On the vast Nile River, almost all ferries that could cross the river were under constant attack. The Crusaders could be said to be attacking across the board.
At first glance, the Crusaders seemed extremely stupid to do this. Launching an all-out attack on such a huge front would be a waste of their own forces, but in fact, Edgar was testing the waters.
With so many attacks, the Nile defenders were overwhelmed. Finding weak points in the defenders' defense was like testing with five fingers. If it was really difficult to achieve a breakthrough, then put the five fingers together and forcefully punch out one.
"Right now, it seems that the manpower of the defenders is very abundant. We have encountered resistance in almost every section of the river." Looking at the ancient map said to be drawn during the Alexander era, Edgar frowned and said, "It seems that
We can only force a gap to come out."
The headquarters of the Crusaders was located on a high ground by the Nile River. The cross flag planted on it was very conspicuous. It was guarded by some Welsh longbowmen. These men wearing simple blouses could be seen everywhere, holding extremely long bows and arrows.
soldiers.
For many of the Crusaders, they felt like they were in the middle of a legend. Egypt was a place only mentioned in the Bible, and they were full of yearning for what they could gain in this land.
Under this high ground is the huge camp of the Crusaders. Wisps of smoke rise from the camp, forming a mist above the Crusaders' camp.
The British Crusaders gathered together according to their respective regions and clans, each divided into their respective locations, and some people were wary of each other. There was more or less hatred between the various British races, even among the Crusaders.
, it is also necessary to lift each other up.
Like most Crusaders, the British Crusaders' military discipline was not strict, and the management of the military camps was very lax, but no one on this side of the Nile dared to attack this army.
On the contrary, the British tribes captured by the Crusaders were like plundering cattle in their hometown, and all the tribes went out to sweep most of the Egyptian villages on the right bank of the Nile.
The wealth of Egypt really amazed the British people. The Egyptians were much richer than the residents of remote Britain.
Many British nobles couldn't help but fantasize about what achievements they could achieve on this land in the future, while more common people saw the fertility of the land along the Nile River, and when they saw it, they began to imagine what it would be like to live on this land in the future.
, how rich life can be.
Because of this, they had more trust in Edgar. When they first came to the east, many people still doubted whether Edgar was lying because of the desolate scene. Now all the talk about deception has disappeared.
Although this land is desolate, it is also as wealthy as Edgar said. Only after overcoming those difficulties and obstacles can one truly gain wealth.
This was also thanks to the Fatimid Caliph's army directly abandoning the right bank of the Nile, so these miscellaneous troops were able to loot the right bank so conveniently. Under normal circumstances, these raiding teams would have been annihilated by the Egyptians long ago.
"The key is where to start, my son, we have to solve this problem first."
Edward went on to say that this man who held a high position in the Kiev court was now extremely old, but he was also more powerful and more experienced.
It's just that his words made everyone present immediately worry. They are currently distressed by this. If crossing the Nile was so easy, they would have completed their task long ago.
"We know too little about this river and there are not many solutions. It's hard to make a choice."
Volorida said with a grimace. He also took off his helmet, and his hair was already soaked under the scorching sun.
The horrible weather in the south makes many people very uncomfortable, and Volorida is one of them. It is even hotter than the Holy Land.
What Volorida said is exactly the problem that everyone is facing now. Although they have launched many tentative attacks on the Nile River, they really have no idea where to forcefully cross the river.
"Don't worry, kids, we can always think of a way. If it really doesn't work, just find a piece of land and attack forcefully. There's no need to worry about it."
Edward stroked his beard and said, thinking of another thing in his heart. Speaking of which, it was time for him to call other people children without realizing it.
"We have found many shoals in the Nile River, but at least half of the body has to be submerged in the water, not to mention the mud on the soles of the feet and the current. If the army crosses the sea in these shoals, our people will probably not be able to stand.
You may fall down or even be swept away."
This is exactly the dilemma they are currently facing when they forcefully cross the Nile River. There are many places along the Nile River suitable for navigation, but the problems are almost the same.
"I would say that we should follow the tactics used by Alexander the Great to cross the Nile. Find a relatively wide shoal, and then place cavalry upstream and downstream of the shoal. The cavalry upstream will reduce the intensity of the water flow, allowing the soldiers in the shoal to move more easily.
Crossing the river, the cavalry on the lower reaches are trying to rescue the unfortunate ones who were washed away."
Vasiliko shared the experience of his predecessors, including Alexander's method of crossing the Nile. His suggestion made everyone present's eyes light up, because it was indeed a feasible solution.
"Since we want to reduce the speed of water flow, we might as well find some elephants."
Volorida suddenly remembered the elephant driver he had seen in Jerusalem, so he proposed this plan. Indeed, using elephants was indeed better than war horses.
"My brother, regardless of whether we can wait that long, even if the elephants arrive, we can't use this method. Alexander's general once did this, but the result was that the elephants were too heavy and stepped loose.
As a result, the sediment flowed away and the river became deeper. The soldiers mistakenly thought that water was released upstream, which caused a serious panic, and then the river crossing operation failed."
Prince Rurik couldn't help but rubbed his head in embarrassment. This time he was really a little embarrassed. Others were also silent. How could they talk about the two brothers?
In the end, Edgar came out to ease the awkward atmosphere, "Now that the plan is in place, let's start taking action. My comrades, let's start preparing."
Everyone immediately followed his words and took action. Although they said they had a plan, there were still many problems that needed to be faced to implement the plan, and it would take everyone a while to be busy.
And everyone's actions are very efficient, including the people below. Crossing the Nile River is the biggest problem facing everyone now. If they can't even cross the Nile River, then their crusade will be too funny, even if it is
In order not to be embarrassed, they also have to work together as one.
