The false king John is standing at the top of the city. Now he has no intention of visiting Queen Anna again. Look at the current situation. As soon as the messenger left, there was nothing more to say. The barbarian bonfires were like stars, and the entire Bamburgh had been surrounded.
Surround.
Looking at the posture, he believed that the enemy refused to negotiate and intended to attack Bamburgh in daylight and kill everyone.
Just Bamburgh? These barbarians have destroyed Edinburgh, then Lindisfarne, and now Bamburgh!
Suddenly, John felt that his behavior in the past few days was really ridiculous, just like the description of the end of the world in the Book of Revelation. The so-called devil came to the world to destroy everything, and people before the destruction indulged in wanton sexual intercourse and killed people everywhere.
Isn’t this what’s happening in Bamburgh these days?
The more I looked at those bonfires, the more frightened I became.
John hurried down the city wall, squeezed into the already overcrowded Bamburgh Abbey, and knelt down to pray to the icon.
He prayed to God to forgive his sins, prayed that he could defeat the enemy tomorrow and persist in forcing the enemy to run out of supplies and evacuate.
As for moving reinforcements to York! The guilty John knew that he had no right to do so. His power had not been officially recognized. In the current situation, who would dare to be a messenger?
The outside of the city has been completely surrounded by barbarians, and Bamburgh is now an isolated city.
The people in the city prayed for a miracle. When the defenders saw the enemy's formation, they suddenly lacked confidence in the future battle, but they still had to fight.
The battle was not for John at all, but for his own survival.
But they didn't know that King Aenred, who was rumored to be dead, had changed his appearance and was standing in the dense bonfire below the city.
In the early morning, thick fog filled the whole world.
Rurik woke up in the wet. After complaining about the humid climate in Britain, he had to get up.
He moved to the nearest campfire, used the flames to dry off the moisture all over his body, and chatted with his friends before the wheat was cooked.
The sun gradually dispersed the morning fog, and the Viking army finally revealed their true colors.
Two carts were put together, some newly cut pine trunks were quickly piled on the cart, and a siege engine was being quickly built.
The four torsion slingshots and all the bull trebuchets were being debugged. After they were debugged, they were moved to about a hundred meters away from the wooden wall of Bamburgh. Then one after another, people brought rocks, javelins and other throwing objects and placed them on the
Next to heavy weapons.
Looking at the battle formation, not only the Bamburgh defenders, but also the Balmoks and Shetlanders themselves felt that the boss had changed his mind and wanted to storm the city.
People who had eaten wheat felt full of strength. They roared at the wooden walls, sometimes hit wooden shields with axes to make noise, and some people blew horns.
The Vikings made a lot of noise again, which shocked the Bamburgh defenders to take up arms.
John in the city began to assemble his soldiers, but he faced a large number of soldiers with dull eyes, trembling spear hands, and even wet pants. With such an army, he could defend the victory.
Although he was conferred the title of Prime Minister by Queen Anna, anyone who understands knows that this title is not legal at all. It was only when the enemy came to the city and the defenders were unable to find help, that the soldiers supported such a person as the commander.
As for having brothers supporting John become a thing of the past in the future, he needs to at least have a clear victory in the war.
"The battle is about to break out. John, remember, we will support you as king only if you lead your brothers to victory." Some cavalry soldiers did not give John any respect. His words were straightforward, and the meaning behind them was clear.
Seeing John's silence for a moment, another infantry centurion shouted: "If we are defeated, everyone will die. If you show cowardice in the battle, everything will be over."
"Yes! If you dare to be cowardly, we will...just kill you!" Another soldier yelled.
The situation gradually became very delicate. Regardless of their mentality, the re-armed defeated soldiers at least showed courage on the surface.
John really couldn't say anything high-spirited. There were thousands of women and children in the city. Although there were two thousand troops, only five hundred of them could really fight.
He bravely climbed to the top of the city, and the horrifying sight almost made him fall from the building.
Looking at the approaching enemy, the warriors holding bows and spears on the city wall were all trembling.
The strength of the Vikings itself was not large, but Rurik put up a relatively wide formation.
At the landing site on the seaside in the distance, thick green smoke was rising there, giving the defenders a terrifying possibility - maybe this force was just a vanguard, and there were a large number of enemies eating on the seaside.
The Balmok Vikings were arranged in a thin shield wall, their bodies guarded by heavy weapons at the ready.
Rurik never gave up on forcibly attacking the city. If his plan to persuade him to surrender failed, he would resort to violent means.
Persuading surrender is not his first choice, and even if it turns into a strong attack, the attack should have some new tricks.
