The nobles attending the meeting certainly supported King Rurik's decree. They would receive significant benefits from the tax-free privileges. At the same time, this king with strong military strength was naturally a mediator. After Birka was renamed Stockholm, Ross
The army will be stationed in the city, and the trading port belongs to the king. The nobles do business in the port area according to the rules set by the king. If there are differences among the merchants, there will be someone to mediate immediately, so the conflicts will not escalate between the nobles.
There will be mutual peace within Sweden. An absolutely peaceful environment under the rule of Ross will be extremely conducive to everyone's common prosperity.
But under this peaceful appearance, how can there not be danger?
Rurik got what he hoped for and received praise from many nobles.
He opened his arms and walked around in front of everyone, accepting everyone's congratulations.
He slowly stood up, and everything he preached about this meeting was recorded, and would eventually be printed on hard paper to become a legally binding document.
"You have all made smart choices, now let's talk about your opinions! I welcome your suggestions. You... come one by one?"
Rurik then signaled with his eyes, and looking at the nobles who were targeted, his words were still pure praise.
The king's announcement greatly exceeded their expectations. The king gave everyone great freedom. In a sense, it was enough to publicly acknowledge that he was the king. What else do you want after this?
Until Rurik's eyes were fixed on Longstall of Hjermalen.
"You? Duke Hjärmalen, I have been paying attention to you for a long time. You seem to have a lot to say."
This was the opportunity Longstall was waiting for. He stood up suddenly and said bluntly: "Exactly! King! I have a warning for you."
"There is a warning? What is it?" Rurik smiled slightly to hide his embarrassment.
"It is related to the safety of the kingdom."
"Comfort? Are you aware that we are facing...the danger of being attacked? Don't worry, the Danes have been weakened by me."
Hearing this, all the nobles burst out laughing. They danced and echoed Rurik's words, saying that the Kingdom of Denmark had nothing to fear.
Rurik raised his hand to signal everyone to shut up. He frowned, thinking that the strong man in front of him did not look like the kind of person who would make a fuss, and what he reported should not be underestimated.
"What's going on? What...are you afraid of?"
"Your enemies, the Jotalans."
"Jotalan? What is that?"
"It's your enemy in the south. Maybe..." Longstall looked at Carlotta, the Duchess of Ostara, who was present. He said bluntly: "Actually, there is no one better than your wife, the Duchess of Ostara.
, understands the Jotalans better."
Giotaland, or giotaland, is not a completely unfamiliar word to Rurik. This area is at the southeastern end of Scandinavia and is a large area on a macro scale. Since Longstall Point
After hearing Carlotta's name, Rurik thought for a while and asked Carlotta to come forward and explain.
A weak woman stood in front of all the Swedish nobles, and the scene seemed somewhat abrupt. Today's Carlotta did not have the heroic appearance of a female warrior at all. She dressed up deliberately, busy emphasizing the necessary charm of a woman, and even decorated it with gorgeous jewelry.
Himself, in order to let the nobles know that despite the hardships the Ostara tribe has endured, everything is fine for them who immigrated to the new world.
Carlotta raised her chin high: "Of course I know the Jotalans! They are all people from the south, occupying the lakes and pastures in the south. They are greedy and have been trying to encroach on our land. However, we are old
Ostara has been destroyed, and all the tribes in the south have either immigrated or moved north. In the past, we Ostara people have been shouldering their invasion of Svealand. As for the current situation, I no longer know.
"
She seemed to only emphasize that the Jotalan people in the south were greedy, and the details were impossible to describe.
Longstall needed exactly this description from her and made a big fuss out of it.
"King, you heard it all! Gentlemen, you heard it too! The Ostara people pointed out that the Jotalans are greedy and have been trying to encroach on our land. The current situation is that we Hjelmalen people
It has essentially become the southern border of Sweden. In recent years, our cattle herders have often been attacked and stolen by the Götalanders. They kill my people and steal my cattle and sheep. I have been trying to fight back against them, but... my population
It’s still too little.”
At this point, Rurik had probably already guessed what he wanted.
"You...are still being harassed by them?"
"Exactly! I hope to get your help. I hope the king can protect us and completely defeat those Jotalans."
"Are you asking me to expand my territory?"
Longstall stared at Rurik's sharp eyes and braced himself: "That's it. Let everything stop! As long as you conquer the south, the war will be eliminated. Besides..."
"how?"
"As a king, don't you need a victory to prove your authority?"
Rurik never expected that he would fall into the trap of provoking a general. This man instigated a war and asked the king to prove his majesty, which immediately attracted the support and jeers of the nobles.
In other words, all the nobles, big and small, who lived on the south bank of Lake Mälaren, clapped their thighs and made loud noises, asking the king to summon an army to attack the Jotalans.
