Video spoilers history, starting with the blitzkrieg on Poland

And the sky continues.

[The first tough nut to crack is the Fortress of Nicaea.]

[This huge city built in the seventh century has five layers of stone walls and a moat that draws water from meltwater from snowy mountains.]

【It was once a Byzantine military fortress. 】

【It is now the capital of the Sultanate of Rum. 】

[The city walls are tall and the arrow towers are everywhere. ]

【The Crusaders suffered heavy losses during the siege.】

[And Nicaea is backed by Lake Ascania, and the Crusaders had no navy. ]

[As a result, even if the city is besieged, it can still obtain supplies. ]

【At this time, Sultan Arslan rushed back to help. 】

[The Crusaders fought a decisive battle with Arsalan, defeated Arsalan for two consecutive days, and continued the siege.]

【Still unable to conquer.】

[The turning point came at dawn on June 6.]

[The Byzantine fleet suddenly appeared on Lake Ascania and covered the city walls with imperial flags.]

[It turns out that Alexius took advantage of the strong military pressure of the Crusaders. ]

[Secretly negotiate peace with the Turks.]

[The emperor threatened the defenders of Nicaea: If you surrender, you will be rewarded. If you don't surrender, you will be killed.]

[At the same time, Alexios built a fleet and attacked from the lake. ]

[The Crusaders cooperated with the Byzantine Navy to launch a feint attack. ]

[The defenders were so frightened when they saw the lake was blocked that they immediately surrendered to the Byzantines.]

[Sultan Arslan's family was also properly settled by Alexios and later returned to the Sultan.]

[As at the Battle of Manzikert, Alp Arslan released the captured Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV.]

[Byzantium and Roma both know that it is better to leave a way out for each other so that they can meet again in the future. ]

【Then Alexius deceived the Crusaders, pretending that there was no secret peace agreement and no destruction of the city. 】

【Let the Crusaders withdraw and attack again the next day. 】

[The next day, the Crusaders attacked again as promised. ]

[But what he finally opened was the gate with the double-headed eagle flag.]

[Although the defenders in the city had gone back on their word to Alexius, he still protected them.]

[The city was controlled by the Greek emperor, so it was naturally impossible to massacre the city. ]

[Although the Crusaders were very unhappy that they failed to plunder Nicaea. 】

【But Alexius also knew how to make amends. 】

[His generous rewards made up for this.]

[The first major war between Byzantium and the Crusaders, the cooperation was quite pleasant.]

……

Outside the sky.

The netizens who were commenting on the barrage couldn't hold back any longer.

"This is much better than the Civilian Crusade."

《There is no comparison between the combat effectiveness of professional knights and armed refugees.》

"The Normans are full of martial virtue, while the Turks are weak and unbearable."

"Arsalan is actually quite strong. I was careless and didn't dodge. The young Crusaders didn't follow the moral code this time."

《The cunning emperor of the Greeks!》

"Alexios is very strong, with great diplomacy and emotional intelligence."

"How rich is the Eastern Roman Empire in Europe?"

"The Byzantine Empire was located on the Strait, and its maritime trade was very developed. There were also gold mines near the capital Constantinople. It was really rich."

"Alexius was also ordered to lead a revival when half of the country was lost. He was a great god."

……

Canopy.

[The Crusaders were also very happy with their initial victory, as this victory opened a passage to the interior of Asia Minor for them.]

【Then the Crusaders continued to advance eastward. 】

[They rejected the emperor's advice and took the safe and easily resupplied seaside route.]

【But they chose to go deep into the mountains of Asia Minor. 】

[After a short rest, they continued to head towards Jerusalem, the holy place in their hearts.]

[After leaving Nicaea, the first thing the Crusaders faced was the huge challenge of the geographical environment. They had to cross the vast Anatolian Peninsula.]

[The terrain here is complex, with large tracts of desert. The scorching sun bakes the earth so that it seems to be burning, causing the Crusaders to suffer from water shortage.]

[There are also rugged mountains and steep mountain roads that make marching extremely difficult. ]

[The Crusaders not only had to face harsh natural environments, but also had to cross vast deserts and climb steep mountains.]

[They also have to compete with Arsalan's elusive Turkic cavalry. ]

[Supply teams are often killed]

[But it must be said that the combat effectiveness of this group of Western European noble professional troops is indeed very high. ]

[While many Crusaders were greedy scum, they still achieved some victories with their extraordinary military qualities.]

[Arsalan no longer dared to underestimate the Crusaders. He was not in a hurry to fight directly, but patiently ambushed and waited for an opportunity.]

【As the Crusades advanced deeper. 】

【Arsalan seized the opportunity of the Crusaders' division.】

[At dawn on July 7, in Dorilium, the death trap was already formed.]

[30,000 Turkic cavalrymen were lying in ambush on the ridges on both sides, and the range of their composite bows covered the entire valley floor.]

[The dense whistles that brought death caused many pilgrims and second-line troops to lose their morale and kneel on the ground to beg God for salvation.]

[The Crusaders were thrown into disarray.]

