Crusade against the Pope

Chapter 217 Slaves of the Levant
It was another killing, nothing to say. Walter asked these people to hand over 18 people, essentially inducing these people to attack him.

After all, these Saracen slave traders actually disguised the attack scene by killing slaves.

This is a naked provocation, which is trying to break through Water's cognition by using the lowest limit of human nature.

He never felt that he was immature before, but this time he became angry and embarrassed.

"In short, from this moment on, you are free," Watt said to the women and children who were shocked by the new killing.

“I will take you to a town controlled by the Kingdom of Jerusalem, where a kingdom will come to settle you and provide you with assistance.”

After Watt finished speaking, the response he received was a bit cold, or perhaps his words were so unbelievable that the survivors felt like they were dreaming.

……

When a living person is hung with a wooden sign and a price written on him, he is no longer a complete person. His skills are written down, his value is recorded, and then he is placed on the shelf as a commodity in the store, waiting for customers to come.

In this era, whether it was Aleppo, Damascus, Alexandria or Cairo, these densely populated cities always had fixed places for the slave trade.

Slaves were like lubricating oil, nourishing the operation of the Muslim world, and the use of slaves was considered a legitimate act.

The sources of slaves are actually varied, but in recent days, most of them have appeared due to wars in the Levant.

The war in 1187 caused a sharp increase in the number of slaves in the Levant, and the overall price of slaves also showed a downward trend.

Some families who originally could not afford slaves began to consider purchasing talking animals for themselves.

In the Toruń territory, this territory was originally supposed to be the fief of Humphrey IV, but with the invasion of Saladin, it fell easily.

But with the brief ceasefire between Saladin and the Kingdom of Jerusalem, this place became the first line of border between the Second Kingdom of Jerusalem and Saladin's forces.

The forces of both sides are intertwined on this land, and you are in me and I am in you.

Like other regions of the Levant, the main residents here are Muslims, and in such a territory, many villages at this moment cannot actually tell whether they belong to the Second Kingdom or the Ayyubid Dynasty.

The previous armistice agreement was only a temporary ceasefire agreement and did not clearly define the boundaries.

After the reform plan of the Second Kingdom came out in 1188, the poll tax was abolished and the agricultural tax was reduced.

Many Muslim villages also began to claim that they were under the rule of the Second Kingdom.

You should know that even Ibn Jubayr, a geographer and traveler who was hostile to the Franks, wrote in his writings:

[We set out at dawn on Monday from Torun (Humphrey's territory) - may Allah destroy it!]

[We passed a road that passed an estate inhabited by Muslims who lived well under the rule of the Franks - may Allah protect us from this temptation!]

[The regulations imposed on them were to surrender half of their corn crop at harvest, and to pay a poll tax of one gold dinar and seven kirat, and a small tax on their fruit trees.]

[The Muslims had their own houses and ruled themselves in their own way. This was how the manors and villages in the Frankish territories were organized.]

[Many Muslims wanted to settle here because life under Muslim rule was miserable.]

[They praised the behavior of the Franks, and they could always trust the justice of the Franks.]

When a 50% tax is collected, the peasants under the rule of the Muslim lords will want to move to the Toruń territory.

Now that Isabella and others have announced a 30% tax and abolished the original tax farmer system, the choice has become very clear in many people's minds.

Berg Village is an ordinary small village located at the junction of Toruń Territory and Tyre Territory, less than 30 miles away from Tyre City.

If there is any need on weekdays, many villagers will choose to walk for half a day and go directly to Tyre City to purchase.

Therefore, despite being located in a remote corner, the villagers are not unfamiliar with the changes in the Kingdom of New Jerusalem.

At first, they watched the dissolution of the Tyre Town Council, the first census of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, and heard that the kingdom had decided to give Muslims more political rights...

Most villagers, especially those honest people who deal with land all day long, feel that these policies are just tricks played by city people and have nothing to do with them.

Although the literacy rate among Muslims is not low, the villagers all think: Can the Kingdom of Jerusalem allow the Saracens to be the masters of the Franks? Even if you think about it, you know it is impossible.

In that case, there is nothing more to say.

But among those things, there was one thing that the villagers of Berg Village were very concerned about.

I heard that the head tax was abolished in the Kingdom of Jerusalem after it became the Second Kingdom? And the land tax was only 30%?

This was a serious matter. Moguer, the head of Berg village, inquired from several nearby villages belonging to the Kingdom of Jerusalem and received positive answers.

Moreover, he heard that the kingdom had sent preachers to various villages to publicize the new policy, persuade villagers to pay taxes according to the law, and encourage literate people to participate in elections to elect members of parliament who would represent the interests of the Saracens.

Mogel personally attended two lectures. He was not very interested in the content about elections, but he was attracted by the fact that he only had to pay 30% tax.

For farmers, paying less tax means feeding more people.

So he started to think: Saladin had not yet asked the village to swear allegiance, so according to reason, the village of Beg was still a loyal citizen of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

Mogel couldn't predict how things would develop in the future, but paying less than half of the land tax now meant that the village might be able to raise a few more children this year.

The next day, Moger took the lead in convening a villagers' meeting in Berg Village. Men from all households were called to the meeting. Hundreds of people gathered together, and it was very lively for a while.

"I gathered everyone here today to ask you what you think."

"The kingdom only collects 30% of the tax each year. Master Saladin has ignored us for a while. How about we just continue to recognize the kingdom as our master?"

As soon as these words came out, the crowd immediately went wild. The villagers were talking about it, with different attitudes.

In the past, they actually knew that the rule of the Kingdom of Jerusalem was much better than that of other Muslim lords. Now Lord Saladin has come and said that he wants to let Muslims be the masters of the Holy Land.

