The Eagle of Eastern Europe

Chapter 556: Confrontation and Alliance

Mikhail now needs some actions to make Russia, which has just become the Tsar, stronger, and the relationship with Rome has become the top priority.

Vlad, who has just returned to Berlin, continues to pay attention to the progress of Bohemia. Now the scope of the Hussite uprising is getting bigger and bigger. He also received a letter from Hussite for help, but he doesn't know whether to save it.

After thinking about it, he decided to write a letter to his eldest brother to explain the situation. It is impossible for him not to know such a big thing. But at the same time, he received a letter from his younger brother Stefan.

Stefan has basically grasped the situation in England and has stabilized the northern border. But his ambition is not limited to this. He also wants to annex France in one go.

Stefan asked his brother in the Holy Roman Empire to form an alliance with him. As long as he can succeed, they will divide France together.

Now Stefan began to re-implement Edward III's reform measures, encouraging foreign merchants to enter England for trade, and also signed trade treaties with other countries. The first English merchant ship has passed through the Strait of Gibraltar and entered the Mediterranean, with Constantinople as its target.

After the Reformation and the Second Doomsday Judgment, Stefan's finances have been greatly enriched. He began to reorganize the army and build fortresses in Normandy and Calais, claiming to protect the people from banditry. This can also reduce the other party's vigilance.

The first batch of Orthodox missionaries have taken root in Dublin. Compared with Catholicism, they can adapt to the local situation better and take a gentle approach to preaching.

Some Irish tribal chiefs found Dublin because Stefan made a solemn promise to them: as long as they join England, they will not interfere with their management of their tribes, and will give priority to them to choose good settlements and pastures.

The chiefs took a reassurance pill and happily welcomed the missionaries, ready to help England stabilize local rule in order to get Stefan's promise as soon as possible.

In Stefan's plan: In the future Kingdom of England, Ireland will be an integral part of it, and Dublin will become its ruling center. But he knows very well that the biggest difference between the Irish and the English now is that they have been separated from tribal politics in England, and if the current situation continues, there will probably be several large Brutti tribes when conquering Ireland. They will be unstable factors in the future ruling the local area and will also increase the difficulty of governing the Irish region.

Therefore, Stefan tried to divide the tribes and prevent them from becoming a whole. And he increased the construction of Dublin to thoroughly consolidate the local rule.

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After the success of the chariot fortification tactics, Jandzeka made further configurations in Pilsen. The army began to pay attention to artillery, and their cavalry was lighter and more mobile than the knight cavalry. Their tasks were: reconnaissance, marching alert, counterattack and pursuit of fleeing enemies. The cavalry was usually organized into a fast reserve directly controlled by the commander-in-chief. The artillery was divided into field artillery and siege artillery. Field artillery included short-barreled howitzers that fired stone bullets and long-barreled "long skeleton" guns fixed on wooden gun carriages that fired stone bullets and iron bullets. 5 chariots were equipped with 1 field gun. The mortar with a range of 200-500 meters was the main siege firearm.

During the march, in order to ensure the army's advance, road repair teams and bridge-building teams were assigned. When changing the battle formation according to the situation, various chariot fortifications can be used to connect the chariots to each other. The artillery was deployed between the chariots, and the infantry and cavalry were deployed in the fortifications. The chariots protected the officers and soldiers from the attacks of the heavy cavalry who dismounted to fight.

After the reorganization was completed, they continued to advance towards Brno. But the First Crusade issued by the Pope had arrived nearby and could attack at any time.

At this time, the Crusaders had 15,000 people, which was the largest number of soldiers they could currently bring out. The opponents had 7,000 people. Although the number was small, they were all full of fighting spirit and fought for their beliefs.

Hus personally came to the battlefield, prayed for them, and loudly called on the soldiers to fight for their beliefs, otherwise the forces that oppressed them would surely come back.

"Are we going to let these evil churches occupy our land, destroy our beliefs, turn our children and grandchildren into slaves, lose their freedom, and live like cattle and sheep!!" Hus and the Orthodox Archbishop asked loudly together.

"No!" The soldiers in front of him responded angrily, and this response gradually spread throughout the formation.

"No!!!" The soldiers shouted in unison.

"Defeat them and give us freedom!" A soldier raised his weapon high.

"Kill them!"

"Kill them!!!" Thousands of soldiers shouted hysterically.

The trumpeter behind him blew the horn, and then the horns sounded at the same time in all parts of the army.

"The heretics are attacking, blow the defensive horn!" The leader of the Crusaders heard the horn from the opposite side and began to give orders, while leading the guards to quickly pass through the gap between the small squares and come to the rear of the array.

More than a dozen curved brass trumpets blew low orders, and the soldiers who were sitting and resting immediately picked up their guns and shields, stood up, and moved their numb hands and feet. The teammates moved closer to each other and arranged the loose array more tightly to meet the upcoming battle.

In the sound of the horn, the long line of Hussite soldiers did not leave any reserve troops, and moved forward slowly together. The cloth cavalry on the far right has begun to speed up. At the beginning of the battle, according to tradition, the cavalry on both wings always fought first because they were the fastest.

The cavalry shook the reins and repeatedly clamped the horses' bellies, which increased the speed of the war horses. The feeling of running at high speed made them even more excited. They clearly saw that the enemy cavalry was not far away.

The Crusader cavalry was also carrying out their own plan. They first dispersed the light infantry in front and then attacked the enemy cavalry who were not moving. Their chances of winning were quite high. The cavalry captain who was charging at the front was calculating in his mind. He glimpsed a few dozen meters to the right. A lot of figures appeared at some point and ran towards the cavalry quickly.

The captain immediately felt uneasy. Before he could react, countless arrows flew 30 meters and landed in the group of galloping cavalry. It turned out that they were the reinforcements requested by Hus, the Hungarian cavalry. They were all supporters of Prince Bozzoni. When they heard about the Crusaders, they all went to fight spontaneously, and Hungary did not stop them.

In an instant, people shouted and horses neighed. In a fast run, whether it was a person or a horse, once they were hit by an arrow and fell to the ground, it would not only be difficult to survive, but also affect the surrounding charging cavalry.

The knights' forward speed slowed down, and once they stopped, they became easier targets for attack, because they not only had to guard against the javelins thrown by the enemy, but also had to be careful not to be tripped by their comrades who fell from time to time in front of them.

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