The Crusaders moved very quickly, and it didn't take long for the suitable place to cross the river to be determined. After all, the Crusaders had already conducted probing attacks on most of the Nile crossings, and they just needed to continue to screen.
In order to successfully cross the river, the Crusaders made many preparations, including taking offensives at other crossings to conceal their main intentions, and making suspicious troop movements in various aspects to confuse them.
For this reason, the Fatimid army once thought that the Crusaders were about to give up. The Crusaders' current attack intensity was completely different from before. Gradually, they began to relax, and this was exactly the effect the Crusaders wanted.
, when the Egyptians were relaxed, they took action.
Therefore, when the Crusaders launched the real attack, the Egyptian defenders on the other side of the river did not react at all. They thought it was just another meaningless counterattack by the Crusaders at first, but they found that something was wrong.
A large number of Crusader cavalry occupied the upper and lower reaches of the ford across the river under the confused eyes of the defenders on the other side. Then a large number of Crusader infantry, led by warriors wearing heavy armor, began to cross the river.
Before the Egyptian defenders at the ferry could do anything, they were suddenly showered with arrows above their heads, and those who shot these arrows were the longbowmen from Wales. When they drew their bows, they almost
The whole body is pressed against the bow, using the weight of the body to generate huge kinetic energy.
The Crusaders' operation got off to a good start. It was already halfway through the Crusaders' crossing of the Nile River, and the Egyptian defenders from other places had just arrived. Then these Egyptians who arrived encountered the big killer weapon that the Crusaders had been hiding.
blow.
Ballista.
When the British Crusaders were still in the imperial capital, Edgar relied on his connections in Rus to purchase five ballistae from the imperial army that should have been scrapped. Although these ballistae were intended to be scrapped, they were actually still in good condition.
, so Edgar got it into his hands.
Now the ballistae was nailing the enemies to the ground one after another. The Egyptians could be said to have simply spread out like birds and beasts to avoid the strike of the ballistae, for fear that they would become the next victims.
Taking advantage of the enemy's opportunity to avoid the edge, the Crusaders stepped up their efforts and began to attack. They only had the river bank in their eyes. As long as they reached the river bank, victory would belong to them!
But even if the ballistae kept firing at the other side of the river, as the number of enemy soldiers continued to increase, the ballistae could no longer suppress the enemy. Moreover, these ballistae were discarded by the Byzantine army and had huge problems in themselves.
, these problems have also been exposed as the frequency of use has soared.
The crossbow wall of a ballista exploded just as it was about to be fired, and the powerful tendons directly killed the nearest ballista operator, breaking the man into two pieces at once.
The scene became very bloody for a while, and it also affected the firing of other ballista groups, so the firing frequency directly slowed down, which allowed more Egyptians to move around.
The arrows soon began to fall, and arrows fell one after another in the Crusaders' advancing queue, constantly causing splashes, but this time the Crusaders did not hesitate at all, and they still moved forward firmly.
Seeing that the usual rain of arrows could not be dispersed, the Egyptians simply adopted the next move, which was to fight the enemy directly on the beach.
Following the shouts of several Egyptian emirs, a large group of Egyptian soldiers rushed into the water. As they moved, the water continued to splash, and many cavalry also jumped in to fight the Crusaders to the death.
Fighting in the water is like dancing in shackles. Both sides are trapped by the resistance brought by the current. Such fighting is also extremely cruel, because once falling into the water, death is often the next step, and the river water is often covered with blood.
, the soldiers found themselves in a bloody hell.
In the Nile River, which nurtured Egyptian civilization, two believers who can be said to have nothing to do with Egyptian civilization but are inextricably linked to each other are fighting. Gold, iron and screams are playing together. Death can be seen everywhere, and the river water is also fast.
Become blood red.
The Egyptians found this Crusade very difficult to deal with, and the Christians were fighting them with a do-or-die attitude. No matter how many people fell, there were always other Crusaders coming one after another.
The losses of the Egyptians became more and more heavy. Their strength was originally smaller than that of the Crusaders, and their advantage was only the defensive advantage of the defender. Now this advantage was completely offset by the Crusaders' fearlessness of death.
The Egyptian defenders here are mainly urban residents, and they are also poor people in Cairo. Their combat effectiveness and equipment are in a relatively poor state. Now they are facing such an offensive, so they cannot cope with it at all.
The Egyptians could only retreat and retreat again and again, and then the retreat gradually turned into a rout and a collapse. In this way, the Crusaders set foot on the left bank of the Nile.
"Congratulations, Lord Edgar, we defeated the pagans, and we will definitely take down the pagans' lair next!"
When the Crusade leaders headed by Edgar came to the right bank of the Nile where soldiers were cleaning up the battlefield, an Anglo-Saxon warrior knelt down in front of Edgar and congratulated him.
The left bank of the Nile was like a slaughterhouse, with corpses of fallen Egyptians everywhere. Christians were moving among them, taking down all kinds of property worth collecting, as well as the most important equipment for soldiers. As for the corpses, they went directly to
If you throw it into the river, the water will take everything away. The previous battle turned the lake red, but now the blood has basically faded away.
"This is just the beginning, warrior. Breaking through the Nile River is just a small beginning. We will have more and more fierce battles in the future. We must be prepared and don't be arrogant."
Edgar was not overjoyed by the congratulations, he just looked a little disappointed and said, because he knew very well that the Egyptians still had fighting capabilities, the Fatimid Caliphate was still powerful, and it was still a terrifying enemy.
The Anglo-Saxons retreated, and his admiration for Edgar became even stronger. It was such a humble and wise leader who could lead them to victory and allow them to settle down in this rich land.