Chapter 1117: The Weird Frankish Civil War Situation in the Early Winter of 841
After a painful escape, thousands of people managed to reach Metz by begging along the way.
At this moment, Count Adalbert of Metz was still stationed in Kaiserslautern in the northeast with his army. His son was stationed in his hometown and unexpectedly encountered a large number of refugees.
The city of Metz is just the residence of the count. The city is not large in size. At least three thousand people suddenly arrived. The narrow alleys in the city cannot squeeze so many people. Rather than rescuing them, the count is worried that this group of people will
Because of hunger, he turned into a bandit and harmed one party.
When it was discovered that the Archbishop of Trier was among the refugees, even if he became crazy, any behavior by this person that was detrimental to the refugees would be interpreted as blasphemy.
Metz's granary released some food, and the refugees were collectively placed in the woods and allowed to freely build shelters for the winter. The food given out was enough for these people to recover. As for the future, the earl could not make up his mind.
The refugee issue is still secondary. The most dangerous thing is that Trier was deliberately destroyed and burned by the Normans.
The news spread quickly to Strasbourg and Kaiserslautern. By the time King Lothair received the news, it was already early October in early winter. It was not that the messengers on horseback ran slowly, but that the refugee group wasted too much time on the way.
.
The terrible news shocked King Lothair to tear up the parchment documents and smash them into pieces. He paced around the palace cursing, scratching his head and head with anxiety and anger.
He urgently sent an envoy to Kaiserslautern to summon Count Adalbert to see him.
Adalbert also received news about his son. Thousands of refugees were entrenched in the city of Metz. The Archbishop of Trier became crazy and was still present. It was enough for him to deal with this group of refugees and priests in trouble, but he was not suitable.
Leave the current defense line.
Adalbert arrived at Strasbourg at high speed with a small number of followers, and went straight to the king's palace without rest.
The situation was urgent and complicated, and King Lothair did not consider any red tape. He even accepted the audience of the travel-traveled earl in civilian clothes.
The tall tower had its wooden windows open, and the early winter wind felt a little desolate.
Lothair faced the cold wind with his hands behind his back. He had a long beard. As the boss of the royal family, he was no longer young. He was about to be fifty years old. This civil war was already the last effort to maintain the unity of the kingdom.
"You came."
"Yes. Your Majesty, I'm sorry for the rude way of meeting you."
Lothair turned around and was very satisfied to see that his armor and stomach were still intact.
"You came just in time. Now, the hateful Normans have attacked Trier. I already know the news. The situation in Trier is said to be in a mess."
"Yes. I also got the news. There are a large number of refugees outside the city of Metz. My son opened a warehouse to provide food for relief, and he also treated the Archbishop of Trier kindly who fled."
Lothair was a little surprised. He estimated that since the news came from Metz, they must have informed many people.
He looked solemn and thoughtful, and stated with an old face full of beard: "At the beginning, the Normans attacked Nijmegen, Duinsburg, Cologne, Bonn. Aachen must beware of the Norman attacks.
, and the Count of Flanders became a traitor and actually made peace with the Normans. At first, the Normans attacked my brother's territory (referring to the Eastern Kingdom), but in the end they attacked my subjects. I will eventually
Restoring full rule will liquidate the traitors and also liquidate the sins of this group of Normans. I really can’t believe that the Normans are so bold as to go all the way to Trier to burn, kill and loot. It’s incredible! My dear, what do you think?”
Adalbert was puzzled for a moment, hesitating and saying: "We should strike hard. We don't need any mercy against the Normans."
"That's right. The problem is obviously very complicated now. The Normans ignored my garrison in Coblenz and directly attacked Trier and succeeded. I don't believe this is the skill of the Normans. I'm afraid someone provided them with
convenient."
"This...does your Majesty suspect a traitor?"
"He is indeed a traitor! But he is not in our camp. I am sure it must be Ludwig's conspiracy. He has Norman mercenaries in his hands, and some dirty actions were carried out by this group of mercenaries. He fought against the Normans last year
We fought, and I heard we made some agreement."
Count Metz also knows some things. Since the civil war in the kingdom is a matter between the royal brothers, it is not appropriate for him to comment.
"Damn it, he launched a sneak attack during my most critical training period. He arranged for Norman mercenaries to do this. He thought that he could rest easy if he hid deeply. Do you think I am a fool? The problem is indeed difficult. I am really worried about Koblenz.
They conveniently occupied it."
"Ah? Your Majesty, in fact, Coblenz has been..." Adalbert muttered in surprise, as if his son had erased some information from the king.
"What?!"
"Coblenz has been lost to Nassau."
"Taken away? Who? Nassau? The Baron? This is impossible! This..."
"It should be true, Nassau loyal to Ludwig."
Lothair still had some illusions, so he inquired in detail, and through Count Metz's words, he was finally convinced that the so-called lower Moselle area where the city of Trier is located is no longer firmly controlled by his own forces. He
He immediately realized the seriousness of the situation, so much so that Count Metz's victory in the defense of Kaiserslautern was no longer glorious. On a macro level, it all looked like Ludwig's dirty tactics.
"Damn it! You!" Lothair pointed his big hand straight to the north and cursed at his third brother Lothair from a distance: "You can't win a fair fight, so you use dirty means to cause destruction. The dioceses will not participate in our war.
, you are breaking the agreement!" He immediately responded to his matter with a gust of north wind. This desolate feeling was like a curse word caught in the wind, which was uncomfortable.
Lothair, who was scolding him, was not relieved at all, and he had to make more significant adjustments. Originally, the purpose of bringing Count Metz back was to assign him a new task. After learning that Coblenz was occupied by the hostile party,
Adalbert's son actually held back such important news and didn't tell him.
