Eagle Byzantium

Now, the entire armed group of pilgrims has been divided into two armies. Along the way from Cilicia, the main forces were Godfrey, Hugh, Gawain, Baldwin and the hermit Peter.

The first formation of this group was commanded by the "Noble Hugh", the brother of the King of France. It had 600 pilgrims' mail cavalry (including knights and sergeants), and more than 1,000 "royal entourage". This group of walking spearmen and archers, this group of warriors from the Île-de-France (the island refers to the small territory under the jurisdiction of the royal family), has always boasted its invincibility, so they are at the forefront of the team, responsible for searching and finding enemies;

The second formation is the main force of Gawain and Baldwin. Not to mention the thousands of Banda detachments of the Red Hand Brigade armed with large infantry spears, there are also two elite cavalry companies with sufficient horses - in Gawain In the September tax collection, an option was temporarily added: Jinat landowners and subjects could jointly pay war horses to offset the tax - nearly a thousand war horses were quickly gathered and handed over to the military camp. Moreover, the Byzantine Roman Empire was located in the territory of Asia Minor, and there was no shortage of good horses. Cappadocia and Cilicia have been good places for herding horses since ancient times. There are also strong and tall Persian horses and Arabian horses among them, with impact and impact. Durability is very balanced and excellent , although this measure caused most of the tax revenue to be lost, the effect was extremely significant. Now the cavalry soldiers of the "New Baptized Company" and "Saint Cyril Company" have reached the point where they have two horses per man, and they can Show off your skills in the Battle of Tiktok!

In addition, the Kallegos brothers (including the two from the Mut Valley), General Oson, and Cabeamia personally mobilized some of their elites, as well as many Ciliciaginata, to join the army. About nearly four thousand men, half of whom were cavalry. Later, Polybius, the son of General Philaredos, was also coerced into joining the army. He, his beautiful wife Sibylla Blechamios, and other tribesmen were all placed in the city of Seleucia. Now serving as Gawain's "flag", "After the Holy Land is recovered, I will return to my castle with Your Excellency and regain the territory that used to belong to your father from the Kingdom of Reuben in Armenia." Gawain promised him firmly.

The same goes for Baldwin who was fighting together there. He had hundreds of knights, plus the cover of the converted Turkic light cavalry, and thousands of infantrymen who gathered under various flags to protect them in a mighty manner. Baldwin left Goldshear behind. Germany, accompany Anna to stay in the country.

Godfrey's legion was responsible for the rear, including nearly ten infantry regiments and more than 500 armored cavalry. They were surrounded by a banner of the Holy Cross that everyone could see, which inspired people to fight. They stayed temporarily. In the Armenian Pass and the city of Issus, the Armenian lords in the mountains of northern Cilicia were monitored and intimidated, and they were warned to cause less trouble. As expected, the "Armenian Mountain Wolves" in the mountains were all silent.

In this area, the hermit Peter, together with the chief minister Gawain and Bogotschalk, continued to display their expertise: organizing civilian pilgrims, laying bridges and opening channels for the army, feeding horses and beasts of burden, and transporting supplies.

Finally, the pirates Wen Ermo and Andreev and Galcuba under Gawain also hired a large number of Maldites and Greeks to serve as sailors, and densely berthed small warships in the Gulf of Issus to blockade Antioch. The sea road to the city of Kremlin was waiting for the large fleets from Venice, France, Amalfi and Pisa to join forces with them.

Another group of pilgrims, that is, the team of Ademar and Bohemond, detoured through the narrow roads in the mountains of Roma and Danishmund, and now also arrived at Maras and Edessa. (The two Turkic commanders, Giliki and Merik, both adopted the policy of allowing attacks on roads and byways.) They joined Tancred's team and were approaching the city of Antioch from the other direction.

But just as Count Robert of Flanders was worried: pack animals and war horses were either intercepted and captured by Turkic guerrilla soldiers during the march, or they were infected with diseases and died in large numbers because the roads were narrow and rugged, and livestock and human feces were mixed. Piling them together happens to be the biggest cause of disease outbreaks.

When they arrived at Edessa, the pilgrims' horses were all gone and only a few hundred were still fit for battle. They were in a very miserable state.

In this case, Tancred's status, which occupied Edessa's vast wealth and castle, and obtained the allegiance of the Armenian nobles, suddenly became prominent, and Bohemond's authority became even greater. Therefore, during the march, Raymond more than once asked his subordinates and Companions complained: "Norman, Norman, too ambitious, want, if After capturing Antioch, He, and the Holy City, they will occupy all the places, we, we all have to go back." Although Raymond stuttered, his words were correct. The simplest performance: he and others. The pilgrims lacked horses, but the Normans plundered local horses and divided half of them equally among them.

Then, with the support of Tancred, the Norman army swept through several fortresses on the border of Antioch and Edessa. Of course, all the territory they occupied was included in the pockets of the Normans. Bohemond After discussing privately with Tancred, they could not wait to establish the "Principality of Edessa Maras" and were preparing to send a secret letter to the Holy See, hoping to be recognized.

"It is more advantageous to take the city of Antioch into our hands first and gain access to the sea." In the end, Bohemond calmly suppressed it and decided to consider the long term.

Eventually, two groups of pilgrims, from the west and the north, approached the city of Artah, the gateway fortress between Antioch and Aleppo.

Since then, the ships returning from the Gulf of Issus have continuously brought news of beacon fire to Anna in Zephilim Castle: all the pilgrim armies have already fought fiercely with the Turkic unbelievers in the various valleys and passes of Ata City.

Standing by the window, Anna, looking at the plains and mountains in the distance, murmured to Godhild behind her, "When the barbarian went out in the past, I always waved my arms, cheered, and kept shouting the slogan of the Three Saints to bless the strong; but this time it was different, I was even afraid to see his back, seeing the black Sabina and the silver Quicksilver being led out of the stable by Muzafi Adin, I felt very heavy, breathing hard, and tears were about to flow down. I used to cheer for the glory of Gawain's victory every time, but now I am glad for Gawain's safety every time."

"Because Gawain conquered your heart physically." Godhild realized that something was wrong as soon as the words came to her lips, and she looked at Anna's back and swallowed them.

On the barren plains below the city of Ata, the pilgrims and the Turkish army were fighting fiercely on all fronts. A Turkish emir in gorgeous armor roared "The prophet bless my spear" and jumped out of the front line on horseback, rushing sideways towards the Red Hand Brigade infantry column that was holding a forest of spears and rapidly approaching the city wall and the stream.

"Goliath, Muzafi'adin, kill him." Gawain, riding on Quicksilver, saw the emir bravely attacking him under the clouds and sunlight, and said briefly. (To be continued ~^~.)