I Am Louis XIV

  Chapter 316 The King's Royal Expedition (7)

As we said before, there was a reason why Leopold I chose Kamni. There were 150,000 troops on the Villikaplani Heights, including 50,000 from Austria, 30,000 from Spain and 30,000 from France. The remaining 30,000 people will be divided among other Catholic countries - but it is impossible to say that Kamni, who has gathered several kings, is the only one who is there. In addition to ministers, generals and servants, there are also kings here. They are the king's most trusted soldiers and the most elite troops in a country - ranging from five hundred to three thousand.

Louis XIV was the only king with a guard of 3,000 men, so although Leopold I was reluctant, he had to give up the largest castle in Camnico - if he Dare to perfunctory blame, Louis XIV promised that he would turn around and leave, and he did not need to bear any moral and religious accusations, after all, providing supplies and camps for reinforcements was originally the responsibility of the Holy Roman Emperor and the Archduke of Austria.

Leopold I also thought about letting the Spaniards occupy the castle. After all, the number of Spanish and French reinforcements was equal, but even if Carlos II had recovered his health and sanity, it would not be necessary for him to take up the duties of king immediately. Possibly, so the commander-in-chief of the Spaniards is their naval administrator Juan Patinho. Patinho and the Archbishop of Toledo are both uncompromising royalists, and they also value the Spaniards in this game. The performance in the battle, so in any case will not let Carlos II come all the way here.

  Patinho is of high power and noble birth. The problem is, even if Carlos II is here, he may not be able to walk side by side with the French king, let alone compete with him for a place? Juan Patinho needn't say more...

  So this big castle, of course, belonged to Louis XIV, even if he was not the first to arrive at Camnico.

Looking down from this towering castle tower, you can overlook more than half of Camnico. This location choice is very common. After all, the castle has been used for military purposes from the beginning. The first thing Louis saw was him. of the Guards.

In fact, during the period from the enthronement of Louis XIV to the first riot of the Fronds, the Guards Legion that Louis XIII left him had long since become a group of rabble due to lax discipline and disillusionment. All who stayed in the Louvre to protect His Majesty were the King and his musketeers. When the King left Saint-Germain-en-Laye, he used Schumberg and his mercenaries from Austria, and later the Viscount Turenne. After being defeated by Schaumberg and persuaded by him, the king was considered to have the first army, so as soon as he returned to Paris, he couldn't wait to settle the refugees who followed him to Versailles - Paris, who was greedy and short-sighted compared to backtracking. People, he preferred to choose his soldiers from the people of Versailles who had been freed from hunger and hardship.

These soldiers were originally the king's new army, and when these new army had experienced the test of smoke, death and blood in the campaigns of Lorraine, Flanders, and Holland, the king promoted some of their bravest and wisest. When people came to their own guards, because of the large base, even if they were carefully selected, the Sun King's guards were forced to triple their original size. The soldiers who were able to come to Kamnico with the king this time went through a scrutiny like a grate. They were all Catholics, tall and handsome. Each of them also had at least a silver sun badge on their chest, indicating that he Kill at least two enemies, or conquer a fort with others.

One or two people like this is not surprising, a hundred is not impossible, but three thousand is enough to make everyone look down, but when looking down on the tower of the castle, The sight is very pleasing - the squares and corridors are full of young, good-looking, lively lads in uniforms - royal blue satin coats, white leggings, up to the knees. Black leather boots with silver buttons and trim, the sword on the epaulettes gleaming in the sun, the weather in Slovenia is already a little hot in June, some people are not wearing hats, some people are, But roll up the sides of the wide-brimmed hat and pin it to give the hat four extra corners.

This kind of behavior was also stopped by the officers, because whether it was uniforms, hats, or boots, the king gave the soldiers of the guards. This practice is undoubtedly damaging the king's reward, but Louis X After the four knew about it, they also began to roll up their hats. After that, not only did the officers no longer accuse the soldiers, but even they themselves began to imitate the rolled hats to keep in line with the king. The new style of Versailles.

Ludwig I had already prepared appropriate words in his heart, but after seeing these young men, he suddenly thought that not only did Louis XIV show his thoughtfulness to soldiers in such a small place, but also in the near future. It was later announced that accessories such as uniforms, hats, boots and belts, including blankets and other personal items, given to the soldiers by the king, could be taken home for continued use after they were on vacation or retired—not to mention ordinary soldiers at that time, even Several of his cronies also showed joyful expressions, and he knew that they were not short of clothes and accessories - these would be precious souvenirs passed down like china, jewelry and furniture.

   Even himself, and his eldest son, also hid their marshal's robes and generals' robes in their trunks.

The sudden emotion made Ludwig I silent, but Louis XIV had already understood a little what he meant. After crossing the castle and looking beyond the city walls, they saw a mottled crowd - with Louis X. 4. Unlike the French army that Ludwig I was familiar with, other countries, even Austria and Spain, even the guards, could hardly achieve complete unity.

Not to mention the uniformity of uniforms has nothing to do with combat effectiveness. An army with chaotic clothing and unclear expressions is not only unable to distinguish itself from ordinary people, but even they themselves define themselves very well—soldiers and officers who cannot even determine their own definition, How can we have a sense of honor and belonging to the military? And then willing to make sacrifices? The sacrifice here doesn't just mean giving their lives. Obeying discipline and training seriously is also a sacrifice. Sometimes people are fearless because of impulsiveness, but not everyone can bear it for a long time of boredom and hard work.

