Rise of Rurik Chapter 949

The full name of Count Rheingau is Wilhelm Robert Robert von Rheingau.

His family was actually a branch of the Robert family in East Frank.

This was a feudal family that was not prosperous in the Merovingian dynasty, but had nobility at all levels. However, due to allegiance to Ludwig, the King of East Frank, this branch in the Rheingau has become an unshakable earl, and is already the highest in the family.

The various branches of the family are mainly in Middle Francia, and the relatives are all loyal to Lothair.

Even so, even if the Robert family, each with their own masters, met on the battlefield, they still had to participate in the battle when it was time to fight.

The Count of Rheingau was only loyal to Ludwig, and in the civil war, he fought as the East Frankish camp against Buvenus, the Earl of Plum, who was loyal to Lothair.

The Counties of Rheingau and the Counties of Metz are bounded by the Moselle River in the middle. The same river also forms the boundary between Middle and East Francia.

However, the current King Lothair no longer recognizes this border, and his army has spread across Strasbourg, Metz and Reims, cutting down the vassal to become the emperor of the whole Franks, and reviving the glory of his grandfather Charlemagne, For this reason, she is willing to kill her two brothers.

Maintaining the army requires a lot of supplies, and Robert, the Earl of Rheingau, has received a major promise from the monarch Ludwig.

After the monarch borrowed food from himself and promised to force Lothair to end the reduction of the domain and maintain the decision of his late father, the devout Louis, to end the war, he rewarded the expansion of the Earl of Rheingau to Worms in the south, which is equivalent to Give the family of Robert, the former palace born of Charlemagne. This is a great blessing. Since then, his territory has been expanded, and he has also been honored.

It was a great blessing to have Charlemagne's palace as his residence.

Later his title was Count of Rheingau-Worms.

To this end, it is a wonderful business to gather resources to supply the main force of the East Franks and help their monarch win the civil war.

He was convinced that he was indeed valued by the monarch, and that the responsibility of quelling the rebellion in the north was on his shoulders, but the current situation had become extremely complicated.

Robert had never entered the Saxony region, and through the forest on a winding road, the huge cavalry saw a huge city.

"Is that a burger?" he asked Harald Clark, his still normal right arm tugging on the reins.

The latter narrowed his eyes and put his hands on his brows for shade.

"It must be Hamburg, where the Earl of Hamburg built a small town. Oh, thank goodness, I saw the flag of the cross on that stone tower."

"Oh? So the burgers are still in our hands? Those previous claims..."

"Who knows. I don't trust the Saxon farmers, and looking at the situation, maybe the Normans didn't come."

Harald Clark said so, but Robert didn't trust him as much as before.

The scout cavalry reconnaissance the amazing scene, and they came back in a hurry, reporting what they saw in a panic: "Sir! There are... a large number of people in front! And... there are boats everywhere."

"Ships? Aren't they all Normans?"

"Like a wall! The river is full of Norman ships."

"This...how is this possible?!" Robert was not wrong. He had already prepared himself mentally, and now he was still surprised when he faced a powerful enemy.

Harald Clark hurriedly heard the news from the scout: "Have you seen it all?"

"Yes. Did you see it clearly?!" Robert asked.

"I see, the flags are too conspicuous. Standing here, you can only see the cross flag of the Hamburg tower, in fact, the flag is also marked SAKSON. What the **** are the Saxons doing, I don't know. But my lord, there are numbers there. Amazing Norman warriors and countless ships."

The scout didn't say any more, and Robert didn't want him to mention the pain again.

"What a tragedy!" He gritted his teeth and hesitated for a while, but he still ordered the entire army to advance slowly.

The rash attack was self-defeating. The cavalry continued to advance. After leaving the forest road, they entered the open field overgrown with grass, stepped on the farmland that had been harvested for wheat, and even passed through the village that was obviously deserted.

The cavalry formation was fully unfolded, and all the warriors saw the huge city of Hamburg, and the huge army guarding the city.

Take a good look at the Norman army!

The city seems to be built on an island in the river, which makes Count Robert want to hit the Ile de France in Paris, and the city of Paris is built on the island.

The large Norman ships that cannot be climbed are like big houses floating on the Elbe River. The large ships are all on the left side of the only bridge, and on the right side of the bridge are a large number of long ships unique to the Normans.