Rurik looked up at the people on the city with squinted eyes, turned around and shouted to the King of Broken Arms: "Now, you take your people to seize your own power. If you can dissuade the defenders from killing the king, start again."
If the city surrenders, I will definitely comply with the agreement."
"Okay! I will. But..." King Eynred paused for breath; "If you don't follow the agreement, God will definitely punish you."
"Really? Maybe. You have no choice now."
Eynred really had no choice. He finally had more than seventy tired and frightened warriors.
The Viking line moved out of the way. Eynred held his own sword. Behind him, the trembling envoy Jacques held a tattered kingdom flag. Two priests held a temporary cross tied with branches. About seventy people only held sharpened swords.
The stick warriors followed closely behind.
This isn't an army at all. It's more like a group of beggars fleeing famine.
However, quite a few of them still wore orange-colored clothes and tattered outfits that still proved that they were warriors of the kingdom.
These people followed Eynred, daring to approach the wooden wall.
At this moment, the defenders on the city wall were stunned and at a loss as they witnessed the strange sight displayed by the enemies below.
"Am I dazzled? Why do those people look more and more like our people?" John felt more and more incredible as he muttered to himself, until he saw a one-armed sword-wielding man under the city.
Not only John, but also a group of regular soldiers from the kingdom saw a familiar person.
That man! Even if he lost his gorgeous clothes and even an arm, his face looked like that of King Eynred!
Is the king still alive? Or is he simply a man who looks exactly like the king?
Aynred had no time to worry about the suspicions of the people in the city. He raised his sword high and shouted: "I am Aynred! King of Northumbria! I order you to open the city gate!"
"
As soon as these words came out, the people in the city wall were shocked and speechless.
Seeing this, Eynred kept shouting, as if he was afraid that the other party wouldn't understand.
He walked down the city with his sword raised, shouting constantly: "Open the door quickly! I am your king! I am Eynred!"
They were all his subordinates and ministers, but their indifferent behavior made Eynred feel more and more isolated.
Feeling terrified, he finally raised the city head with his sword and yelled: "John! John who betrayed me! You are trying to seize my throne! Just warriors of Northumbria, kill the rebels! Open the city gates.
! Don’t worry, these Vikings are my reinforcements who have moved to take back the throne. Help me kill the false king. If you are a farmer, you will be exempted from all taxes in this life! If you are a warrior, you will be promoted to a baron immediately!"
Not to mention, Eynred's words touched the hearts of many people.
John was indeed a usurper. When he felt guilty, he felt that the soldiers around him looked at him ambiguously, as if his head gave them a certificate of meritorious service.
But wait a minute, those barbarians are clearly devils who kill without blinking an eye.
How could he be snatched away by the suddenly "resurrected" king when he had just grasped the power and was about to develop his ambitions? If he gave up now, he would be waiting to be liquidated, and the outcome would be death by torture.
John made a determined effort and drew his sword and pointed it directly at the king below the city. At this moment, he was sure that the man with the broken arm was Eynred. Unfortunately, he was a nobleman that he had to serve with his life, and now he had to die.
He thought of an excuse and shouted: "Fighters of the kingdom! Our king is dead! Now the devil under the city has resurrected a dead body. He is tricking us into opening the city, and then everyone will be killed!"
As soon as this statement came out, many superstitious people were deceived by John and believed it to be true.
John directly gave the order to shoot arrows: "Even if he is the king, he has made a contract with the devil. The king sold his soul and sold us. Eynred is a traitor to the kingdom. Archer! Shoot the arrow!"
A very simple reason. After the city is opened, who can guarantee that the barbarians will not rush in and kill everyone? The defenders are all aware of the armed situation in the city. Bamburgh seems to have a lot of people, but in fact it is a small group of soldiers and a lot of sheep.
.
More than a dozen archers fired their arrows without much thought. They focused on aiming at Eynred. It can be said that this old boy has been fighting for half his life. Although he broke an arm, his ability to dodge has not been lost.
He rolled his body to avoid all the arrows, clutched his sword tightly and fled towards the Viking camp.
The people following him also ran for their lives. The priest, who was supposed to maintain his dignity, simply threw away the makeshift cross made of wooden strips and fled in panic.
Three unlucky guys were hit by arrows. Two of them escaped from the danger zone with arrow wounds. The most unlucky one was killed on the spot by a coincidental sword sealing his throat.
Aynred held the hilt of the sword and stood in front of Rurik, hunched and panting.
Regardless of whether he admits it or not, it is obvious that his plan to seize the throne with just one mouth has come to nothing. Looking at the current situation, if this group of Vikings is mainly to get money, food and slaves, John who usurped the throne is taking money from the bottom of the cauldron.
Once you think this way, the group of barbarians in front of you are no longer simply barbaric.