【However, Bohemond, Tancred and the Norman troops they led also showed their barbarian nature. 】

[They are very bloodthirsty and durable, charging like a tough Turk. ]

[They also launched several counterattacks. ]

[Successfully covered the troops' retreat to the reed fields by the river. ]

[The Turks launched a crazy rain of arrows from the periphery, gradually gaining the upper hand.]

【But Bohemond's Normans were well-armored and well-trained, and they held out for several hours.】【Arslan was anxious and ordered his cavalry to charge back and forth.】

[The Normans are exhausted and their defenses are shaky.]

[But... it just won’t fall. ]

[Just as the Turkic light cavalry poured into the valley like a tide, they were met by the heavy-armored knights reinforcements coming from the flank of Count Raymond.]

[The Turkic cavalry was surrounded. ]

【They lacked heavy cavalry and suffered a disastrous defeat. 】

……

Outside the sky.

Ying Zheng had previously looked down upon and disdained the Crusaders.

At this time, people finally began to take the Crusaders seriously.

How difficult is it to deal with the grassland nomadic cavalry?
Ying Zheng was well aware of this.

The Turkic cavalry appeared on the sky.

It's just standard nomadic cavalry!
And the equipment looks very good.

And it is different from many grassland tribes that are divided and fighting each other.

The Sultanate of Rum on the sky, they have a common monarch and are united around Arsalan.

A unified grassland tribe.

How big of a threat could this be?
Ying Zheng knew this even more.

Then there was such a united and unified nomadic cavalry regime.

But they were easily defeated by the Crusaders who didn't even have a unified leader?
Looking at the battle scene on the sky, the knights are charging and chasing the Turkic cavalry!
The head-on combat power is directly crushing!

Ying Zheng also had to comment:
"At first I just thought the Crusaders were a bunch of bandits."

"But now it seems... they are robbers."

"But they are indeed a group of very capable robbers."

"The Turkic cavalry should be quite strong, but they are no match in a head-on battle."

"To be able to perform like this, it seems that there is indeed something to be desired."

"Meng Tian."

Meng Tian immediately stepped out and said, "I am here."

Ying Zheng said slowly: "My Qin cavalry is not very strong."

"And cavalry is indispensable for grassland warfare."

"This section about the Crusader Knights defeating the Turkish cavalry must be carefully read and analyzed."

……

And in the Tang Dynasty.

Defeated Li Shimin and Li Jing of the Turks.

Naturally, they were well aware of how powerful the Turks were.

Although they defeated the Turks and captured the Turkish Khan.

But the Turks had been kings in northern China for hundreds of years and were quite powerful.

However, the later Turks on the sky screen were easily defeated by the Crusaders.

Li Shimin said: "I didn't expect the Turks to be so vulnerable."

"The Crusader heavy cavalry charged with such force that the Turkic cavalry could hardly resist."

"This reminds me of the Black Armor Army."

"It seems that no matter what, the Tang Dynasty must maintain a heavy cavalry!"

"As long as there are ten thousand cavalrymen, the world will not be in chaos!"

Li Jing further analyzed:

"Look at these knights. When they fight, they have some light cavalry with them as their escorts."

"And they worked together so well, as if they had been training for more than ten years."

"Is this also the knights' combat system?"

"Every knight has his own exclusive combat partner."

"The knights' heavy-armored assaults and the supporting followers have worked together for many years and have an unparalleled tacit understanding, maximizing the knights' combat effectiveness."

"Interesting, let me continue to watch."

The ancients began to pay attention to the fighting power of the Crusaders.

The sky curtain also continues.

[Historical records show that in the Battle of Dorylaeum, the Crusaders annihilated the main force of the Turkish Guards at the cost of 500 knights.]

[This victory was of great significance, as it not only opened up a passage for the Crusaders to penetrate deeper into the interior of Asia Minor.]

[It also greatly boosted the morale of the Crusaders. ]

[The Crusaders believed that they could turn the tables in such a bad situation, it must be God who had done something.]

[The Crusader with the full faith buff expressed optimism. 】

【Preparing to celebrate Christmas in Jerusalem. 】

[After Arsalan saw the fighting power of the Crusader heavy knights and the Norman berserkers. ]

[I also know that I can’t fight. 】

【Plus, they knew that the Crusaders' target was Jerusalem and they were just passing through.】

[If you can't afford to offend, can't you just hide away? 】

[Since the capital has been lost, too many lice won’t itch, so we might as well just fortify our defenses and clear the countryside, destroy the water sources and supply areas along the way in advance, and poison the water.]

【Then we will never fight the Crusaders again.】

[The mountains in Anatolia are already difficult to navigate, and now the roads are even more difficult to navigate, and supply shortages are sky-high. ]

【The soldiers were exhausted and weakened. 】

[Many knights' horses died of thirst.]

[The horse cavalry became horseless heavy infantry. 】

[But they finally passed through the Death Mountains of Anatolia smoothly, and stumbled through the Armenian territory. ]

【Having gained the friendship of Armenia, Baldwin then traveled eastward to open up another front.】

[The main force of the Crusaders finally arrived outside Antioch, one of the most important cities in Syria.]

[The scene before them made them gasp.] (End of this chapter)