Whether it's a big boat or a small boat, a particularly eye-catching flag is hung on the mast.

It can be seen with the naked eye that there are a large number of soldiers showing off their power, and they are making a lot of noise to lure themselves to attack.

"Fight or not?" Harald Clark asked.

"Fighting? It's really a huge risk. Or..." Robert took a good look at Harald Clark: "You can also attack. You suggested the attack. Now take your soldiers to try to attack."

"My soldier?"

"What? Looking at your face, are you afraid?"

"I...not afraid. It's just...the risk is too great."

This made Robert just want to laugh. He laughed softly and immediately ordered with a face: "The monarch has given me full power. You! Now is the time to do meritorious service for the kingdom! Bring your people to fight and prove it. your loyalty."

attack? Simply ridiculous. Everyone in the ruins of Bremen had seen the deadly killing of Norman Ross ships before, not to mention that Hamburg is now full of their people.

Harald Clark hesitated, but Robert pressed too hard.

"Don't hesitate any longer. Attack immediately, otherwise, I will report to the monarch that you are no longer trustworthy. I also heard that the monarch intends to place a viscount for you in retirement, so that your brother will have a place in the future. You are now If you refuse, you will get nothing in the future, and you will be punished."

They regard themselves as meat detectives, and the former Danish rulers are now reduced to the level of meat detectives?

Harald Clark had no choice but to summon his cavalry for an attack that was doomed to no progress.

Therefore, when the Frankish cavalry formed a very broad formation, it seemed that the tactics of the Rus army were clear, and they all stood in places where various arrows and slingshots could not hit them. Their cavalry is majestic, reflecting the dazzling light in the sun, like iron statues.

This is the attention of regular Frankish cavalry. Charlemagne's cavalry has always been known as "iron knight".

Outdated technology is difficult to ensure that the chain armor iron shield will not rust for a long time. Soldiers often polish it and lack time to shine, creating a spectacular scene on the south bank of the Elbe River.

To be able to wear armor on a large scale is indeed a European elite division.

Rurik himself had come down from the heights, and his warriors had boarded the moored ships in large numbers, and had entrenched themselves on the bridgeheads to build strong bridgeheads.

The torsion slingshots are aimed at the cavalry's direction. The 300-seat slingshots have been installed with javelins and cast iron bullets, and they are waiting for the enemy to attack.

All the crossbowmen of the Rus army were also ready to go, especially the Finnish longbowmen of Yevlo, who were all placed behind the outer wooden wall. The order Yevro received was that once the enemy charged the bridgehead without thinking, the longbow would launch a large-scale projectile.

Did the enemy really think of a group of cavalry rushing across the bridge to Hamburg?

Now, the Elbe River is in the dry season in early autumn. There are large areas of silt and sandy mudflats overgrown with weeds on both sides of the river. If there is a summer flood, this area will also be submerged.

Compared with the Weser River, even when the dry season is the worst, the Elbe River has a width equivalent to 200 meters in Hamburg. What is even more amazing is that its waterway is very deep.

Therefore, the bridge construction mode of stone piers and wooden poles can only build bridgeheads on both sides of the river, and the really effective bridge is a pontoon bridge.

The core of the floating bridge floating like a crescent moon on the Elbe is two rusted iron chains. It was originally done by Charlemagne to supply his army into the core of the Saxon dominion, and what Widukind saw as the Elbe's grab was broken by the Franks.

The pontoon bridge has been tinkered with since then, and there is supposedly no large-scale war, and keeping a pontoon bridge is just a constant financial bloodletting for Robert, the Earl of Hamburg. The immigrant Franks felt that the bridge was very important. It was not only a symbol of Charlemagne's glory, but also facilitated the communication between the north and the south.

Today, the bridge is entirely in the hands of the Rus military.

As long as the huge stone pier on which the iron cables are placed is destroyed, the bridgehead will collapse, and the entire pontoon will disintegrate.

This is not necessary, if those cavalry dare to charge on the pontoon, wouldn't it be suicide?

Isn't war a tower defense game?

Rurik did not believe that the enemy could be so stupid, and Ludov did not believe that the Frankish cavalry would dare to charge.

And Robert, Earl of Hamburg, who swore allegiance to Ludoff, has mixed feelings now. In any case, as long as the two sides fight, it is equivalent to stabbing Ludwig in the heart with a knife.