How about the Götalanders? In the past, I only heard their name, but when Sweden, Rus, and Denmark were fighting on the Baltic Sea, the so-called Götalanders seemed to not exist.
They seem to have been doing sneaky things, attacking Swedish tribes as thieves and robbers on land, without any military annexation or other measures such as the "Kingdom of Götaland". Are they just a group of people without ambition?
When a country is born, defeating an enemy and achieving military exploits is conducive to the king's rule.
The founding battle of the Principality of Rus was to sweep across the island of Gotland, and with its horrific and ruthless killings, it made a great name in the Swedish world.
After being upgraded to a kingdom, will Ross want to take action against Jotalan?
Rurik's plan for himself was to contact Ragnar, the great Danish nobleman, and finally organize a joint army to completely destroy Horik's power as an agent of the Franks in Denmark, and then cooperate with the brand-new
After Denmark signed the peace treaty, it started to trade peacefully. Shouldn't the real battle for the founding of the country be to destroy the Kingdom of Denmark and support the pro-Russian new Denmark?
Denmark has a long-standing problem, and it seems that the Götaland problem is a scabies disease.
Although scabies is not fatal, the persistent itching is still uncomfortable.
The nobles happily waited for King Rurik to make a major decision. Facing the enthusiastic eyes of everyone, they thought that the Swedish part of the kingdom should not be limited to the Ring of Malaren region. It really needed to expand the border to the south, just like Sweden.
When there is a territorial scope, the southern end of the territory must be demarcated all the way to the Jutland Peninsula of Denmark across the sea.
What kind of rubbish are the Jotalans?! Fight them and conquer them!
Rurik made up his mind and clenched his fists: "Then let's fight! Attack the Jotalans and make them surrender. Everyone, my kingdom needs to conquer all the Jotalans and sign a treaty with them. From now on
The Jotalan forces live in their territory and cannot invade the Svealan region to the north of us. Of course they will not listen to my decline, so conquer them and let them know who is the king."
The king's statement was very serious. Thinking of the past wars, Longstall was convinced that Rurik was really determined to take action.
Since we are destined to start a war, it is better to fight early than to fight.
Longstall continued to fire: "It is only July now, and there is still some time before winter. King! Your army and your fleet are stationed here. We can take action immediately. We can kill before winter.
If I run over and plunder their villages, I can take back the cattle and sheep they plundered, and I can even plunder some slaves."
He wanted to continue, but Rurik told him to shut up.
People noticed that the atmosphere had become tense, and Rurik made it clear with a sullen face: "The crusade against the Jotalans is inevitable, but not now. Longstall, you want me to send troops to conquer now? I still know very little about the enemy.
.I can tell you clearly that it won’t work this year! If we want to fight, it will be next year.”
"Why not? Your army is here, and..."
"Next year." Rurik shook his head: "Don't think about teaching me how to do things. I am your monarch. You! And you!"
Rurik faced many nobles and emphasized one power that they would lose after surrendering to the king: "In principle, you have no right to start a war against other countries. Whether to start a war depends on my wishes. If you start a war without authorization, then
Fight it yourself! No matter you win or lose, it is a crime. If anyone dares to launch an attack without authorization, I will cancel his tax exemption. All you have is the qualification to defend me, such as against the Jotalans, and do not listen to me.
Order, if you take the initiative, you will be punished."
These warnings left Longstall speechless. The king was willing to stand up for himself to prove that he was the real king, but he didn't even have the power to lead his troops to war. Wouldn't it be very aggrieved?
He immediately asked: "King! What if those Jotalan come again before winter? Don't you let us fight back?"
"Protect yourself for the time being, and don't take the initiative to attack against my orders. Listen, there is not enough time to start a war this year. We will form a coalition next year, and Odin will give us a chance! You all listen, against Jotalan, we are not
To retaliate against the bandits who stole cattle and sheep, I want to conquer them and solve the Götaland problem as directly as possible through a war. Longstall, I am not helping you counterattack anymore, I am going to expand a new territory."
Rurik showed a great pattern, which astonished the nobles.
Everyone recalled the past when King Olegin summoned the coalition forces to attack Denmark. As far as the result was concerned, the coalition forces won, but the king died.
Because the Ross army was the main force of the coalition at that time, without the assistance of the Ross army's heavy weapons, the coalition would have been unable to capture the Borgholm Fortress on Oland Island, let alone the city of Kalma quickly. As for the
King Olegin died in battle precisely because the Russian army was humiliated by his compatriots and withdrew with the army in anger.
If we talk about the past, we can sit here and talk for three days and three nights.
Especially when we talk about the death of King Olegin in battle, it is precisely this matter that is regarded as a shame for Sweden, and everyone does not want to talk about it more, especially about Rurik, this matter should not be talked about.
The reason is quite simple, because the man who cut off King Oleg's head with his own hands is in Sweden.
