Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 269 The New Feudal System
With reinforcements from the Shrike tribe, Breken amassed a force of over three thousand. Ignoring Sven's pleas for mercy, he ordered his archers to fire a barrage of arrows, totaling twenty thousand.

After being bombarded by a hail of arrows, Rises's rebel army suffered heavy casualties and fell in less than half an hour.

Soon, the prisoners identified "Sven's" corpse as an unremarkable middle-aged man wearing old chainmail and with more than a dozen feathered arrows stuck in his body.

"This is Sven?" Brecken was greatly disappointed. He ordered his riders to take the head back to Athlone and commanded two hundred conscripted militiamen to continue westward to the coastline a dozen miles away.

Thus, the first phase of the operation was successfully completed.

In the second phase, Vig led the 8,000 men in better condition to the north, while the remaining 5,000 soldiers, 1,500 prisoners, and more than 2,000 laborers from various settlements remained in the area to build 20 wooden forts.

The wooden forts were generally similar in size, with a moat four meters wide and two meters deep, and wooden walls five meters high. Inside, they were fully equipped with barracks, warehouses, stables, and wells, serving as garrison locations or fiefdoms for new lords.

"Maintain the normal construction speed; there's no need to rush."

Vig instructed the shrike who was in charge of staying behind, and then led the army north along the Shannon River. The rebellion in the northwestern mountains was the least severe, and they did not encounter any battles with more than a hundred men along the way.

With order largely restored, Vig left behind three thousand conscripted militiamen to build ten wooden forts, along with laborers and prisoners provided by local villages.

With the arrangements made, Vig returned to Athlone along the Shannon River, then sailed downstream to the south, heading in a mighty force towards the southwestern mountains.

When the locals received news from the outside world, they realized that Vig was a truly ruthless character. They were utterly terrified, and the vast majority of the rebels spontaneously disbanded, as if the rebellion had never happened. Vig didn't bother to investigate further. As usual, he had the local villages provide labor to help the army build the wooden fortress.

Finally, under Viggo’s personal command, the rebellion that had affected the order of Ireland came to an abrupt end. Although there were still rebels lurking in some remote corners, their numbers were so small that they could not cause any trouble for a long time.

With the war over, each unit began tallying its battle achievements. One morning, a group of aides went to the 3rd Infantry Regiment to review the report submitted by the unit.

Brecken knew this was normal procedure, so he handed over the list and information on the meritorious personnel, instructing them to go to their respective companies to investigate.

Half an hour later, an aide went to the 2nd Infantry Company to inquire about relevant information from the soldiers, and unwittingly shifted the topic to Bob, the company clerk.

"Bob isn't on the list of those who received commendations. Why are you asking about him?"

The aide replied, "He is a student at the Army Academy, and this experience is equivalent to an internship. There should be a periodic evaluation."

Most soldiers didn't have a strong impression of Bob. Company Commander Invallon commented, "Bob fulfilled his duties as company clerk, but lacked outstanding performance in other areas."

The attendant recorded everyone's feedback one by one, and politely bid them farewell: "Understood, thank you all for your cooperation with the school's work."

At noon, the report was submitted to Vigé's desk. After reading it carefully, his reaction was indifferent. It seemed that his eldest son lacked the potential to become a great general, but such things could not be forced, and he could only accept it.

"Well, after years of careful education, he is at least much better than Imon and Pascal."

On August 18, Vig convened a meeting in Cork, in southern Ireland. Since this land was conquered by Vig, he naturally presided over the investiture ceremony, promoting Utgard to Earl of Limerick and Douglas, the mercenary leader of the (Scottish) Highlands, to Earl of Galway.

Upon hearing his name, Douglas became excited and vowed to bring his Gaelic fellow countrymen from the Highlands over to help govern the territory. He and his family would respond immediately should the king summon them.

In addition to the two newly ennobled earls, Vig also ennobled forty directly subordinate barons.

The barons were stationed in the wooden forts they built throughout the region, as well as the scattered villages around them. In total, each baron's territory comprised more than ten villages and approximately five thousand inhabitants.

Once granted the title, barons would inevitably devote themselves wholeheartedly to their family territories, with fathers, sons, and brothers working together, demonstrating far greater efficiency and enthusiasm than civil officials.

This is the greatest advantage of the feudal system: controlling newly conquered territories at extremely low cost, without requiring Vigg to spend money. In peacetime, baronies pay annual tribute; in wartime, baronies provide high-quality cavalry and free conscription of militia.

Assuming all the members of the baron's family died in the bandit suppression, at worst, another family could be granted a fief, and there would be plenty of people vying to do it.

Feeling the enthusiastic atmosphere, Eamon forced a smile. Earls and barons are the king's direct vassals, responsible only to the royal family, and have no subordinate relationship with the Dukes of Ireland. They are essentially spies planted by the royal family in Ireland.

Unfortunately, he had no choice but to comply. The vast majority of the barons were military officers, and some were relatives of high-ranking nobles. For example, Goodwin's nephew, Theowough's illegitimate son, Leonard's third son, and Pascal's cousin. This was the collective will of the kingdom, and Imon was powerless to defy it.

After reading out the list of conferments, Vig turned his gaze to Imon. "Duke, what do you think?"

"Well, everyone worked hard and contributed their efforts, so this is what they deserve."

Vig nodded, acknowledging Imon's reply.

After this battle, Ireland now has a total of five earls, which can effectively counterbalance Eamon's ambitions.

Assuming Aemon intends to rebel, he must either win over or deal with the five high nobles and the barons directly under the royal family. Before he resolves these matters, Lentinium will have ample time to prepare and will not be caught off guard.

More than half an hour passed, and Viggo completed the investiture ceremony. Looking at the kneeling crowd below, he thought to himself:

"With the end of this war, Ireland was truly incorporated into the Kingdom of Great Britain, with a population of 550,000 and a land area of ​​80,000 square kilometers—equivalent to a quarter of the Kingdom's total area (the Kingdom's total area was approximately 310,000 square kilometers, with England at 130,000, Wales at 20,000, Scotland at 78,000, and the island of Ireland at 84,000)."

Then, he looked at Imon again and offered his advice from the bottom of his heart:

"I occupied the North a few years later than Ivar, and now the region is stable and safer than other areas. You should be struck by the contrast with the situation in Ireland."

Because of this rebellion, the royal family, cabinet, and army were busy dealing with the situation, consuming a lot of resources, and also had to bear the risk of a West Francia invasion.

Going forward, I hope you will manage your subordinates well and prevent similar troubles from recurring. Remember to improve relations with the locals and maintain tax revenue at normal levels. When encountering civil disputes, handle them in accordance with the Kingdom's legal code and invite respected elders from the local community to serve on the jury.

(End of this chapter)