But all the great nobles of East Frank knew that Ludwig valued his elite cavalry the most. If this army suffered great losses, Ludwig would go mad.

Gu Ying

Looking at this situation, I am afraid that the Frank army will not take the initiative to attack, that is, the Rus army will provocate first.

At the bridgehead on the other side of the river, a small number of Rus soldiers were placed here.

There were less than a hundred of them, and they were making a loud noise, and they lifted their robes and laughed and humiliated the Frankish cavalry.

Such provocative behavior seems to be courting death, and Harald Clark, who has received the order to attack, also has a main target.

Now, the old guy rarely shouted in Norse: "Brothers! Kill those Ruths! Take the bridge and follow me!"

At least, the Franks want to seize the front bridgehead.

So something unexpected happened. From Rurik's point of view, he was shocked that these guys were really looking for their own way.

"Do you just want to die that much? Come on!" Rurik gritted his teeth, and immediately ordered the semaphore soldiers to give orders to all the bowmen and slingshots who were on standby, the so-called saturation attack by placing the enemy on the bridge .

More than 300 cavalry launched a strong attack, this is the old man Harald Clark brought from his hometown in Denmark, and some soldiers who bought slaves who were granted freedom.

Their equipment is almost the same as the regular cavalry, and they have been mercenaries for more than ten years. They have never been as crazy as they are today.

The Rus are the enemy, the Saxons have been bad.

Harald Clark completely ignored the Saxons, and his troops were full of momentum due to their constant hostility to the Rus.

Such ferocious cavalry advanced rapidly, and the Ross defenders, who were playing with filth and humiliating the Franks, immediately dispersed.

They scurried aboard the half-grounded longboat, paddled swiftly into the safety of the river and drifted back.

Failing to overwhelm them in one fell swoop, Harald Clark has no turning back.

He looked solemn and worried, but the group of cavalry were rushing, and everyone had rushed over the stone pier and wooden trestle on the shore, and had already stepped on the edge of the pontoon.

This pontoon is relatively wide, and they are threw in a double line and rush forward, even if everyone is aware of the great danger now.

But when they entered the bridge, they could only maintain the charge, otherwise the people in front would "restrain their horses", and the cavalry behind them would charge up with a weight of more than half a ton, and their own people could be crushed into minced meat.

But now it is difficult for the entire army to turn around, but everyone is not worried that the pontoon bridge cannot withstand the stampede of the cavalry team and disintegrates itself.

You must know that it was built to satisfy the elite cavalry of the Frankish army, and it was born for this purpose.

Everyone looked in horror at the approaching Ross ship, for fear that it would shoot arrows frantically.

Harald Clark's army wriggled on the pontoon like a snake, trying to keep as fast as they could.

"Cross the bridge quickly! When you reach Hamburg, kill anyone you see! Kill their front and we'll get out of the fight!"

For this cavalry team, this was the only way to survive, and Harald Clark made what he thought was a wise judgment.

But what Rurik was waiting for was the moment of half-assault.

Waving the flag, the Rus army soldiers who were staring at the king's actions finally ended their waiting, and the brutal attack began.

Suddenly, ten thousand arrows were fired, javelins, projectiles, crossbow arrows, light arrows, and even the boulders thrown by the bull catapult. All kinds of weapons were slammed into it, and although half-passing and attacking did not talk about martial arts, Rurik's saturated attack gave the enemy great respect.

The more than 300 cavalry in Harald Clark were severely damaged in an instant.

The javelin pierced the horse, and the wounded horse, together with the cavalry, fell directly into the Elbe and drowned.

Some people were shot directly on the bridge, some people tried to raise their shields to resist, after all, everything was over!

The lightly rushing oars longboats are like attacking jackals, fierce and fast. A long boat with twenty people paddling and ten people carrying crossbows, and even a torsion slingshot temporarily placed in the bow.

The Russ army bullied the enemy and they were all heavy cavalry. They only had armor to resist arrow attacks, and they had no ability to counterattack across the river.

"This is not a war, it is a one-sided killing." Ludov trembled as he saw it.

Also trembling was Earl Robert, "This is the true strength of the Normans? No! Is it the strength of the Rus? A large group of cavalry, all dead in an instant?!"