Ragnar, after he rushed to Lake Mälaren in an assault and arrived in Uppsala to participate in Rurik's enthronement ceremony, he and his companion Spyut arrived at Gould Island on the lake. Ragnar's return
He briefly reported to Rurik about his recruitment of troops on Bornholm Island, and then bought a batch of cheap weapons (mostly axes cast from pig iron) on Gould Island, and chose an opportunity to return by ship.
Go and return to your Bornholm armed men.
He himself did not reveal his identity and did not leave Sweden. It would be embarrassing if the Swedish nobles learned about Ragnar's deeds and that he became a strategic ally of the king.
The nobles listened attentively to Rurik's exact arrangements and received this order: After you go back, reorganize the army. I will summon the army next spring. By then, even if you bring ten soldiers, you must lead your troops to fight. I will lead you
Get the victory!
All this is just like when Olegin held a conference to attack Denmark, and actually organized a large army to attack the next year.
In 840 AD, when the goal of the strategy was to conquer the Götaland Highlands in southern Scandinavia, it became one of the national policies of the Kingdom of Rus.
As the saying goes, once a war is decided, a wise monarch will not act on impulse.
In principle, after this meeting, the king's enthronement ceremony has been completely completed, and the many summoned nobles can go back to their homes to wait for the wheat harvest, and then take the new wheat to Stockholm Port to do business freely.
It was for this reason that Rurik decisively rejected Longstall's request to start war this year.
There are only about thirty days left before the wheat harvest. Who can guarantee that great results will be achieved within thirty days, and who can guarantee that the wheat harvest will not be delayed. The soldiers of the Russian army in Uppsala are mainly young people.
The powerful labor force is waiting to harvest wheat in the east. The Ross army is gorgeously dressed and equipped with impressive equipment, which can well conceal the immaturity of the soldiers. To be honest, Rurik is convinced that these young warriors have a strong fighting spirit, but their bodies are still too big.
He is immature and urgently needs to eat more fresh meat and bread. It will take another three or four years to grow into a strong Nordic man in his peak period. That will be a powerful soldier with a strong reputation.
All the nobles will be busy harvesting wheat at this time, and they will definitely not take the risk of delaying the farming season and sing along with Duke Hjärmalen. What’s more, the Hjälmälen tribe in the north is really threatened by the invasion of the Götalans.
The brothers have always been indifferent. As for everyone supporting the war, it is naturally because following the invincible Ross army can get a lot of fat and fresh meat to fill their stomachs.
Some of the nobles had rowed away, but Longstall was deliberately left behind.
Life seems to be calming down, and the noisy Uppsala has also quieted down.
The Russian army is still stationed in the city they built with their own hands, but it is destined to be handed over to the governor of Uppsala, Swined.
Many nobles left, and Longstall was authorized to continue to live in the walled city temporarily. He was able to have a good chat with the elderly Otto, and met an astonishing number of Rurik's wives and concubines, as well as princes and princesses. It was obvious that they were separated.
It has been a long time. Although the Russians are from Swedish society, their customs are significantly different from everyone else, especially in terms of dressing. When the Russians take off the white and blue patterned robes they must wear on formal occasions, they reveal a variety of patterns.
colorful linen clothes, and leather jackets with fancy decorations.
Weaving patterned cloth has always been a traditional craft of the Slavs. Due to geographical factors, it is easier to obtain dyeing raw materials in the area around Lake Ilmen. Naturally, bright yellows and bright reds that are rare in the Nordic world can be obtained cheaply.
There were an astonishing number of young men among the Ross warriors. Most of them were still childish. They took off their shirts and showed their true colors. Longstall was shocked. He was surprised in many ways. For example, such warriors formed an army and their combat effectiveness was doubtful.
They are too young, which is also a huge advantage. What is terrifying when you think about it is that King Rurik can produce hundreds of extremely young male warriors, and they are really full of stamina.
Longstall was ordered to stay here, which was to accept Rurik's order.
He was asked to think carefully about all the things about the Jotalans, and was given paper and a quill. He dipped ink ink and wrote down what he knew in runic characters on the hard paper to strengthen his memory, and then took it with him.
Use this piece of paper to chat secretly with the king.
Secret chatting is a privilege! He was nervous and excited at the same time. He also learned that the other people who would also participate in the secret chatting were Carlotta, the Duchess of Ostara, and Svalgard, the Duke of Gran.
Just because of the identities of these two people, Longstall fully understood the king's purpose.
It can be said that in the past era, they were the ones who knew the most about the Jotalan forces, so to conquer the enemy, detailed information from insiders was needed.
Paper replaced wooden boards as writing tools. This shocked Longstall, but he adapted immediately. He wrote a long document with very sloppy handwriting, rolled it up and tied it with a rope, and took it with him.
Rushing to the secret meeting place set by the king...