I Am Louis XIV

Delig was about to lead his men to deliver an unexpected blow to the French. He hesitated whether to take Pippin away, but his friend said that he could take care of the spy. Of course Delig believed him. , so he left Leon with his soldiers, while his friend stayed with Pippin.

Less than a day after Delig left, his friend opened the shackles on Pippin. While Pippin was still confused and frightened, he asked directly: "If you were a French spy, would you have any Any way to contact the French general?"

Pippin's eyes widened.

You can say that a person is French, Spanish, Dutch, Catholic, Protestant, or pagan. You can also say that he is a gentleman, a lady, an old man, or It is a child, but the only thing that can be confirmed is that there must be different individuals in any classification.

Delig was a die-hard Habsburg member, and so were his friends. However, this knight was different from Delig. Tracing back to his roots, his ancestors did come from the suburbs of Vienna, but at this time, He was more open-minded than his father or uncle, which surprised Pippin. He actually asked Pippin to be a broker and lobby the young French general, the young Eugen Savoy, for him.

Of course, Pippin readily obeyed his orders and got what he asked for. With the help of the watchers, he easily escaped from Leon. With a few pesos returned to him by the knight, he bribed a nearby herdsman to send him to a place close enough to the French army - - He did fulfill his promise honestly. Perhaps he was worried that even without him, this "Knight Master" would find other ways to contact the French. - He truthfully told little Eugen what happened to him, And some of the rumors he saw and heard.

It is not surprising at all that the so-called "Holy Army" was established in the city of Leon under the instigation of thoughtful people. They were composed of city residents and pilgrims, nominally to protect the tomb of St. James, but except for those who were Everyone except the fooled believers knows what's going on. For example, the big families in the city or the wealthy businessmen have either fled long ago or are stuck in their own fortresses without any communication with the outside world.

In the far East, there is a saying that one is vigorous, then fades, and three times it is exhausted. The same is true in Leon. In the beginning, the Knights of Santiago used saints to display holy miracles to call believers to fight for their beliefs. With so many people gathered, they did not even seal the city gate with earth and rocks as before. They were obviously ready to fight a fierce religious war - but as they expected, the young but not arrogant little Eugen After carefully weighing both sides, he gave up his aggressive approach and adopted another attack method that looked a little timid to others but was very effective.

He didn't seem to care what people thought, or whether Louis XIV would be disappointed.

Little Eugen could hardly help laughing when he heard Pippin say that the knight from Santiago had invited him to "a fair and honorable battle." The Lord Knight understood clearly, but what he proposed - using the lives of civilians and soldiers to forge each other's honor and merit, little Eugen could not do it, even if his morality allowed it - this kind of thing The behavior was limited to a hundred years ago, when the upper and lower classes were clearly separated and insurmountable. To put it simply, in previous wars, soldiers were either hired professionals or ignorant civilians. The two sources were different. But one thing is consistent, that is, they don't care, and they don't care why the war started, and why they fight - they are here, either for pay or to serve, and each of them is either indifferent or indifferent and vicious.

This is why many times, even the king's army will suddenly collapse due to insufficient pay, or when it is harvest time, or even just because of hot or cold weather.

But Louis XIV had hundreds of thousands of standing troops. These soldiers came from the people who were loyal to him. They could also read and receive education in the army. Not only could they well understand the commander's Intentions, and you can also clearly know who you are fighting for and what purpose you are fighting to achieve.

Louis XIV promised them that after this battle, France would have at least a hundred years of peace.

This means that their sons, grandsons, and even great-grandsons will not go to the battlefield, nor will they worry about being burdened with heavy war taxes. Even if Louis XIV, their Sun King returns to heaven and sits with the saint, France Later kings can still abide by this promise - after all, after making Spain the possession of the Bourbon royal family, France will no longer risk the world's disapproval to launch foreign wars unless it has the ambition to become the second Rome.

Soldiers like this, no matter who the commander of this army is, will not foolishly consume them in vain for the so-called "knightly honor" and "merit". What's more, there are many former soldiers of little Eugen here. Classmates, the Duke of Luxembourg is also watching him all the time. If he goes crazy, they will happily send him to the battlefield and become the first victim.

Little Eugen didn't even mean to reply to this person. Fortunately, Pippin returned to the hospital. A few days later, he saw a group of Spaniards here - the same people Delig brought to raid the French military warehouse. They and Pippin was just as lucky. The soldiers and officers who acted with them fell into the trap prepared by the French. Almost no one survived. Even Delig was killed in the flames and explosions. He could not even see To a face that belongs to the French.

