kingdom of nations

Chapter 97 The Death of the King (5)

"Fear not the powerful enemy! Be devout and loyal, and thank God! Be humble and upright, and never lie! Protect the weak, and uphold justice!

This is your oath, remember it!"

Amalric I spoke in a low, yet majestic voice.

"I will be kind to the weak, I will be brave to the strong, I will fight against the sinners without mercy, I will fight for those who cannot fight, I will help those who need my help, I will be loyal to my friends and lend a hand to women and children, I will be generous to any knight, and I will fulfill every oath I have sworn without compromise."

Baldwin was in front and Cesar was behind. They swore an oath and the king nodded with satisfaction: "Very good." He stretched out his hand and the knight beside him handed him the sword.

When the two young men knelt side by side in front of Amalric I, the nobles who were invited as witnesses couldn't help but look a little strange.

Although this practice was done out of consideration for Amalric I's current physical condition - the king probably did not have the energy and time to preside over two consecutive sword-giving ceremonies, but in most people's minds, he only needed to hold a grand sword-giving ceremony for his only son, so why bother with this little attendant?

If he must promote this young servant to the rank of knight, this matter can be completely handed over to Baldwin. After all, according to common sense, a person with the qualifications of a knight can knight another person.

And this is also more beneficial to Baldwin. After all, if a knight takes his weapon from someone, that person has an eternal debt to him. He must fight for the latter and be loyal to the latter until he stops being a knight.

By doing this, wasn't Amalric I depriving his son of any future rights he might have?

Could it be that this black-haired young man is the illegitimate son of Amalric I?
Those who had this idea couldn't help but have more unspeakable disgusting thoughts in their hearts - like Richard, although he was of noble status, when making friends, people who valued a person's conduct and personality more than their origin and surname were still a minority.

When more people heard that the attendant around Baldwin did not have any distinguished background, in fact, quite the opposite - he was a slave of an Isaac merchant, and was lucky enough to be rescued by Amalric I and favored by Baldwin, so that he could climb all the way to his current position - they became interested.

They may not all have the evil habits condemned by the church, but if they could bring such a beautiful person back to the castle and palace, even if they presented it as a decoration to the lords and kings, it would be enough to make them envied and even successful.

So when Amalric I ordered Baldwin and Cesar to kneel before him, these people couldn't help but feel regretful.

The two parties in the sword-conferring ceremony can be said to have reached an important and unchangeable contract - if an ordinary knight had canonized Cesar, they might still have a chance to persuade him to leave the dangerous Alaska and go to the warm Apennines or the wealthy Franks.

But if it was Amalric I who crowned him, he would never be able to leave Alasar.

Amalric I knew very well what those people were thinking. After all, since they met Cesar, there were more than one or two people who asked him for or wanted to exchange the child.

A smile appeared on his lips. Cesar was a treasure, and this treasure had long been taken away by him and inlaid on the crown of Alasar, and this crown must be worn on the head of his son.

He looked down at the two children, raised his hands, and slapped them respectively. This was a warning to the young men who were about to become knights, telling them not to be too proud and forget their own sense of reason, but to always remain humble and obedient.

Then he took the long sword handed to him by the knight and patted them on the shoulder. First Baldwin, then Cesar.

When slapping Cesar's shoulder, the king didn't know whether he was suddenly exhausted or did it on purpose, but the sword came too close to Cesar's hair and ears. Not only did it cut off a strand of hair, but it also scraped a large bloody mark. Although there was no skin torn, it was still possible to see that the blood was rapidly coagulating into a series of small beads, and flowing down Cesar's ears and neck.

Fortunately, the people who "dressed" the two children were Balian of Ibelin and Humphrey of Tolon. Because of the Countess of Jaffa, Balian had always had a good relationship with Cesar. When he saw this situation, he immediately winked at Humphrey on the other side. They immediately stepped forward and quickly put the shiny chain mail on the two children.

With this movement, Balian used the inside of his sleeve to absorb the blood. Fortunately, the injury was not serious. By the time they put on the sword belts and spurs for the two newly promoted knights, the bleeding had stopped.

