Chapter 1023 Triumph Parade, Funeral and Salute to Odin
Preparations for a huge war began in 839. When the dust of the war settled, the entire northern world had completely changed.
The Kingdom of Ross did its best to use almost all of its elite warriors and the entire fleet to go into the war with overwhelming force. If Ross lost, of course the kingdom would still exist, and she would have no choice but to continue to huddle in the ice and snow in the far north and lick her deep wounds.
It will take some years to get out of the bitter cold.
Rose gambled and won the fate of the country!
In 840, from early spring to early summer, the Rus-Swedish coalition swept across the Götaland region, and all of Scandinavia, except for the settlements of Norwegian tribes such as Oslo and Bergen, was included in the Kingdom of Rus.
Those Norwegians are not enemies, on the contrary, they are allies that can be contacted from outside. Because the Viking Kingdom of York that emerged on the British island is the power of the Norwegians, people who worship brave men and pursue warmth can't care so much, and they spontaneously rush to Britain
Immigration to Viking York. And because of the never-broken trade contacts, the Norwegians in Oslo have no objection to Sweden, Götaland and Rus, and other forces on the peninsula.
For these reasons, the army assembled by Rurik did not conquer Oslo, let alone conquer the Norwegian fjords one by one along the coastline.
Recovering all Norwegian power is not the purpose of this war, not even a secondary purpose.
From the early summer to early autumn of 840, the coalition forces commanded by Rurik finally encountered a real challenge in Denmark. The coalition forces began to suffer heavy losses. After paying a heavy price, the Danish problem that plagued the entire Baltic Sea was solved in one battle!
The new Kingdom of Denmark, which believed in Odin, was born. Denmark immediately reached a historic reconciliation with the Ross, Sweden and other northerners. Finally, the Baltic Sea became the Baltic Sea for all Vikings, and the civil war between them ended. Of course, there were still piracy issues, but those were
It is the desperadoes who will be killed immediately upon discovery. The existence of such gangsters cannot shake the peace treaty and alliance treaty at all.
But the great alliance in the northern world directly destroyed the wishful thinking of the great Frankish nobles. While ordinary Franks knew very little about the various Vikings, King Ludwig of the Eastern Kingdom knew only too well what a strong north meant.
Beginning in the autumn of 840, the Frankish army took the initiative to launch an offensive, during which there were also elements of Saxony's restoration.
The expanding Rus and the territorially huge Franks would inevitably break out of war once their territories bordered. Rurik did not want the war of the century with the Franks to come so early, but the so-called "potential" existed, and he followed the trend, and the Winter War broke out
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Rus-Sweden-Saxony allied to attack the Eastern Kingdom.
The three battles in Bremen and the second battle on the Elbe were won. The Kingdom of Rus paid the heaviest casualty price in its history.
Rus was like this, and the Saxons suffered even greater losses.
However, the Eastern Kingdom, which was far away, suffered a sudden loss of 30,000 troops. The main force of Ludwig's glorious heavy cavalry disappeared, and a large number of infantry were killed. He no longer had the ability to pacify the north. What's more terrible was that he had to use the remaining troops.
The army withstood the armed attack from the eldest brother Lothair, and for this reason, he had to humiliate himself and surrender a large amount of benefits to the victor, so that the prisoners of war could restore the throne.
In this way, the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth banners constitute the core force of the Russian army. These five banners are all composed of old and new Russians who directly obey the king.
In particular, the first and second flag teams not only come from the old Ross tribe, but also have extremely rich combat experience. They are responsible for the combat effectiveness. They are also commanded by the king's most favored cousin, the popular Arik. This is exactly the case. The loss of troops in the flag corps was extremely exaggerated. Although some miscellaneous people replenished it during the war, when the flag corps returned to the capital, there were originally more than 500 people in the establishment. There were only more than 100 veterans of both flag corps left.
The situation of the other four flag teams is relatively better, and half of them have suffered irreparable losses.
In addition, the cavalry and infantry in the newly established standing army were damaged.