There were also many Leonites among the prisoners. They begged little Eugen to allow them to write letters back and ask their families to pay a ransom and take them back. Little Eugen agreed, but not for the ransom. Sure enough, their letters made the people in Leon feel a wave of depression and despair that was difficult to shake off. The same was true for Delig's friends. The French rejected his request, which meant that the commander-in-chief did not want to be like "Don Quixote" at all. "Performing on this stage like that, he occupies the position of the audience, watching them in a dilemma amid hunger - already pilgrims have begun to attack the mansions of the nobles and rich people in the city. They want to eat and drink, but the people in the city The bakery and hotel had closed ten days ago.

The French have not been without action in the past few weeks. They are continuing to penetrate deep into the heart of Castile, leaving only two companies with sufficient firepower to guard the main road. They have built fortresses skillfully and quickly. and roads - because the French army never looted and would pay local people even if they needed to perform labor, it was not difficult for them to do such a thing.

Although the Castile region is the territory of the Anti-French Alliance, for those ordinary people who work hard for a day to have a bite of bread, the so-called piety, orthodoxy or other things are not of much concern to them. They are afraid of heavy taxes, afraid of soldiers taking away their cattle, horses, money and daughters, and afraid of being forced to go to the battlefield. If those "enemies" had not been like this and showed great power, they would be like lambs Generally docile.

As far as little Eugen knew, they only complained a little while watching mass that the French should not treat devout pilgrims like this. However, they knew from newspapers and magazines that there was enough food stored in the city of Leon to last for several months, and it would not cause famine at all, so they naturally felt relieved.

Is there so much food in Leon? Yes, but they are all owned by the military or "private". Private here does not refer to individuals, but to officials, families and generals, as well as the Knights of Santiago. Of course they can bring out wheat and potatoes to quell people's panic, but then what? Defending and attacking are two different things. You can convince some people to guard the tombs of saints and the birthplace of the Knights, but how can you get them to escape the protection of the city walls and open their arms to face the roaring artillery and guns?

Some people had no choice but to take out their reserves, but they only lasted less than a week. Mières, Oviedo, and Aviles above Leon were captured by the Duke of Luxembourg or forced to surrender. After Benavente below Leon was occupied by Eugen the Younger's army, Leon was already an isolated city with no possibility of assistance. After several considerations, the Knights of Santiago in Leon finally lowered their proud heads. Surrender to the French.

However, because of the irreplaceable specialness of the Knights of Santiago, they could only surrender to Charles III, the second son of Louis XIV, Prince Charles. It was already late autumn, and the French offensive slowed down and began to engulf before it stabilized. territory - mainly harvesting mature crops - potatoes, wheat, beans, etc.

Of course, the French would not just let these "master knights" go to Barcelona to meet the king on their own, so little Eugen was appointed by the Duke of Luxembourg as the envoy and supervisor, responsible for bringing these knights to the king, and is currently processing it in Leon Little Eugen, who was a pilgrim, was quite willing to get away from the scattered and complicated affairs for a while. Besides, he also missed His Majesty the King and his friends very much, although he didn't know how many he could meet in Barcelona.

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The further away from Leon and closer to Catalonia, the members of the Knights of Santiago became silent. Of course, they walked through French-occupied areas along the way - they were all soldiers, at least soldiers. Coming from aristocratic families, they have seen, heard, and even personally experienced the devastation left by the war. In order to weaken the enemy and inspire soldiers, post-war looting and immoral behavior have always been accepted by default, and it is not impossible to be encouraged. . But this situation is not allowed in the French army.

"It must be said," little Eugen answered them, "probably similar to not letting captive beasts taste blood." But there are not always some naive people who think that human emotions, concepts and The moral bottom line will be like a valve, closing when it needs to be closed, opening when it needs to be opened. A cruel soldier will become gentle and kind when he returns home, and he will obey orders - how is this possible! Even a hound that has tasted flesh and blood will covet the throat of its master, let alone the more cruel and fickle humans?

In the past armies, kings and generals would try to use religion and faith to heal the thorns in the souls of soldiers. Now, under the changes of Louis XIV, the French army regards laws and military orders as shackles on the body and soul. This shackles not only protects stranger civilians but also themselves, allowing them to remain human beings rather than beasts.

But such a change would require the king to suffer losses. As the Knights of Santiago gradually learned, the French army's pay was extremely generous and it was closely monitored. How strict was it? Any soldier who is treated unfairly in terms of pay or other due treatment can go directly to the Palace of Versailles to seek help from His Majesty the King.

It’s hard to imagine, but it is true. Not only the king, Louis XIV also required that all dignitaries who have rooms in the Palace of Versailles, whether walking on the road, in restaurants, or in the rooms of famous ladies, Whenever a soldier complained loudly, he must immediately return to the palace and report to the king on his behalf.

Under this almost harsh law, there are very few people who dare to embezzle soldiers' pay or provide inferior military equipment. Even if they do, they will be exposed by the soldiers. Their crimes are always the most serious, and the verdicts are also In this way, not only will all their property be confiscated, but even the few existing tortures in France are prepared for them.