But this was indeed an ominous sign. Baldwin looked at Cesar worriedly, and Cesar shook his head to indicate that he was fine.

Next comes the most important step in the entire ceremony, which is that the new knights should immediately pick up their weapons and shields, jump on their horses and knock down a dummy target that has been prepared in advance. The knights watching will cheer for them.

Of course, the premise is that they really knocked down the target. Some new knights would become a big joke because of panic or lack of martial arts training.

For Cesar and Baldwin, this was not a problem at all. They jumped onto their horses as nimbly as birds. The black Pollax and the white Castor, in the bright morning light, knocked the dummy wrapped in cowhide and filled with straw far away in one fell swoop.

The knights watching cheered loudly, and the king looked at these two children who were like the rising sun, his heart filled with joy.

When they rode back, he gave his hand to Baldwin, who immediately leaned against his father, and then, surprisingly, he extended his other hand to Cesar.

Baldwin's mother, Countess of Jaffa, had also done so, but even if a countess and a king made the same move, the meaning would still be completely different, especially at such a sensitive moment.

"Why don't you come closer?" Amalric I asked gently, "my Knight of Bethlehem?"

Hearing Amalric I's words, everyone present couldn't help but show horror on their faces, and there was an uproar. Even Baldwin couldn't help but look at his father in surprise. Heraclius frowned deeply. Amalric I had not told him that he would give Caesar a fiefdom, especially in Bethlehem.

The best outcome he had envisioned was that the king would grant Cesar a small territory in the newly conquered territory.

Although this idea is now impossible, Mestat is still burning like a hellfire, and Bilbais has become an isolated city. They can only return to Alasar.

Therefore, Heraclius believed that as long as Caesar could be knighted by Amalric I, he would be granted no land. In the Franks or Apennines, if a man was knighted, he would be entitled to land, even if it was just a mill or a farm. However, such laws or agreements were difficult to fully enforce in Alaska and the surrounding Christian states.

Because almost all the land here was obtained by Christian knights fighting against Saracens. It may be in the hands of Christians today, but it may become the hands of Saracens tomorrow. Therefore, if a knight chooses to be loyal to their king or lord, he may not be able to receive the fiefdom.

So, inspired by the Saracens, the generals of the Crusaders adopted the method of direct payment of money to support their knights, which is the so-called "gold coin fiefdom".

The annual land allotment for the knights supported by Amalric I was approximately between nine hundred and one thousand gold coins.

In this regard, Heraclius did not have much ambition. He felt that even if he only got a share of 500 gold coins per year, as long as Cesar was still with Baldwin, he would not have any chance of being short of money. Baldwin would treat Cesar the same way he treated his brother.

He would even be happy to share everything he had with Cesar.

But he didn't expect that the king would actually grant Cesar a fiefdom, and it was the crucial Bethlehem!

Bethlehem is just a small city at the lower right corner of Alaska. Its area is probably only one-tenth of the Holy Land, and its population is only a few thousand people. However, its holiness is no less than that of Alaska, because Jesus Christ and King David were born here.

Hundreds of years before Jesus was born, a prophet named Michaël predicted that the Savior would be born in Bethlehem. Sure enough, Jesus Christ was born in a manger in an underground cave in Bethlehem. A group of shepherds in the wilderness of Bethlehem saw an angel descend and inform them that the Savior had been born. Following the angel's instructions, they found the newborn Jesus Christ and were overjoyed. They spread the story everywhere.

There were also three wise men from the East who went to see King Herod and told him that they had seen the birth of the Savior through the revelation of the star and wanted to go and worship him. King Herod was very uneasy when he heard this, so he told them to go and see the Savior and come back to report. The wise men went and worshiped Jesus Christ, but the angel told them not to go back, so they did not go back.

When King Herod learned of this, he felt he had been deceived and was afraid of the rumors of a savior, so he ordered people to go to Bethlehem and kill all babies under the age of two.

But before that, John, the adoptive father of Jesus Christ, had already taken Saint Mary and the Son to Egypt at the warning of an angel.

