Water Margin people

Chapter 1625 French Reinforcements

"Reinforcements are coming!"

"Reinforcements are coming!"

The defenders of Jerusalem cheered; they saw another Crusaders.

"Enemy reinforcements!"

Saladin looked to the west and saw a large number of Crusaders rushing towards the battlefield.

"You take 30,000 cavalry to stop the enemy."

Saladin gave orders to several generals around him, saying that his army had now reached the gates of Jerusalem and must not be disturbed by anyone. He would capture Jerusalem today and recapture the holy city.

Thirty thousand cavalrymen quickly charged towards the newly arrived Crusaders.

The newly arrived Crusader reinforcements were obviously well-prepared. Although they did not have many cavalry, their horses were all tall and strong, and they were formed in a triangular formation in the middle of the front of the team.

"Kill me!"

King Louis VII of France roared and waved his sword.

"kill!"

The cavalry and army behind Louis VII were roaring.

The two armies collided, and this time the Arab cavalry had an even worse advantage. The French Crusaders were equipped with far better equipment than the German Crusaders. The nobles and elite knights all had full body armor, and the civilians also had chain mail and helmets.

The heavy cavalry in the front directly broke through the Arab formation and killed their way into the Arab army.

The French cavalry tried desperately to tear apart the Arab formation, and the heavy armored infantry in the rear followed closely and also charged into the Arab formation.

"These people are quite good. They are quite capable."

Lu Fang looked at the battlefield and said that the new Crusaders were obviously stronger than the original ones.

"That's all, pretty good!"

Guo Sheng shook his head and said that it was impossible to say how strong the fighting power of the new Crusaders was, but only that the fighting power of the Arabs was too poor. Thirty thousand cavalrymen were actually blocked by more than twenty thousand infantrymen.

"If I bring people with me, I'll sweep them all away!"

Deng Fei said.

"The appearance of these people may cause trouble for the Arabs!"

Ou Peng said that the Arabs had not been successful in attacking cities, and the newly emerged Crusaders were a variable.

Louis VII led his large army to suppress the Arabs, but the Arabs had 30,000 soldiers after all, and it was impossible for 20,000 Crusaders to defeat them in a short time.

However, the appearance of the French Crusaders greatly boosted the morale of the Jerusalem side. The German Crusaders fought to the death with their backs against the city walls. The catapults and crossbows on the city walls also showed their power over time, and the casualties of the Arabs began to increase.

"hateful!"

Saladin's face turned ugly as he looked at the battlefield. The initial momentum had gradually faded. They failed to take Jerusalem in one breath, and the disadvantage of lack of siege equipment was exposed.

By this time it was already dark and the battle had been going on all day.

"Send the order, withdraw the troops!"

Saladin ordered.

"Saladin, we have already reached the holy city. How can we retreat?"

A group of high-ranking officials of the Arab Cult said unhappily that this was the best time for them to recapture the holy city.

"Everyone, we are all light cavalry and do not have any siege equipment! The battle is intense now. The enemy relies on the city to resist to the death. It is difficult for us to win. Moreover, it is already late, which is not conducive to our attack on the city."

Saladin pointed at the battlefield and said that although they still had advantages, they didn't have much. If they continued like this, they would only exhaust their advantages.

The Arab leaders were somewhat unhappy. They didn't care about the lives of their subordinates. People were like weeds. If they died this year, they would be back next year. But the achievement of retaking the holy city was only this time. Saladin explained for a long time before he reluctantly got everyone to agree. The horn sounded, and the Arab army began to retreat.

The Crusaders were jubilant, but they did not dare to pursue. After a day of fighting, they had suffered heavy casualties and were exhausted.

"Finally gone!"

Baldwin IV on the city wiped the sweat off his face and spoke again. If they continued fighting like this, it would be difficult to defend the city. The battlefield would most likely enter the city, and they would only be able to fight street battles. Even if they won, it would be a pyrrhic victory.

Louis VII and his army soon arrived at the gates of Jerusalem.

"Why did you arrive only now?!"

Conrad III glared at Louis VII angrily. He blamed Louis VII for today's defeat because Louis VII's army arrived seven days late.

"A sudden storm arose at sea, and the ship stayed for a few days before daring to sail over. In addition, you couldn't defeat a group of light cavalry relying on the city, and you still have the nerve to blame me?"

Louis VII did not treat Conrad III well. Although Conrad III was one of the candidates for the Holy Roman Empire, he was the King of France. They did not submit to the Holy Roman Empire at all, and believed that this so-called empire was neither sacred nor worthy of being called Rome.

"you……"

Conrad III was furious. The Pope had agreed to help him be crowned emperor of the empire, but the prerequisite was victory in the holy war.

Although the Holy Roman Empire is called the Roman Empire, it actually has nothing to do with the Roman Empire. The real Roman Empire was inherited in Byzantium. The so-called Holy Roman Empire was just a loose alliance with many kingdoms within it and no one was submissive to the other.

"The enemy is still there, the army must return to the city immediately!"

Baldwin IV on the city wall also saw the confrontation between Conrad III and Louis VII, and immediately spoke up.

"What are these pagans? My French army is stationed outside the city. I wonder if those Arabs dare to come! Set up camp!"

Louis VII sneered and gave orders directly to the army around him.

The Crusaders who followed Louis VII immediately began to camp outside the city.

By doing this, the French Crusaders directly put Conrad III and the German Crusaders in a difficult position. They claimed to be the authentic successors of Rome, so how could they show weakness in front of a group of French people?

"Set up camp outside the city!"

Conrad III whispered to the people around him that as the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, if he led his troops into the city now, how would he return to inherit the throne in the future?

"His Majesty?"

William on the city wall was a little worried when he saw that the Crusaders were camping outside the city, as there were still more than 100,000 Arab cavalry outside the city.

"Forget it, it's better to stay outside the city. These people will only cause trouble!"

Baldwin IV spoke.

"But the enemy is also outside the city!"

William reminded that the makeshift camp could not withstand the enemy's raid. If the enemy attacked at night, there would be heavy casualties.

"Let someone light a bonfire outside to illuminate the night!"

Baldwin IV spoke, and after saying this he went down the city wall and headed towards the largest church in the city.

Although it was already night, the church was brightly lit, and the cardinal and a group of bishops were still leading the believers in worship.

The battle outside the city was over, and the believers finally felt relieved and continued to pray and give thanks to the cross.

Baldwin IV watched all this but did not rush in. Instead, he watched the civilians in the city pray devoutly.

After a long time, the civilians offered money and offerings, and Qianen left the church to the west.

Baldwin IV did not enter the church until all the civilians had left, while the cardinal and a group of bishops were already waiting.