Rurik looked at the city wall with a dull face: "I expected this to happen."
The grief-stricken Aynred looked like he was about to crush the hilt of his sword. He thought that he should indeed cooperate with the barbaric Vikings. "The whole of Bamburgh is a traitor! Help me take back the throne, and you can take away the city."
everything of!"
Hearing this, Biyongni, Geiger and others were all moved.
Rurik, however, remained rational. He patted Eynred on the shoulder: "King Northumbria, it seems you still haven't figured out the situation! When did I promise to help you regain the throne? However, the current situation
It has definitely changed.”
That's all, he yelled: "Brothers! Prepare to attack the city! Remember, anyone who resists must be killed! Those who give up resistance will spare their lives."
The order has been issued, and the Vikings immediately made big moves.
Perhaps from the beginning, he should not have been so dilly-dallying with the Northumbrian king, causing the army to waste the Vikings' mobile surprise capabilities.
But it's okay, the army took a rest and is now very confident in breaking the city in one fell swoop.
The Vikings began to siege the city. In this battle, King Aynred of Northumbria became a complete spectator.
What happened next shocked him.
A large number of Viking warriors armed with huge bucklers protected most of their bodies and slowly approached the wooden wall in a relatively neat formation.
Behind them were some people carrying long wooden ladders. It was obvious that the Vikings planned to climb up the stairs.
Perhaps climbing the ladder is only a non-important one among the many methods. The highlight is the four-wheeled wooden cart loaded with wooden bars. A powerful and heavy vehicle has the tendency to break through the wooden door.
The Vikings' projectile weapons were unleashed! Now Eynred finally understood what kind of blow he had suffered on the beach.
Are these weapons that shoot rocks? It looks like a combination of rope and wood, but it can shoot rocks to a long distance?
There are also their strange bows. What kind of bow is that? Is there any bow in this world that can be fired while lying down? Wait? Are the bow arms still made of iron?
The Balmoks once knew nothing about siege warfare. After entering the British Isles, they learned to fight in battles. Now these hundreds of people have become masters of siege warfare. As the saying goes, the strong men who survived the first battle have become
Veterans, veterans who survived the second battle directly became elites.
For these Balmoks who were attacking the city, this battle was already their third siege battle.
Rurik used the same tactics he used to command the Russians to siege the city, and used them to command these people.
The battle went very smoothly, but the Bamburgh defenders, who had poor troops and few long-range weapons, tried to prevent the enemy from climbing the city wall by shooting arrows and throwing stones and pottery jars. However, the city wall quickly became a hell on earth.
The Shetlanders were always afraid of death. They were ordered to throw arrows from the rear to provide support, which objectively suppressed the defenders at the top of the city.
Bull trebuchets hurled stones into the city indiscriminately, and the effect of creating panic was more fatal than killing the enemy.
As for the torsion slingshot, it was a heavy-duty sniper equipment. Some of the defenders at the top of the city had their heads blown off by conical cast-iron bullets under John's nose.
John felt that this was his fate and defeat was inevitable. He hurriedly pulled down the wooden wall, but unexpectedly his shoulder was hit by a stray arrow.
"Ah!" He fell heavily to the ground and pulled out the arrow with all his strength.
"Hell, my mail armor can't protect against this?"
When he looked at the arrow cluster carefully, he saw that the long and sharp iron arrow cluster was indeed not an arrow from his country. He suddenly understood that these arrows were made by barbarians to break armor.
Although the city gate was bolted, the violent vibration was like a hammer hitting his heart.
John knew a backdoor way to escape. Even if there were enemies on all sides of the city, staying in the city would lead to death.
Royal power? Possession of the queen’s body? Wealth?
Forget it! It's important to escape now.
Ignoring the injury to his shoulder, he randomly found a piece of wood and fastened it to his head, and fled toward the back door, braving attacks from arrows and stones.
As everyone knows, some soldiers have been watching John's actions.
Just as he was approaching the back door, more than a dozen Kingdom soldiers rushed up and knocked him to the ground with a sap.
When John was pulled up by his hair, in extreme pain, he saw the queen with the little prince Ella, standing in front of him with a dull face.
Suddenly, there was a roar in the distance.
It's the gate! The siege vehicles knocked open the wooden gate. Amidst the roaring shouts of killing, the Vikings holding their battle axes high rushed into the city.
But Queen Anna had no fear at all. She regained her former arrogance, raised her boots and stepped directly on John's head, pressing his head into the black soil mixed with feces and urine: "I already know everything. My king has come back, I
I don’t want to compromise anymore. You are not the palace prime minister, let alone the king! Now, I want to hand you, the usurper, to the king’s disposal!”