Rise of Rurik

The division of the vast Franks was doomed, and Charlemagne made a will to divide the kingdom among his three sons. However, the two sons left before him, and the only surviving son, the devout Louis the Pious, took over the throne.

Louis had three sons, Lothair, Pepin, and Ludwig.

The division of the kingdom has major internal factors. The crazy expansion of Charlemagne during his lifetime made it difficult for the city of Aachen to command the entire huge kingdom. At this time, dividing the kingdom into several pieces and giving them to the sons must be the best choice, so that they will all get benefits, and the conflicts between the brothers will be eliminated. Based on the ties of blood, they can also attack foreign enemies together.

Charlemagne had drawn up a blueprint for the division of the kingdom, which Louis, who succeeded him, had to continue at the behest of his three sons.

The eldest son Lothair led the largest territory and was the successor of the Frankish king and the Italian king.

The second son, Pepin, led Aquitaine as the king of the southern part of the kingdom.

The third son, Ludwig, led the west and north of the kingdom, and was the king of Bavaria and Saxony.

Louis the Pious made an early plan to split the kingdom, the sons have lived their lives in their respective territories, and the fighting between them has subsided a lot. If this is the case, Louis can live the rest of his life peacefully as a de facto supreme king.

until the birth of that child.

The youngest son, Charlie, was born. At first, the three brothers did not feel that their fourth brother was anything special, until the king's father decided to add the fourth brother on a whim, and the territory originally allocated to other sons had to be cut off to Charlie.

The balance of power among the three sons was broken, and the father personally tore up the blueprint he had set for the division, and the power of the brothers was weakened. Who can guarantee that the old father will not continue to cut the soil on a whim?

Could it be that the younger brother can still be the biggest threat to everyone?

The civil war reignited, the three sons imprisoned their father and younger brother Charlie, and their armies continued to fight.

In order to gain more results on the battlefield and have confidence at the negotiating table, they are all looking for external reinforcements.

However, it is said that the Frankish kingdom is in civil war. What does this have to do with the Baltic world in the north?

The relationship is too big.

In other words, to win over the Danes to join their own forces to increase their military strength, and no matter how bad it is, they can also attack the strength of other brothers. This is what Ludwig did. He was the king of Bavaria and Saxony, and he had both civil and military skills to win over Denmark.

Eskil did voluntarily go to Denmark and further afield to spread his faith, but doing so required a lot of financial support. Otherwise, how could he have the money to build a monastery in Hazelby and raise and educate those slave children? The financier behind him is Prince Ludwig, who has not yet been crowned king.

If you rely on faith to conquer all the Danes and become the lord of all Denmark, it is not impossible to recruit a brave army here to sweep the brothers and become the king of all Franks. Ludwig is actually very aware that the Danes are hard to tame beasts, but as long as they are tamed, they will be excellent mercenaries in war.

This is a set of "literary" strategies, which cannot be rushed for quick success.

Based on the letters returned by Esquil, Ludwig learned of the existence of the "Russ Principality".

"A rapidly rising duchy, a very young duke, an army that has left the Danes helpless. The young Duke of Ross killed the Danish king with his own hands, causing great chaos in Denmark..."

The content of the letter was so bizarre that Ludwig felt that Eskil was bragging. He also claimed that the work of spreading the faith in the extreme north was quite smooth.

Claiming that he is only one step away from probation of the young Duke of Ross.

"Bah! This is short of money."

Ludwig was quite generous in giving funds to Eskil, and he learned that Denmark is indeed leaderless now, making things that were once difficult to do easier, such as the monastery in Hedseby everything went well, many Denmark The locals have been baptized.

However, it is still too slow to win by simply relying on the "wen" strategy.

At this time, Harald Clark, the former Danish leader under his command, volunteered.

"Give me an army, and I will take my brothers back to my hometown. You make me Duke of Denmark, I will honor you as king, and I will baptize the whole of Denmark and fight for you."

However, Harald Clark was already old, and after losing power, he was just a mercenary with dozens of cronies. Ludwig did not want to use this man, who had a bad reputation in Denmark, and even putting him back would be equivalent to a Frankish act of war in the eyes of the Danes.

Ludwig's refusal was very decisive: "You are old, but your nephew Horrick Klarsson is in Flanders. He is more suitable for Denmark to be the leader than you, and he has such strength and also has Such a willingness. Most importantly, I don’t have to pay an extra silver coin, I just need to ask the earls in the north to give all support except help.”

Indeed, Harald Clark is old, and a great lord has been reduced to a mercenary. Will he die silently in his sad old age? He has already put on a cross, and it doesn't matter how a soldier should die. His master Ludwig also gave him the bottom line. If he couldn't even lift an axe, he would go to a monastery to retire.

But Horrick was young and strong, and his old men were brave. He was canonized by Ludwig as Count of Friesland. Of course, this was only a nominal canonization, and no one really took this title seriously except Ludwig.

