Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 395 The Battlefield of Tuscany
Upon learning that there were twenty-eight stone fortresses in eastern Moravia, the Shrike roughly estimated that the bronze cannons would not have enough barrel life to conquer all the fortresses.

"We hope to persuade some nobles to surrender. We can't afford to waste too much time on the northern front. After that, we'll have to head south to reinforce the Italian battlefield."

At this moment, Basil received news from Slavonia. He was extremely puzzled that Vig would dare to send troops north.

"Including the militia, we have a total of 100,000 troops. Isn't he worried at all?"

Confirming that there were fewer than 30,000 Vikings in Tuscany, Basil left 20,000 of his weakest Italian militia in Rome for retraining, while the remaining 80,000 marched north to attack Tuscany.

The first target was Livorno on the west coast, and in addition to the army, Basil also deployed a fleet to blockade the sea.

With reinforcements from Naples, Venice, and other places, the Eastern Roman Empire possessed two hundred ships of various types. Even if the Royal Navy came to stop them, they were confident that they could drive the Vikings back.

However, the anticipated siege did not occur, and the Vikings withdrew ahead of schedule.

"Ran?"

While Basil was delighted, he couldn't help but feel some apprehension, suspecting that the enemy was luring him deeper into their territory.

The following day, the troops that went out to reconnoiter brought back two pieces of good news: they had recaptured Pisa and Lucca in the northeast.

Confirming there were no ambushes nearby, Basil attempted to send troops eastward to Florence.

This time, the Vikings did not flee. Instead, they used iron chains to block the Arno River, preventing the Eastern Romans from sailing upstream.

The battle took place in a hilly area. The Vikings had built fortifications on high ground, overlooking the river, making the attack extremely difficult. Moreover, a small north-south mountain range stretched across the area, making it unsuitable for a large-scale flanking maneuver.

After suffering thousands of casualties, Basil avoided the area and led his main force around to the northern pass of the mountains to attack Pistoia, where thousands of Vikings were stationed.

The Greeks adopted the tactics of the Frankish remnants, using two methods simultaneously: building heavy catapults and digging underground tunnels.

The tunnel warfare tactic originated with the Vikings. The defenders of the city skillfully took preventative measures, digging counter-tunnels from within the city to intercept and kill the Greek engineers who were digging them.

The soldiers of both sides fought underground for more than three weeks, but the Greek tunnels were never able to extend to the western wall of Pistoia.

To make matters worse, Tuscany has a typical Mediterranean climate with heavy rainfall and cold, damp weather in winter. Tens of thousands of soldiers were camped in the open, and many fell ill, which slowed down the siege.

At this point, Basil recalled the Viking medical system and quickly summoned the prisoners. Upon questioning, he discovered that each of their thousand-man squads had dozens of medical personnel. Viking doctors underwent systematic training, practiced medicine in cities and towns during peacetime, and were conscripted as military doctors to assist the army in combat during wartime.

“These barbarians are quite creative. After the war, I will also build a medical school in Constantinople.”

On January 15, 873 AD, 1 heavy catapults were completed outside the city. The Greeks cut down the best timber in the vicinity, reinforced the key parts with iron hoops, and filled the huge counterweight boxes with more than two tons of gravel and soil.

When the time was right, Basil ordered an attack.

At dawn, Greek soldiers slowly advanced, pushing heavy catapults. Based on their observations, the walls of Pistoia were less than two meters thick, making it unsuitable for mounting cannons. When the catapults were about four hundred meters from the walls, the western gate of Pistoia suddenly opened, and the Vikings unleashed five bronze cannons.

"emission!"

The fuse was lit, and a hissing spark quickly entered the cannon barrel. A burst of bright orange flame erupted from the muzzle, and the shell whistled through the sky.

Bang!
The shell hit the top of the catapult, sending wood chips flying everywhere, and the catapult's arm swayed dangerously.

The other four bronze cannons fired in succession, three of which missed their target, while one cannonball hit the counterweight box of the catapult on the right.

The container shattered instantly, and a large amount of soil and rocks poured down like a waterfall. The unbalanced catapult tilted like a drunkard and eventually fell apart completely.

Witnessing this, the defenders erupted in cheers that echoed in all directions. The Greeks in front of the city gates, their morale low, forced themselves to push the catapults, their bronze cannons increasing in accuracy the closer they got.

The distance between the two sides narrowed to 300 meters. The Greeks hurled stones at the city gate, but the catapults' attacks followed a high trajectory, making their accuracy too low. Furthermore, the catapults were large and easier to hit. By 9:00 AM, dozens of catapults in front of the city gate had been destroyed, with only one bronze cannon being hit.

The cheers of the defenders rose again. Basil was not angered. The catapults in front of the west gate were destroyed, and many more catapults were bombarding the northwest and southwest corners of the town.

If the defenders wanted to destroy the remaining catapults, it would mean they had to push the cannons a considerable distance outside the city. At that point, the Eastern Roman infantry would launch a major offensive to seize the enemy's bronze cannons.

Basil thought to himself, "Even if it costs us thousands of lives, we must capture one cannon."

Surprisingly, the defenders did not take the risk; the gunners pushed the bronze cannons back into the city, allowing the Greeks to bombard the walls with catapults.

Dozens of kilograms of stone projectiles were hurled at the wall, each hit causing the wall to shake slightly. After ten days of continuous attacks, the Greeks finally broke three breaches in the city wall.

As the bugle call to attack sounded, a large group of cannon fodder infantrymen poured into the city. The defenders lit the oil and firewood they had prepared, burning the entire town to the ground.

Taking advantage of the fire's obstruction, more than 3,000 Viking soldiers withdrew from the east gate and fled along the road to Florence.

That afternoon, the Eastern Roman cavalry captured some stragglers, and Basil asked them one by one, "Where are your bronze cannons?"

The prisoner said, “The emperor issued the highest-level order, strictly forbidding any troops from abandoning artillery. Even scrap cannons must be melted down into copper ingots and transported back to the rear. A week ago, it was confirmed that Pistoia could not be held, and the commander moved the bronze cannons ahead of time. I don’t know the exact location.”

Basil: "Do you know the recipe for 'Viking Fire'? Tell me, and I will bestow upon you the title of noble, similar to a Frankish count."

The prisoner shook his head slightly. "The gunpowder formula is kept strictly secret. Before the battle begins, the craftsmen prepare the gunpowder, then put it into linen to make the propellant charge. Even the gunners in charge of operating it don't know the detailed formula."

Basil felt a slight pang of regret for not being able to unravel the secrets of the cannons and "Viking fire," but he firmly believed that there was no magic involved, only a rather special alchemical creation. He silently recited to himself:
"After capturing Pistoia, our army bypassed the mountains and entered the basin where Florence is located from the northwest. We hope to capture the Viking craftsmen in the next battle."

(End of this chapter)