"Damn, their commander is also stupid. The cavalry swaggered forward on the bridge, just looking for death. I really don't know who their commander is, it's definitely not Ludwig."

"You still hope that their commander is Ludwig?" Robert, who was still trembling, asked cautiously.

"Either an earl too, perhaps an earl from Regensburg."

"Who else could it be?"

"Who knows? Must be a fool."

After all, Ludov is still the de jure Frankish Count of Westphalia, and he knows that he must defeat the Frankish army in order to secure his status as an independent duke. Just considering that I have some friendship with those nobles, I have not betrayed God, and in the future I will have contact with the nobles, so it is not suitable to do things today.

It's a pity that the command has been handed over to Rurik, the king of Ross. That "little blond lion" is really a killer.

So in the observation of commanders at all levels on both sides of the war, everyone witnessed the sudden destruction of the cavalry on the bridge.

Except for more than 30 cavalry at the end of the team, they were able to successfully return to the original path at a critical time. The remaining cavalry either fell into the river or died on the bridge.

One shot of arrows shot indiscriminately, and the bridge was already in a mess. It is very fantastic that people saw a large number of horses frantically tossing in the river, their riders have disappeared, and they must have been dragged into the river bottom mud by iron armor.

The casualties on the bridge didn't look serious, just because most of them had been buried in water.

Harald Clark's own mount was hit by a javelin and fell into the river. He himself was lucky enough to grab the boat supporting the bridge body under the pontoon bridge and hide under the bridge plank to escape the disaster.

Only temporarily escaped.

Some people even fell into the river but managed to hide under the bridge. They tried their best to break free from the chainmail and reduce the weight and continued on. As for how miserable the bridge was, they couldn't care less.

Harald Clark's team collapsed in an instant, and Robert, who was watching from a distance, almost fell off his horse.

The other Frankish cavalrymen were shocked for a time, and immediately aroused a strong feeling of war weariness and fear. After all, they are elites, and they can quickly evacuate when the place is safe. Even if they attack again, no commander would do this.

Robert immediately ordered everyone to remain calm and wait for those who escaped to talk about the situation.

They all thought Harald Clark was dead, which was not at all.

The Russ Army cheered and celebrated their easy victory, which was too easy, making the hearts of thousands of Saxon peasant soldiers who watched the battle put down.

The Ross Army was ordered to start collecting bodies on the bridge. Since the enemy was an elite group, any wounded person who was dragged back could tell some important information. Rurik and the others urgently needed to figure out a situation—whether Ludwig's main force was coming, how many soldiers were coming, and what he wanted to do.

So in the corpse collection operation, the "water mice" hidden under the bridge were all pulled out.

The river was cold in early autumn, and when Harald Clark was pulled into the longboat, his body was white and his lips were purple.

He kept shivering, but he shouted strangely in Norse: "Russian! I am Harald Clark, former king of Denmark, and I want to see your chief!"

The young Rus warrior did not know or was interested in finding out who was "Harald Clark". The man also shouted in Norse language and asked to meet the king, so he would do as he wished.

More than 30 soldiers with different injuries were dragged back to Hamburg like dead pigs, and they were immediately surrounded by flamboyant soldiers.

Rurik appeared, and soon Ludov, Robert, and even Ragnar.

Everyone talked about the situation of the captives, and with a simple exchange of glances, Ragnar stared at a face that was very familiar to him.

Ragnar didn't dare to ask questions rashly, but the other party suddenly said: "It's you! You are that wild boy from Sigurd! It must be you! You are Ragnar in wool pants~www.mtlnovel.com~you?! No Call me this nickname!" With that, Ragnar kicked and asked, "Who are you? A Frankish who speaks our language."

"Me!" Harald Clark cursed while clutching his stomach: "Idiot! I didn't expect you to die. I am Harald Clark, the real king of Denmark. How can I be humiliated by a wild boy like you in public?"

He said his real name, and Ragnar was astonished, Rurik was astonished, Ludov was as surprised as Robert.

The reasons for their surprise were different. The former was surprised that the legendary exiled guy was not dead, and the latter was surprised that Ludwig's most loyal Norman mercenary leader was actually captured.

However, this guy is no stranger to Ross, Denmark and Saxony, even if it is extremely bizarre to capture this person.

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Chapter end