After all, Lothair has become much calmer as he gets older. After venting his anger with a few curses, he still needs to face the worsening mess rationally.
He issued this royal order: "Those Normans must be mercenaries raised by Ludwig. It may be that Ludwig's army was responsible for the destruction, but they were disguised as Normans. Trier is no longer a barrier."
, your Metz must strengthen its defense. You return to Kaiserslautern and lead your people to withdraw, and I will personally guard it..."
Upon hearing this, Adalbert's eyes were as wide as bells, and he stood like a statue in the palace tower. He neither spoke nor breathed, and his surprised face was not moved by the cold wind.
"What? Are you stupid? This is an order and you must carry it out."
"I……"
"Are there any other conditions? No, you can retreat. Listen, I want you to take back Trier and help me get Coblenz back. And I! My Louis is young and energetic and needs to be tempered. Let me
He is stationed in Kaiserslautern, and Baron Saar is responsible for garrisoning the Salabrugga Bridge. Don't think you are at a loss. Listen!" Lothair paused, "Next year will be a full-scale counterattack! My king's army will
Training completed! Next year we will solve Ludwig, and then quickly solve the problem of Aquitaine (referring to the Western Kingdom), and the kingdom will be unified! Don’t worry, as long as you contribute, Coblenz can give it to you, and Mainz can give it to you."
It sounds like a blank check. Compared with the king's promise, Adalbert still hopes that his army will directly capture Mainz next spring, so that he can gain de facto control of the fiefdom.
It is hard to disobey the king's orders and Metz is indeed in big trouble. The local people must be panicked. It seems that only Metz's army can return to his hometown and let the villagers see the army can they feel reassured.
Lothair felt that he had made the best solution amid the troubles. Of course, the complexity of the civil war had exceeded his imagination.
Even if the Metz army withdrew from Kaiserslautern in early October, Mainz, which was claiming to be exempt from war, would have the right to pretend that nothing had happened.
Ludwig felt secretly happy. He knew that his eldest brother was busy training troops. Although his side was far behind, as long as the troops from the rear continued to arrive, it would be risky to take the initiative to attack. He felt that he would have no problem with pure strategic defense.
In principle, according to the treaty signed with the Kingdom of Rus, he could take the opportunity to invite a strong guest army from the King of Rus, or he could continue to ask Saxony, Thuringia, and Nassau in the Netherlands to fulfill their obligations of surrender. The so-called sending troops to assist in the war.
.His strength is indeed not as good as before. The Margrave of Thuringia is a man invited by a man. The reasons for letting him go can be various. It can be said that he is loyal and refuses to come. As for Nassau in Saxony and the Netherlands, the large-scale conflicts last year were regarded as defeats.
He, the one who was the one, couldn't help but look after these two people.
From this point of view, the current Baron of Nassau is really worthy of something!
They are clearly a group of Normans, which makes them the most loyal ministers.
Is he really a loyal minister? Ludwig was living in a dream, but he didn't know that the Leingau area he occupied had been sold to Nassau by the Count of Leingau.
As the saying goes, Ludwig faced the rise of various princes in his territory. Lothair had to be wary of the rise of princes but had to use his strength to encourage him. As for King Charles of the Western Kingdom, he directly became the elected prince of the south.
"Emperor of Righteousness".
The situation was treacherous, and Blue Fox could sense the complexity of the situation, so he had to resolutely get up and return home.
The wine produced in Nassau, regardless of the degree of fermentation, is shipped on cargo ships in as many as one hundred standard oak barrels (height close to the waist of an adult man). Apart from wine, Nassau does not have any specialties, but wine is the biggest specialty here.
.
Blue Fox can be sure that this batch of goods will be dumped instantly upon arrival at Fort New Ross. The Russians, who are suffering from imported inflation, will spend a lot of money on this sweet wine. They will earn a large amount of cash, which will be the military expenditure for future operations.
Because Blue Fox had a hunch that his younger brother Black Fox's garrison in Nassau was too small. The attack on Trier would definitely cause a violent reaction from King Lothair, and more troops would be needed to protect the fruits of victory of the Ross forces.
Besides, it was King Rurik's wish to intervene intensively in the Frankish Civil War, and the reasons for the intervention were sufficient.
At the Nassau Village Pier, the returning fleet has made preparations.
Although arrangements had been made, the blue fox at the dock had to say a few more words to the people stationed there.
He patted his old attendant Wadi on the shoulder: "You should indeed achieve great things. From now on, you are not my attendant, but my brother's subordinate. My brother needs your help, and your title and fiefdom will be indispensable in the future."
He once again told his brother Heihu: "Most of the brothers are in your hands. Take the time to train soldiers this winter and don't slack off. I will meet with the king when I go back to report the situation. I will bring more troops next year."
"I understand." Black Fox nodded, "When you go back, say hello to my father and mother for me, say hello to the king for me, and explain everything about us truthfully."
"I understand." No matter how weak the younger brother's head was, Blue Fox stood in front of Sofia, who had already chubby cheeks, and said calmly: "I will arrive in the Netherlands along the way and tell your father about your situation. I think next year you will
Father will come back."
The little girl didn't understand war. He just wanted to see his parents again. When he heard that his father might return next year, he felt strong joy in his heart.
The number of followers that Blue Fox wants to take away is only fifty, and among all the ships, there is only one armed cargo ship.
He was not worried about his loneliness at all. After finishing his chatter, he boarded the ship. With the dull and melodious sound of the horn, the Blue Fox's return journey began. But in his heart, he would not be lonely and believed that he would have a high probability of meeting someone.
Fourth Brother Red Fox's return fleet will definitely have a large amount of wool arriving at New Roseburg by sea. We are counting the days and the fleet will set off during this time.
The best possibility is that they can meet each other on the road to Stade, or in worse cases they can meet during the journey.