Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 358 Pursuit and Suppression of the Remaining Enemy
After a long march and a decisive battle, the Viking army was exhausted and unable to pursue them, at least for today.

At 4 p.m., the 3rd Field Division arrived at the battlefield, carrying a large number of supply vehicles abandoned by friendly forces, and unfortunately missed the battle.

That night, Vig convened a war council.

“Gunnar’s cavalry suffered heavy losses, but he still has more than 20,000 infantry. I decided to attack Gunnar first and eliminate these slow-moving militia.”

"Bald Charlie still has 6000 to 8000 men left. They are relatively weak and cannot pose a significant threat. I will deal with his army slowly after I have dealt with the Confederate army."

On July 15, two infantry regiments escorted the wounded, prisoners, and spoils of war westward back to Orleans to await the next batch of reinforcements from the cabinet, while Vigé personally led 30,000 men southward.

Upon learning of the defeat at the front, the conscripted militia of the Southern Army panicked and gathered together, pleading with the noble lord to retreat as soon as possible.

The nobles responded in different ways: some tried to persuade them with kind words, some used words to coax them, and a few, too lazy to waste words, used whips to teach these insolent peasants a lesson.

Driven by a mix of panic, repression, and anger, hundreds of militiamen in southern Italy mutinied. They surrounded the camp with torches and killed the nobleman, his confidants, servants, and two mistresses.

The news spread to other units, and Gunnar did not compromise. His prestige had been greatly damaged, and he had no choice but to use the toughest measures to quell the rebellion.

The following morning, the mutinous infantry battalion was defeated, some were killed, and a few fled into the mountains and became bandits who plagued the people.

With things having come to this point, the Franks had no chance of winning. Gunnar retreated south along the original route, unaware that a few rangers were following behind.

After the Battle of Rikersfield, the Confederate cavalry suffered heavy losses and were unable to drive the enemy away, leaving them to roam the surrounding area. The number of Rangers increased, and panic among the Confederates intensified; that very night, two thousand men deserted without notice.

Realizing the Viking army was right behind him, Gunnar abandoned the excess baggage and forced himself to speed up, gradually leaving the militia behind.

On July 18, they arrived at Lyon, a major city in southeastern Frankish territory, where the Saône and Rhône rivers converge before flowing south and eventually into the Mediterranean Sea.

After the collapse of the Roman Empire, a series of upheavals led to a sharp decline in the city's population, leaving only eight thousand inhabitants. Most of the remaining Roman stone walls were abandoned, while newly constructed castles, churches, and other facilities were located on Fourvière Hill, west of the Saône River.

From the foot of the mountain to the west bank of the Saône River, there is a relatively flat area with the residences of citizens. The west bank has docks and warehouses, and trade with Marseille and Montpellier downstream.

At present, Gunnar has 16,000 men left, but morale is low and no one is willing to stay and defend the city, thus delaying the Viking army's advance.

On the night they entered the city, a nobleman secretly led troops to the docks and seized more than twenty ships to sail downstream. This act was quickly imitated by others, and Gunnar tried to maintain order, but unfortunately, few people were willing to listen to him.

In just one night, the remaining forces of the Southern army collapsed, and the nobles spontaneously fled south. Gunnar, disheartened, also retreated.

Two days later, the 1st Field Division of the Shrike arrived in Lyon. The city’s north gate was open, and there were many abandoned flags and supply wagons scattered along the roadside.

"Ran?"

He dispatched two mountain infantry battalions to take over the city. From the local residents, he learned that the Southern army had collapsed, and all the high-ranking officials, including Gunnar, had fled, along with the local counts and minor nobles. The shrike raised its head and gazed at the castle and church atop Fourvière Hill to the west, as well as the five large catapults nearby, its eyes filled with disbelief.

"The terrain is treacherous, easy to defend and difficult to attack. If we station two thousand men here, they can hold us off for at least several months. Are we just going to give up like this?"

He removed his helmet, wiped the sweat from his brow, and instructed the messenger rider to report the message to the king.

During this period, Vig's main force was busy capturing prisoners, totaling more than 7,000 people, the vast majority of whom were farmers. As usual, he sent these people to Jersey.

Upon hearing the news that the shrike had taken over Lyon, he unfolded a map.

“Nantes, Tours, Orléans, and then up the Loire River, and Lyon in the southeast, the Viking army has cut off the entire West Francia from west to east. Very good, my strategy has been achieved.”

Now that the connection between Paris and the southern regions has been severed, Vigé can finally concentrate his efforts on dealing with the well-defended towns of Paris, Havreul, and Calais.

After thinking for a few minutes, he found the deputy commander of the 3rd Field Division, Invallon, and asked him to lead an infantry regiment and a garrison regiment to garrison Lyon.

In late July, the main Viking force returned to Orleans to receive a large number of reinforcements sent by the cabinet, including two thousand conscripts and six thousand mercenaries.

Vig reinforced his field troops with conscripted soldiers from the local area, and formed a garrison regiment of 6,000 mercenaries. After resting until early August, he led 40,000 soldiers to launch the next offensive.

The initial targets of the attack were the towns on the upper reaches of the Seine. Vig captured Troyes and then sailed down the river, heading straight for Paris in the middle reaches of the Seine.

On August 12, the army arrived at the outskirts of Paris. Vieg spent more than half a month capturing the bridgeheads on the north and south banks of the Seine, and then erected iron chains across the Seine to completely besiege the Île de la Cité in the center of the river.

Unfortunately, Charles the Bald and a group of dignitaries fled ahead of time. It is said that they have reached East Francia, where they may seek refuge or escape to Italy.

Vigg was unconcerned; he left the First Field Division to build catapults on the riverbank. The main Viking force then continued downstream, capturing several towns along the way, eventually reaching the mouth of the Seine.

In 848 AD, the First Viking-West Frankish War broke out. Ragnar led his army to attack West Frankish, and his fleet sailed upstream from the mouth of the Seine, heading straight for Paris.

After the war, Charles the Bald spent a fortune building the Havreul fortress at the mouth of the Seine, with remarkable results. In 856 AD, Ragnar launched his second attack on West Frankish, but his fleet was blocked by the Havreul fortress, forcing the Viking army to advance by land.

In 867 AD, when Vieg led his army to attack the Franks, he similarly avoided the fortress and chose to land in Brittany. Overall, the thousands of pounds of silver spent by Charles the Bald were well worth it.

The fortress is located on the north bank of the Seine. The outer city wall is about seven meters high and three meters thick at the base, with a total length of two kilometers, enclosing an area of ​​0.25 square kilometers.

The northwest corner is the inner fortress, separated from other areas by a moat, and its walls are thicker.

Outside the fortress is a man-made moat, six meters wide and three meters deep, with sluice gates and iron chains blocking the river.

(End of this chapter)