The loss of Ross's elite troops amounted to a thousand men. A large number of ruthless men with several years of combat experience who had fought their way through the mountains of corpses and blood eventually died together with the sturdy Frankish heavy cavalry in the far south. Such a vigorous battle death, It satisfies the long-cherished wish of a senior Viking who died in battle. While those who survived lamented the death of their comrades, they could also comfort themselves - their heroic spirits had gone to the temple.
But to be fair, more than 5,000 Frankish heavy cavalry were all killed in one winter, and Ross actually made a huge booty by pulling off the iron armor of the dead and skinning the horses.
The massive losses of elite veterans, as well as the deaths of a group of young warriors who had just joined, undoubtedly weakened the kingdom's military strength.
Is that really the case? Absolutely not.
The Kingdom of Rus is no longer the kingdom of the Rus tribe. When the men of the tribe married Slavic and Finnish women on a large scale, there were very few "pure-blooded Northern Germanic" descendants in the kingdom.
The crazy war gave the Finnish flag force and the Slavic flag force participating in the war great confidence. They suffered very little damage due to their responsibilities and tactical factors, and they were still the main force in the crucial decisive battle.
Medvet, the governor of Novgorod and the king's brother-in-law, led an army composed of his hometown people in the final decisive battle on the Elbe Glacier. In fact, he became the absolute main force of the Russian army in the coalition. After this battle, even the humblest warriors You can also hold your chest high and tell your fellow countrymen: "Actually, I am a Rus warrior, and I am no different from the Varyags."
When your thoughts change, everything becomes different.
At least nearly a thousand Slavic warriors returned triumphantly. Each of them carried a large amount of loot, had a large amount of silver coins in cash, and had a mouth to tell the whole story of the war. They no longer considered themselves serfs surrendered to the Rus. From now on, I am a Russian! When the king raises troops from now on, I will be the core combat force.
A nation named Rus is being born, and the children who combine the three origins of North Germanic, East Slavic and Pan-Finnish are growing up howling.
Even according to Slavic tradition, a boy is an adult when he reaches the age of twelve. He has the obligation to defend the farm and is eligible to marry. They do not count the anniversary, but count the year of birth as the first year. , counting to twelve, the boy is considered an adult.
The large-scale marriages that began that year officially demonstrated its strong stamina. Starting in 841, the second batch of men and women of the baby boom generation came of age, and the boys among them became the source of the kingdom's soldiers.
In Novorosberg and Novgorod, each settled family raised at least three children, and their fertility continued. This situation was extremely prominent in the agricultural area of Novgorod, where families had at least three children. Five children is not surprising at all.
All this was unimaginable in the past. Due to Rurik's hard work and war dividends one after another, the core population of Rus's has been growing rapidly. However, the huge number of children previously was a huge pressure. Now, Rus's officially enjoys
Huge human resources enjoy demographic dividend.
In the next ten years, at least 30,000 so-called Varyag warriors will be born. A considerable proportion of them have the blood of the old Rus tribe. They are said to have a common ancestor with King Rurik himself. Anyone with the blood of the old Rus is a first-class person in the kingdom.
, they naturally became the core members of the royal family.
In addition, the extremely large Slavs must be the majority of the people at the grassroots level of the kingdom. They are the objects of necessary marriage and are another force that can be mobilized.
In the end, they will become a whole, but people with the blood of Old Rus can enjoy more social resources and status. Hierarchy is necessary, otherwise such a huge kingdom will collapse in today's era.
In this way, those soldiers who have made meritorious service must be rewarded, and the entire kingdom needs to enjoy the war dividends after victory. Among them, the closer the bloodline is to Old Rus, the more dividends they will enjoy.
In the kingdom, the Slavs from the old Rus tribe (including those who were recognized later) and the White Tree Manor are the first-class people in the kingdom. The second class is the Vikings from other origins, and the third class is the large-scale Slavs.
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The division of human beings into three classes is now just a commonplace statement, and there is no legal basis to define it.