Horlick is indeed not a real sub-noble, and the real family of the Count of Frisian exists safely. Horrick's "Count of Frisian" occupied the city of Durist, a small coastal town that was once normal, but now it has been run into a Viking city and a pirate's den of loot. This is naturally the way to go. What Dewig wanted to see.

Because of Horrick, the "pirate in use", many of the looters were his brother Lothair's territory, and part of the looted property and military supplies would be supplied to the master.

This round-faced young man was much more sensible than his uncle.

But the irony is that this person is also a Christian.

Horrick is eager to take his brothers back to their hometown in Denmark for not a day or two!

"I was destined to be the King of Denmark, but I've been reduced to where I am now."

To be a titular earl to Prince Ludwig of the Franks, where is the pleasure of being the king of Denmark? Besides, why should Denmark accept Frankish rule?

It is not because of his unruly character that he has such a thought, but because Charlemagne's expansion to the north would annex Denmark thirty years ago, the Frankish army killed the Danes indiscriminately, and the neighbouring Saxons suffered the worst persecution. Horrible memories have been passed on, the Danes were unable to recognize a surrendered Frank as leader, the Danes were eager for revenge and, realistically, eager to rob the Franks of their wealth.

Horlick has been conscientiously helping Ludwig to fight his brother Lothair. As for the real thoughts in his heart, Ludwig does not know.

The news that Horrick is about to return to Denmark has been circulating for a long time, but there is no news of any action in two years? Could it be nothing more than a boring intimidation?

He was waiting, waiting for the promise of his master Ludwig. He concluded that the master would not let the leaderless Denmark go. If he wanted to intervene, he would definitely participate.

He didn't dare to act rashly, for fear that he would take his brothers north and his wealth and personnel in Durist would be accepted by Ludwig's army.

The next parchment document was quickly sent to the coastal port of Durist, and the mellow Horrick personally unfolded the document, glanced at it, and rolled it up happily.

Because Ludwig made a promise that he would restrain the army and subordinate lords from interfering with his dream counterattack against Denmark.

Everything is ready! What Horrick lacked was this promise from the prince.

A group of pirates who had been entrenched for a long time decided to leave, and the local Flemish people noticed the strangeness of the Normans and were already secretly celebrating.

The great Frankish nobles knew about Denmark and some other tribes in the north, but the general public had no knowledge of the outside world of the village.

The Flemish people in the northern part of the kingdom had long been ruled by the expanding Franks, and they had all been converted, although culturally and linguistically very similar to the neighbouring Saxons, their obedience was also visible to the Frankish king.

Now, Flanders (the Netherlands in general) is the domain of Prince Ludwig. The imprisoned devout Louis was incapable of exercising any power. Ludwig is the uncrowned king of the kingdom's northern and eastern frontiers.

A group of hungry wolves that have been reared for a long time is finally about to start a new activity. Horrick's Viking army is already sailing their long ships and heading north along the warm south.

When Ludwig's order was passed to Horrick, the real Earl of Flanders, the Earl of Hamburg, and the Earl of Bremen, these great northern lords got the news and received very wonderful orders.

The great nobles were ordered to stand still, and wait and watch Horrick, who would definitely act, lead his troops back to Denmark to fight for power.

Whether this is a trick or a coup, it is an arrow from the string. Prince Ludwig issued a decree. He can only pray to God that this very devout believer in name, Horrick, a Dane who has been in exile for many years, won the great power council. Continue to be a hound that is true to yourself.

There is a big drama going on in the port of Durist. The so-called pious Horrick actually sacrificed Odin with the blood of slaves according to Danish etiquette.

This round-faced and sturdy leader has five hundred pirates under his command, all of them licking blood. The targets of their attacks are mainly merchant ships from the fiefs of Prince Lotaire and Prince Pepin. This kind of thing is naturally Ludwig Prince Xi strongly supported. Due to the geographical advantage, in recent years, there have been more and more frequent raids on the Kingdom of Wessex, Britain. They have captured many peasant women from the British Isle and turned them into a kind of toy.

The 500 Viking warriors who frequently launched raids are a formidable Nordic powerhouse in the current era, and Horrick is naturally not the only one. He does not hesitate to use local resources. Some Flemish, Saxons, Franks joined him.

Especially the Saxons, who have realized that the leader of Horrick was only a false convert, and that this man did not really become the dog of the Franks.

A considerable number of Saxons longed to be freed from the control of the Frankish aristocracy, and they could not forget Charlemagne's deliberate killing of their people. Open revolt had failed, and large numbers of Saxons escaped the Schleswig Wall into Denmark.

A part of the Saxons learned that the exiled Danish nobleman Horrick had taken possession of Flanders, and he brought his family to surrender.

Horlick easily recruited up to 900 Saxon warriors, because he publicly promised that his Saxon people could start a new life in Denmark after the great cause was completed.