In Bethlehem, there is a Church of the Nativity, which is the Church of the Nativity mentioned by the king during the "Ceremony of Selection". The sacredness of this church is no less than that of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Not only that, Bethlehem also has holy places such as Rachel's Tomb, the Martyrdom Place of the Holy Infants, and the Grotto where Jesus took refuge.

For Christians, Bethlehem is very important. The kings of Alaska never granted any knight or nobleman here.
Some people immediately wanted to come forward to give advice, but when they saw the king's cold blue eyes, they immediately lost the courage to speak out.

Balian pushed Cesar. Amalric I was originally a stubborn man, and now he was even more unscrupulous. Instead of giving a long speech in front of a dying patient and hoping that he would change his mind, it would be better to try to persuade a stubborn stone to open his heart.

Moreover, this is almost equivalent to Amalric I's last words.

Christians at this time had a rather strange view on wills. They were not shy about it, but would establish them in advance and constantly revise them - perhaps because it was too easy for people to see God at this time. War, murder, illness, or even just a fall could take their lives.

Therefore, when they are sick, before giving birth, going out for business, or on pilgrimage, fighting, hunting... Christians will make a will or make modifications to the original will.

The priests also encouraged this behavior. They said that if someone died without making a will, causing others to have resentment for his inheritance, or a new death, it was a very serious sin, which could even lead to them being deprived of the right to hold a funeral and unable to ascend to heaven.

Therefore, as long as one is a devout believer, they will not wait until they are dying to gather their family members at the bedside and leave their final wishes - this may also be because people may have confused thinking and unclear speech when they are seriously ill or old.

It is generally agreed that if a person wants to make a will, the best time is when he is still in good health and of clear mind. Sometimes the notary will even require that the person making the will must cross a stream or ditch without help from others, or that they must stand upright on the ground by their own strength.

If a person is bedridden for a long time or has suffered an accident and wants to make a will, he must invite all his relatives and witnesses to his house. He cannot lie in bed, but needs to dress neatly, sit on a chair, and face everyone's questions to ensure that he is still a healthy and good person so as not to affect the execution of the will.

If this was the case for an ordinary person, a king needed to act with even greater caution. Moreover, church members had previously tried to trick Godfrey into handing over Alasarus before his death. Amalric I had to ensure that his will would not be distorted or tampered with by anyone.

Isn't now the best opportunity?
The noblest, most prominent, and most pious knights and lords were all here, hundreds of witnesses. They not only witnessed Amalric I enthroning his only son and his companions, but also listened to every word spoken by Amalric I.

"I am blessed by God." The king placed his hands on the shoulders of the two young men. His face suddenly overflowed with vitality, and his voice once again became as loud as a bell: "Although you have gone through the trials of purgatory, you are still clear-headed and resolute.

Ladies and gentlemen, I am here to speak from my own perspective, not manipulated by others or the devil..."

There was silence all around. People were either standing outside or inside the tent, silently listening to Amalric I's last instructions.

Amalric I continued: "I make my will, or rather my last wishes..."

He first talked about his property, which he divided into six parts: one part was donated to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, one part was donated to the Church of Alazarus, one part was donated to the Knights Templar and the Knights Templar, one part was left to his only son Baldwin, one part was given to the Byzantine princess Maria and his two daughters, and the last part was donated to all the poor people in Alazarus, whether men or women, whether Isaacs, Christians or Saracens.

Then he handed over Alaska and the Fort of the Holy Cross to Baldwin, and asked him to kneel before him and swear that he would never let down the mission given by God and the favor bestowed by the saints. Then he called the High Priest of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre and allowed him to re-elect the Grand Master together with the Commander of the Legion.

But everyone knew that the grand commander could only be Baldwin. It would be fine if Baldwin did not receive the blessing, but since Baldwin was still able to shoulder the heavy responsibility of leading the Crusaders to fight against the Saracens, they would not choose anyone else for any reason.

Finally, Amalric I's gaze lingered for a moment on Raymond, Bohemond, and several other vassals. "And the marriage of my daughter Sibylle..."

People were visibly nervous.

(End of this chapter)