But what does Saladin's statement that Muslims are the masters of the holy land have to do with the villagers? Shouldn't they still pay taxes?

What's more, hearing that their Torun territory was about to be renamed Ikta scared many villages.

To put it bluntly, Muslims "being the masters of their own house" means that they want Muslims from other places to be their own homes and masters. Someone in the village echoed: "Those horse-riding gentlemen not only collect taxes, but also rob money and take women. God is great, why doesn't he let them fall into hell!"

All of a sudden, everyone in the village began to complain about the tyranny under Saladin's rule.

The Levant region has a prosperous commodity trade, and a large number of caravans pass through from all over the place. Although Berg Village is just a small village, they are actually quite well-informed.

The more informed you are, the more you know about the nature of the nomadic tribes under Saladin.

So they started to curse people, not only the money-grabbing tribes of today, but also the former Crusader lords. However, they did not dare to curse Master Saladin, and could only speak in a roundabout way and in a sarcastic manner.

But no matter how much they curse, no matter how sarcastic they are, the most consistent view among them is that they do not want to be "ruled over" by those nomadic tribes.

Although farmers in this era are fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered no matter where they are, at least the Second Kingdom is only planning to shear their wool.

But under the Ayyubid dynasty, sheep were slaughtered directly and the meat was eaten.

However, although everyone said a lot, there were also objections. Just when Moger at the village entrance was about to make the final decision on the matter.

Someone opened his mouth and shouted: "Saladin sahib has confiscated our taxes, and you are eager to pay tribute to the infidels. You are simply asking for trouble!"

It was a harsh remark, but it was made by Milad ibn Abunaib, a large landowner in the village.

Although Milad was a big landowner in the village, there were so many people present that they were not afraid of Milad even if they got together.

"Master Saladin hasn't asked for taxes yet, but do you think those Kurdish lords won't come?"

"Don't treat us as blind. Didn't you marry your daughter to their tribe a few days ago? To be a concubine to the chief's son?"

"If he didn't come today, he will definitely come tomorrow! How big is Torun? Who doesn't know who else?"

The entire Torun Territory covers an area of ​​less than 300 square kilometers, and no matter which direction you go, it is only half a day's walk.

Saladin might not know the exact location of Berg Village, but there would be no possibility that the nomadic tribes that would be granted fiefdoms here in the future would not be unable to find it.

What's more, Milad has obviously already placed his bets on the Kurds, waiting to rely on those Kurdish masters to act tyrannically in Berg Village and "be the boss" together in the future.

"They are pagans! Pagans!" Milad shouted hysterically, with an uncontrolled excitement in his voice.

His violent reaction was in stark contrast to his usual easy-going demeanor when drinking, and many people were confused.

Someone sneered, "Millard, are you afraid that the dozen slaves you bought will be released by the kingdom? Or are you afraid that the dowry is too much and you are afraid of getting a big loss?"

Since 1187, the number of Christian slaves in the Levant has increased dramatically, and the oversupply has caused prices to fall.

Milad took the opportunity to buy a dozen slaves, intending to turn them into laborers in the fields, and to imitate the feudal lords' manors to run serfdom models in order to collect more grain.

But now this second kingdom has made it clear that it wants to liberate all the slaves in its territory.

This made Milad very uncomfortable: he had taken advantage of the collapse of the kingdom to get a group of Christian slaves and drove the tenants out of his fields.

If the Kingdom of Jerusalem really "retaliated", he, a large landowner who bought Christian slaves, might be hanged on the stake.

In order to protect his own interests, Milad had already explored the tribes that might move into Tolln Territory in the future, and acted quickly to send his daughter along with a generous dowry in exchange for protection.

He believes that these Kurdish lords will help him protect these "legal properties" in the future.

A good village meeting turned into an endless quarrel. Those whose families had bought slaves or were related to Milad were reluctant to continue to submit to the Second Kingdom.

But there are actually not many people who are rich enough to buy slaves, so generally speaking, Moguer has the advantage.

After returning home, Milad gathered his family under the dim kerosene lamp, his face as gloomy as a pressing cloud.

"You all understand what happened today," he said, with a hint of anger in his tone.

The Milad family members participated in the quarrel during the day, and they all knew that once the kingdom regained control of Berg Village, their interests would suffer heavy losses.

For Milad's family, it was not just a matter of slaves. The reason they were determined to side with Saladin was because they were eyeing the position of tax farmer.

"Being a tax farmer is much easier than paying taxes."

Milad sneered twice.

"Our tradition is not bound by any feudal contract. You can play it as you like."

He then gritted his teeth and said, "We must not show mercy to those traitors! We must strike hard! Moguer and his men not only want to harm us, but also want to bring shame to the village!"

"Then what should we do? Just kill that guy Muguel?" Milad's son Ashid ibn Milad made a suggestion.

"No, we will try to persuade them tomorrow. If those guys really don't know what's good for them, we won't be able to ignore the friendship between fellow villagers."

Milad said viciously.

However, the next day, when Milad said some nonsense, he was knocked to the ground with two punches. Ashid brought people to help his father. The conflict between the two sides was about to break out, and a group fight broke out.

Although no one was injured, there was no room for maneuver in this matter.

Among them, Milad's faction was obviously insufficient in numbers, so naturally they suffered a lot of losses.

Even Milad was limping a little when he walked back.

When he returned home, Milad asked his son to take some gifts to find the tribe that occupied Tollenberg.

"Those guys don't care about the friendship between fellow villagers, so we don't need to care. If someone gets killed, it's just their own bad luck!"

In the summer of 1188, many people were destined to nourish the land with their blood.

It is not just a fight between Christians and Muslims, but also a fight between Muslims and Muslims, and Christians and Christians.

(End of this chapter)