As for the small number of Franks in the ranks, they were pure villains, the kingdom's traitors, and pure bandits.

Horlick has been a royal pirate under the protection of Prince Ludwig, and it is normal for him to have another group of robbers.

A group of people was entrenched in Durist, and the nearby Flemish village had to pay not only the 11th tax to the orthodox earl, but also a higher tribute to Horrick. The former will imprison those who do not pay taxes, while the latter will arrest people as slaves for villages that do not pay or owe tribute.

No, an altar was set up on the pier.

It was clear that the sea breeze was soft, and the five Flanders peasants were shivering and ordered to kneel while blindfolded.

Armed men stood around the altar. They wore iron helmets that covered their entire faces on a large scale, and a few had collars made of iron rings.

A large number of soldiers wear Frankish-style armor, which is based on locally available cowhide leather, which is leather-treated and then placed with iron pieces and fixed with rivets.

The defensive power of such a piece of iron and leather armor is improvised. The advantage is that its production cost is not expensive. The regular infantry of the Frankish kingdom are widely equipped, and the pirate troops are even more so. Having lived in this place for many years, a group of Danish rogues have also begun to Frankenize.

Likewise, their so-called "Norman" name began to spread to the surrounding area, especially the Flemish people, who thought of Normans and pirates and forest robbers.

Armed with spears, swords, throwable hand axes and bows, Horrick's Viking brothers are a useful mercenary.

It's just that the larger numbers of Saxons are a lot worse, and they're even more of a classic Viking. Most of them wore burqas, a few wore cowhide to make do with armour, and most of them had no armour. They are a group of light infantry, if there is a reliable number of battles, they will take advantage.

The Frankish and Flanders bandit troops, the least numbered, were equipped with a variety of equipment. One of them was that they had no wife and no children.

No, when Horrick decided to sacrifice Odin with five poor people, the executioners were pure Frankish gangsters.

After all, there was still a sterling silver cross hanging on his chest. Horrick was a little afraid and didn't dare to do things here. But this time, he will land in Denmark, go straight to the Robard tribe, the overlord of the strait, and control and conquer all of Denmark and even Norway. There is Odin's territory, and the action must be approved by the god Odin!

The round-faced Horrick held his iron sword high and walked around the temporary altar aggressively.

He shouted directly in his native Danish: "We have had enough! Now all the conditions are ripe, Odin's warriors, raise the flag of the raven, I will take you back to Denmark, and we will all become rich... …”

People were shouting and cheering, banging on their round shields, and stamping their feet desperately.

In the extreme noise, Horrick motioned to the Frankish gangsters who were ready to work: "God Odin needs blood! Act!"

The big axe fell suddenly, and the head rolled to the ground neatly.

The terrifying bright red is the favorite of the blood-licking madmen, and their cheers are at their peak!

Horrick assembled 1,700 adult warriors, many of them veteran pirates.

There were more than 200 teenagers. What they heard and saw was the deeds of the pirates going to sea to make a fortune. There are no Christian monks preaching here in Durist, and the teenagers felt that the foreign Lord Horrick was trustworthy. All they saw were pirates who made great fortunes and revenge for revenge. These people were so happy that they could follow suit.

Finally, a team of up to 2,000 troops gathered in the bay on more than 100 longboats.

A flag of an abstract raven quilted on white flies from the Horrick flagship.

Many old and young women and children remained in Durist, and strong men were sent out in droves. Horlick had already thought about it. After the event was completed, the women and children, who were mainly Saxons, would also be brought to Denmark. After all, these people were already the basis for his future rule.

As for the loss of Durist Port due to this, it doesn't matter if he loses it. When he withdraws the personnel and materials afterwards, the port will not matter.

This port is already in decline, and when he regains his rule over Hazelby, everything will be better.

Overnight, was the Norman pirate problem that plagued the real Earl of Flanders over? Maybe so.

The Count will abide by Prince Ludwig's orders, and the Count's army will guard the territory and stand still. He wished that the great pirate Horrick was killed in Denmark, but the priest hoped that Horrick would succeed, thus making it possible to Christianize the whole of Denmark.

The forces of all parties are scheming, and they all feel that they can use the other party to make their wishes come true, and they can grab huge benefits.

A pack of western sea wolves headed straight for Denmark, Horrick was aggressive, and the terrifying fleet continued north.

The merchant ships entering and leaving the fjord and entering the inland city of Hamburg were all hiding. The Count of Hamburg ordered the merchant ships to enter the port to take shelter, the peasants were ordered to enter the city for refuge, and the army set up a defensive posture outside the city.

Other than that, the Count did nothing else.

The earl also can't guarantee whether the pirate Horrick, who holds the army, suddenly becomes a bad dog that bites his master. As a military noble, defense is necessary.

The Count just watched the fleet rush towards the northernmost part of Jutland, and he took a deep breath...