peter went to Mangalia. This town is located on the border of Wallachia and developed on the basis of the 2,500-year-old Greek city-state of Kalatis. It is also the first stop for immigrants.

After seeing the flag of the Lord of Dobruja, the guards immediately let him pass. And Baldoven, who was in charge of immigration, also came to Peter.

"May God bless you, the master of Dobruja and Constanta!" Baldoven said, while making the famous cross with his hand.

"Recently, there are quite a lot of people coming from Varna. I'm here to see if it's true."

"Sir, you really know everything. There are a lot of immigrants coming from Varna these days, at least hundreds of people come here every day."

When he heard hundreds of people, Peter refreshed the situation in Varna again.

"Where are these people arranged?"

"Some stayed in Mangalia, some went to Constanta and Tulcea, and most went to cultivate the land."

Peter looked at the immigrants entering the city. They came here with their families and a few luggage.

"It seems that there is a source of soldiers," Peter thought to himself.

In ancient times, whether in the West or the East, self-cultivating farmers were the main source of soldiers. In order to avoid riots by refugees, some local rulers would also incorporate them into the army. But they were just incorporated without training; this not only increased the burden, but also could only be cannon fodder. But the advantage is the number advantage, which can give the opponent a certain psychological blow.

The same was true in medieval Europe. Some of them were serfs to make up the numbers. But the serf soldiers were not trained, and their combat effectiveness was really scum. They were scattered by the regular elite. Now, when nobles fight each other, it has become popular to use a combination of knights and mercenary infantry. Even heavy cavalry from trainee knights can be hired. If serfs are used as cannon fodder, they will definitely be abused, and it will also consume a lot of food.

Peter plans to train a group of long-range troops, including archers and musketeers. Unlike cavalry troops, these two types of soldiers are very easy to train and can be deployed in about a month.

He said to Constantine and Baldoven. "From now on, all the people who come here, except for craftsmen, will be incorporated into the army."

This order surprised Constantine a little. It seems that the lord is planning to expand.

"Then, sir, how many people do you want to recruit?"

"Recruit four more phalanxes, and then there are 3,000 people to train crossbows."

Four phalanxes, that is, 4,000 people. Add 3,000 long-range soldiers and the original army, that is 8,000 troops. Well, it has the flavor of the King of Chu.

"Yes, sir!" Constantine agreed, and Baldoven also received an order to recruit 7,000 troops.

Of course, having an army is not enough. In addition to soldiers, middle and lower-level officers are also very important. They not only need to read written instructions and execute orders from above, but also need to make minor adjustments to the phalanx or company they command according to the battlefield situation.

For example, when the army's flank was broken, the phalanx commanders and company commanders saw that the flank was wide open and needed to command their men to respond without violating the general commander's order. This kind of response is difficult for illiterate soldiers to do. Because they are not good at thinking.

Peter thought about whether to open an officer school to train talents, but there is also the risk of officers joining forces and launching a coup. But in this era of illiteracy, the benefits of the officer school are still very great.

As for the cost of training soldiers, Peter is not worried. The Chamber of Commerce will be back soon, his own manor will be harvested soon, and taxes will also come. All of this will be completed in the autumn harvest season, and he estimates that the harvest will be considerable.

Although part of it will be handed over to his father, most of it is still in his hands. Moreover, these soldiers will also have land as income, so there is no need to worry.