Classes are not defined by ethnicity. In essence, this is a class division. A top-down feudal hierarchical society is naturally evolving. As the king, Rurik can feel it personally and undoubtedly does it.
What kind of interference is there unless it threatens one's own power?
Because he is the biggest beneficiary!
Rurik has two hands. He holds the Viking force in his left hand and the Slavic force in his right hand. He must grasp both hands firmly and clasp them together.
This, then, is the real reason for the triumphal procession, fire tower return ceremony and collective burial ceremony in the capital.
The Viking army, the Slav army, and even the army of the autonomous Finnish county must form a square formation and parade around the city to accept the cheers of the people of different ethnic groups.
And collective burial is more particular. No matter which ethnic group the deceased comes from, many of the deceased are even Götalanders and Danes who joined during the war. They all died in the war, and now the remaining ashes are eligible to be buried in one place.
The elite troops have suffered a lot, and the kingdom needs to train a large number of new recruits, especially those twelve- and thirteen-year-old mixed-race children who will be added to the various flag corps. These brats are only young in age, and their physical constitution has nothing to do with immaturity.
This situation is only reflected in New Rossburg. Although the capital is a commercial town that emerged from the desert, the earliest settlers have lived here for more than ten years. She has been enjoying the dividends of Ross's rise, and the children living here
Having been fed and housed well since childhood, their physiques are far better than those of their ancestors who grew up in the Roseburg Fjord. Most of them reached a height equivalent to 160cm when they were only twelve years old, and they looked just thin.
Just because of this, their height is the same as that of the majority of Frankish peasant soldiers. This is Rurik's so-called confidence that twelve-year-old children can serve as soldiers.
Simply facing the Frankish peasant soldiers, these brats would be able to kill them with swords and spears after some military training.
The triumphal parade goes on as scheduled!
Berserkers with bear heads on their heads held flags and opened the way, and directly behind them was a "military band" carrying leather drums and playing bone flutes and horns.
Rurik was dressed in fine attire, accompanied by the high priest, and walked at the front of the procession with his wife, concubines, and children beside him. They rode horses to receive the cheers and praises of the people.
Then, each flag team wore full uniforms and lined up in six columns, marching according to the formation of each flag team. Each person carried a round shield and hung a dazzling array of weapons on their belts. They tried their best to decorate themselves, and the coating of the shield was
It was repaired, the armor was polished and polished, and the helmet was wrapped with patterned animal skins and even dyed feathers were inserted out of personal preference.
Unsurprisingly, these soldiers all wore clean blue-patterned robes. There were inevitably a lot of holes in the robes, some of which were sewn and repaired, but everything was deliberately left intact. Such battle-damaged attire also proves from the other side that
They had experienced bloody battles, further strengthening their sense of bravery.
The Finnish flag team also wears the Russian uniform. Most of them wear velvet hats made of squirrel skin. The big red squirrel's tail is a unique feature. The leather quiver on the waist and the long bow as tall as the height are another feature.
They are generally short in stature, and they don't feel inferior at all now. Because there are many Finnish compatriots who have been living in the capital throughout the winter in the cheering crowd. If you listen carefully, you can hear the praises shouted in their hometown dialect.
Because the leaders of the Finnish flag team were none other than Count Javlo and his eldest son Kelha.
Even the kingdom's craftsmen troops participated in the parade. Kawi, his son Kuzneslav, and more than fifty Slavic blacksmiths who only worked for the king formed a special team with hundreds of professional sailors.
.They brought ashore heavy equipment that had made special achievements, and pushed and pulled vehicle-mounted torsion slingshots and bull trebuchets to open the eyes of the general public.
Many people recognize this group of blacksmiths and will have to deal with them if they want to order swords or even all kinds of tools in the future. Most of the metal tools sold in the New Roseburg market are made by this group of people.
Finally, a forest moved within the city in full view of everyone.
The halberds were spliced into a complete state. The Slavic flag troops wore their proper uniforms and all wore their own trophies of Frankish chainmail. They carried extremely long halberds, and the clean halberd heads were shiny in the sun.