   When the soldiers realized that I was the king's soldier, and that I should be a noble and pious man, Louis XIV's purpose was achieved.

But outside the castle, the soldiers and officers dress as they please, and their attire looks no different from the average Europa, with shirts, coats, and leggings, while the average soldier wears soft-soled shoes and the officer wears boots. , Some officers still have a brightly colored feather on their hat, and they also have epaulettes on their shoulders, but these epaulets are not used to show rank, but to prevent halberds and muskets from scratching the shoulders of the clothes... In addition to the feathers on the caps, the officers also decorated the cuffs with decorative metal strips - but some musketeers also do this, in order to prevent the cuffs from being polluted and damaged by gunpowder smoke; The belt shows their identity. Most of them are Tatars or Cossacks, but as long as they are not soldiers in his team and have capital, soldiers can do the same...

As for weapons, of course, the French army also allows them to purchase weapons, but the weapons issued by the army are unified, and they are also the main force. Bows, spears, halberds, crossbows, the most common daggers and bayonets, the latest long- or short-handled muskets, grenades, etc., you can have them on their belts And around you, sometimes you can even see stone hammers and goat jaws tied to a stick.

When he saw this weapon for the first time, Louis XIV didn't even think it was a weapon, he thought it was some kind of cursed implement or a necessities for religious ceremonies, but the Henry by his side, Ludwig The eldest son of Hei I, told His Majesty that it was a real weapon, and it was very common among the Tartars - and that the best material for this kind of weapon should be a deer or a horse, because the jaws of sheep are sharp though sharp. , but not as long as a deer... But because there are few deer in the Tartar's range of activities, there are many sheep, so they often use the leftover sheep jaws as spearheads or daggers.

...I didn't see it with my own eyes, I just learned from the information, and I really can't really grasp the actual situation. Louis thought in his heart that it was a group of Tartars who held the jaws of the sheep. Of course, they could not become a member of the guards. Possibly for supplies and commissions, but what caught Louis XIV's attention was that, in the midst of the chaos, these Tatars were even more disciplined and disciplined than the soldiers and officers.

But the people around them didn't think so. They all showed disgusted eyes and contemptuous gestures, until one of the mercenaries who wanted to push the Tatar leader away suddenly screamed. Although Louis XIV kept watching He was watching these Tatars, but because of the distance and the crowd, he didn't quite know what was going on there - but after the crowd quickly pushed away, he saw the mercenary kneeling on the ground, holding up his bare and **** wrists, A Tatar stepped forward calmly and stabbed him in the throat.

The episode came unexpectedly, and was visibly about to turn into a horrific gang fight, as someone hurried in and let out a shrill whine at the sight of the body—probably hired from Italy Italy is almost the most prosperous and busy place for mercenaries, after all, the lords there are keen on war but do not like fighting, whether it is a big family in the same city or against foreign enemies, such as the French, they will hire outsiders instead of Get into battle in person.

Such behavior will certainly bring many bad consequences, but it is indeed very beneficial to the development of mercenaries. The Italian mercenaries are well-equipped. It is said that they even pay huge sums of money to buy their latest firearms from the French. Louis XIV, the businessman, of course knew that, and it was precisely for this reason that these Italians thought they could continue to be above others even in Camnico - but it was clear that the Tatars were not the people they were familiar with.

Perhaps the Italian mercenary leader wanted to say something else. Louis XIV picked up the binoculars and continued to pay close attention to them. He noticed that the mercenary leader had a "Crim" draped over his shoulders, and turned around to ask. Ludwig I: "Does anyone around you hire Italians?" "No, Your Majesty," said Ludwig I, also holding up the telescope: "No, he must have come from some Polish or It was bought by the Hungarians." Klim is a short cloak often seen in Hungarian hussars and Polish winged cavalry, used in summer to replace the wild beast fur that was originally draped over the body, usually half lifted and draped over the shoulders , usually with heavy lining and gold and silver thread embroidery, so it looks very grand, and it is not surprising that Italians who love luxury will buy one for themselves.

While Ludwig I denied it, he was glad that there were no such idiots around him. This Italian probably thought that he was hired by the duke and earl, and he was equivalent to half a nobleman, and even thought he could reason with the wild beasts - Tatars When the leader's axe split his forehead, his mouth was still wriggling, and the gorgeous Kerim could not bring him any help, but his companions drew short-handed muskets - I didn't expect those Tartars Beneath the dirty and knotted woolen jacket of a man there is the same musket that can be fired without striking a scythe.

The Italians fell first two, the Tatars shouted savagely, drew their weapons and rushed up, the people around either ran away or climbed the low wall - it took only a few minutes for the Tatars to end the battle, Then it ran away quickly, like a whirlwind of blood, anyway, when the guards of Leopold I came, only the dead could answer their questions.

   "These Tatars!" Louis XIV couldn't help saying. If he still has the energy to go east, he must try to get these Tartars in his pocket. Their fighting ability is too strong. His new army is brave and loyal, but there is a problem. That's why they lack the ferocity that is necessary on the battlefield - but this is also a common problem in the army after hot weapons replace cold weapons. Just like those Italian mercenaries, they may not be so useless on the battlefield, but they are accustomed to shooting from a long distance, and when the outcome is determined when they face each other, there are not many opportunities for close combat.

   (end of this chapter)