Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 340 Gathering Across the Entire Territory
The city of Rennes had gathered militia from the surrounding area, and the number of defenders exceeded two thousand. After five hours of street fighting, most of the defenders were either killed or surrendered.

As evening fell, a small group of soldiers remained entrenched in the tower in the southwest corner of the city. The Vikings burned firewood at the base of the tower, using the thick smoke to force the enemy to surrender.

With that, the battle was completely over.

Seeing the casualty report compiled by the staff, Viger was heartbroken. These were his most loyal and most capable troops, and yet six hundred of them had been lost!

"I never expected the Franks to have such morale."

After capturing Rennes, Vigé did not continue eastward. Instead, he dispatched a large number of troops to clear out the knightly estates in Brittany, gather food and warhorses, and prepare for a war that could last for more than two years.

The Knight's Manor has only knights, mercenaries, and a few trusted militiamen, while the Baron's Manor has slightly more, about 20 to 50 people.

Vig picked up a heavy file bag containing a report from the intelligence system, detailing information and approximate locations of ninety-three noble estates.

"Besides the seven manors that have been breached, there are still eighty-six left. We'll be busy from now on."

Vig summoned his officers and assigned them tasks: to launch a campaign with battalion-sized troops to clear out the remaining enemy forces in the peninsula region. These Frankish nobles were adamant in their stance, and the chances of successfully persuading them to surrender were virtually nil; it was better to wipe them out completely and distribute the spoils to his officers.

For the next month or so, he had enough time to stabilize the situation in Brittany, wait for the arrival of the 40,000-strong army from the mainland, and then engage in a decisive battle with Charles the Bald.

Upon learning that the Vikings had temporarily halted their offensive, the nobles of Le Mans, Nantes, and other places breathed a sigh of relief and sent messengers to the court, requesting reinforcements from the king.

Early July, Paris.

At this moment, Bald Charlie was far from ready for the final battle. His original plan was to instigate his nephew Carloman, "Young Man" Louis, and "Fat Man" Charlie to launch an attack and lure Vig to Denmark.

Assuming Vigé's reinforcements are large, the French army will not linger in battle but will retreat to their borders and hold their ground.

By delaying Vig's withdrawal, the three Kaloman brothers re-entered the vulnerable Denmark, drawing Vig's attention once again.

This cycle repeated itself, exhausting the Vikings and weakening them during their long voyages. When the time was right, the Frankish kings formed a coalition to defeat and even kill Vig, eliminating the greatest threat they had faced in decades.

At first glance, the plan seemed quite feasible. However, Vig did not act as the Franks expected. Instead, he led his army straight to West Frankish territory, adopting a desperate, all-or-nothing stance.

Not long ago, someone reported rumors obtained through smuggling channels that Britain had issued a nationwide mobilization order, calling up more than 40,000 troops. Bald Charles panicked and hurriedly convened a meeting of his cabinet members.

How many soldiers can we mobilize?

Prime Minister Lambeto replied: "Aside from the garrison troops in various fortresses, you expect to be able to mobilize 3 to 5 soldiers, provided that the nobles within the country respond to the call, and we also need to wait for a sufficient amount of time."

Charles the Bald ruled for over twenty years and came to deeply understand how difficult it was to deal with powerful nobles. These people were always unruly and often used various excuses to get by.

“Continue to write letters, urging all regions to speed up the process, and warn them that this war is different from the past. If Vig wins, the Frankish nobles' territories will be stripped and given to those brutal and bloodthirsty Vikings.”

In desperation, Charles even wrote to his nephews in Middle and East Francia, asking them to help their uncle out of consideration for their shared bloodline.

He planned to stay in Paris for the foreseeable future until the nobles from all over the country had finished their assembly.

As for the towns of Le Mans, Nantes, and Saint-Malo, Charles ordered them to hold their ground and await reinforcements, thus slowing the Viking advance. And so, throughout July, Viggo and Charles the Bald waited for their respective troops, and the situation on the front lines suddenly eased.

Britain.

Upon receiving the mobilization order from the cabinet, the Duke of Eamon assembled his troops as required, sailed from Ireland to Liverpool, and then marched on foot to Londeneum.

This time, he mobilized 1,800 soldiers, including 100 knights and an equal number of mounted mercenaries, and the entire army marched in a long line along the right side of the road.

As one of only two main roads in the kingdom, the road from Manchuni to Londinium is about 4.2 meters wide and can accommodate two heavily loaded carriages side by side.

Every twenty miles (about thirty kilometers), there were official inns along the roadside, providing food and water to the army and travelers. In addition, there were numerous private inns along the main roads, operated by local gentry.

Along smooth, open roads, even a nobleman's conscripted militia could march at a speed of twenty miles.

Upon arrival at the post station, the staff provided horse feed and grain as needed, and then had Imon sign a list to prove that he had used the supplies.

On July 10, Emont arrived at the northern outskirts of Rendynew, where thirty-eight camps were located.

The layout of each camp was roughly the same, with trenches and stockade walls on the outermost perimeter, and barracks, stables and warehouses inside. Each camp could accommodate an infantry regiment or a cavalry battalion.

Suddenly, a small troop of cavalry stopped Imon. After learning his identity, the cavalry led Imon and his entourage to the central camp.

This is the temporary office of the War Department. A senior civilian official asked Imon for a roster, confirmed the information on it, and then made the following arrangements:
According to the plan, Torga was to serve as the heavy cavalry commander for this operation, and two hundred cavalrymen and their grooms were assigned to Torga's cavalry division.

The remaining 1,400 infantrymen were organized into a garrison regiment, with the Duke either serving as its commander or relinquishing command to the War Office to appoint officers.

Imon said calmly, "I will command personally."

The civil official didn't waste any words, recruiting five quartermasters, five signalmen, and fifteen shamans (who also served as medics), and assigning them to Imon's Third Garrison Regiment. "Is there anything else needed, Your Grace?"

Imon shook his head and casually asked, "Where did the soldiers in the camp go?"

Civilian official: "A joint exercise is being organized in an open area in the eastern suburbs. I just took a look, and the scene is extremely chaotic. It's a complete farce."

This operation was a unanimous decision by the Crown Prince, the Queen, and the Cabinet, who were concerned about the situation at the front and temporarily organized a large-scale exercise involving three field divisions.

If the exercise proves effective, they will shorten the training schedule and send troops across the sea ahead of time to prevent the king from being besieged by the French army.

Unfortunately, the performance of the three field divisions did not meet expectations, and the cabinet's plan to send reinforcements ahead of schedule was thwarted.

After a brief conversation, Imon returned to his troops and led them to the plot of land allocated by the army to build a camp according to specifications.

He was busy until 2 p.m., with all tasks proceeding in an orderly manner. He then handed over his duties to his subordinates and led a small number of guards into the city to pay homage to the Crown Prince.

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(End of this chapter)