Their attire was no different from that of Varyag warriors. This time they all wore captured Frankish helmets and modified them. No one dared to question that they were not elites.
The triumphal parade attracted all the people of the capital to crowd into the inner city. There were people admiring the army with wide-eyed eyes everywhere. Spectators were also sitting on the roofs, city walls and even some trees.
Harvest Square is the place where the parade starts and ends. Rurik wanted to give a speech in public, but his voice could not suppress the noise of tens of thousands of people.
A brand new wooden tower was built outside the city. When the parade ceremony is over, the wooden tower is also completed and can be lit.
Rurik had a lot to do today. After the entire army completed their parade and arrived at Harvest Square, they all left the city and headed straight to the cemetery area in the south of the city.
Not only the army, but also the people of the whole city took advantage of the situation and moved south collectively.
This is Valhalla on earth, the destination for everyone. No matter what beliefs the subjects have, as long as they are willing, they can be buried in this huge national cemetery after their death. And those who died fighting for the country, as long as they have
Their ashes were brought back and buried here.
Rurik intentionally imitates Arlington National Cemetery, which is Ross's National Cemetery. Most of the people buried previously have erected stone monuments with rune epitaphs and some abstract depictions engraved on them. For example, some believe in Thor, the God of Thunder.
Man, his tombstone is engraved with such a picture - God Thor holds the hammer in his left hand, and captures the giant python of Jormungandr in his right hand.
Now there will be nearly two thousand "wooden box coffins" to be buried. The pits have been dug overnight, and wooden signs marking the identities of the deceased have also been prepared. Because the identity of the deceased is recorded in a book compiled by the flag team, the deceased also has his own identity plate.
, so that the kingdom will identify their tombs and erect monuments for them. More than a thousand people have clear identities, and the remaining hundreds of dead people are people who participated in the war and did not fight for the kingdom. For the latter, it is a decent burial.
As king, he personally delivered a brief speech.
"They have gained eternal glory. Their souls have gone to the Hall of Valor, and their bodies will sleep like this forever, accepting our reverence forever..."
At this moment, Rurik admired the group of Catholic priests' eulogies for the deceased. The eulogies were extremely exquisite, and this speech had an element of imitation.
He then ordered the horn trumpeters on standby to blow their trumpets collectively, and ordered the arriving warriors to beat their shields together and roar a few war cries in a rhythmic manner.
Those who came from Novorosberg were buried and buried in person by their families, while the rest came from the direction of Novgorod, and these dead were buried by their comrades-in-arms.
Few people cried, and the overall scene was solemn.
I saw the noble past wearing a golden laurel crown, leading the soldiers to collectively kneel down and salute the buried soldiers.
There were half-kneeling people everywhere, and the whole scene shocked the city people who arrived one after another. It infected more people, and eventually the entire capital was paying tribute to the war dead.
When night falls, a fire tower burns rapidly, tongues of fire spurting towards the stars.
A whole hundred reindeer! As the king, Rurik stabbed them to death one by one in public as a sacrifice to the gods.
He stopped the most important job that the high priest should do. As a "person blessed by Odin", there is indeed no one more qualified than him at this moment.
The fierce fire shone on the face of a little girl, and Velika watched her father stabbing the deer one by one intently. Her face was solemn, and she saw her father's stalwart figure jumping continuously in front of the flames.
In the end, my father was shirtless, holding the sword in his hand high and pointing straight at the sky.
Rurik was performing a performance art in front of tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians. The people remained eerily quiet for a moment, with only the sound of wind and the crackling of flames in their ears.
A loud voice penetrated far away, and people heard the cry of the king: "Odin, King of the Gods!! Rus did it! Thank you for the victory you have given us! Accept our gift! Give us prosperity! Give us
A new victory!"
In the end, it was Rumia who held up a dissected deer liver and solemnly announced to all those who participated in the final sacrifice: "Odin heard and saw! Odin is very satisfied! Odin will reward us with a brand new liver."
victory!"
That night, the entire capital fell into a carnival, and bonfires burning everywhere seemed to set the earth on fire...