Never in the memory of the people of York had the city been attacked on such a scale.
Even if the Mercian army once occupied this place, the Mercian army did not have such a scale, not to mention that their arrival was not an siege. It was the king of Northumbria who expressed his loyalty to many parties, and the whole process was actually quite peaceful.
Well now, the Viking demons suddenly landed, they came menacingly and vowed to devour everything.
At least the wooden and stone walls gave the soldiers defending the capital some courage.
Earl Graywold stood at the top of the city and tried his best to direct his men to shoot arrows to fight.
Arrows flew from the city wall, hit the attacker's wooden shield heavily, and landed on the muddy ground by the river like reeds.
There is also a wooden wall blocking the stone wall. Inside the wooden wall is actually the outer city of York.
The outer city is very small and there are not many houses. Most of the residences here are wooden sheds, and this is where the market is.
Many agricultural products being traded, as well as pots and pans, have not yet been transported to the inner city.
The arrival of the Vikings was too sudden. Who would have thought that the huge fleet would directly break into the River Ouse?
Seeing that the arrows could not block the Viking attack at all, Graywold seemed to only be cursing besides stamping his feet in anger.
The warriors holding the bows had blue veins on their faces. They gritted their teeth and persisted in firing arrows. The little priest holding the cross stood on the city wall, praying to God to give the soldiers courage, and then praying to God to drive away these barbarians.
But the priests huddled in the battlements, leaning against the walls and shivering, and even wet their pants with fear.
Is this what war is like? The farmers who were fighting for the first time were so frightened that they only dared to transport arrows, stones and sticks to the city wall. The only ones actually fighting were the soldiers wearing the orange robes of the Kingdom Army, numbering no more than 600 people.
Magnute was getting stronger with age. Facing the "majestic city" York, he was not afraid of the stone wall at all, but instead aroused his strong desire to conquer.
"This city is more interesting than my hometown. If I rule here in the future, this city must be my core."
Magnut thought well, and his Balmok warriors were powerful.
But, what are the Russians doing?
Ignore them, the glory belongs to the Balmok people!
The Balmoq army, which charged the most fiercely, rushed to the wooden wall of the outer city, while the Northumbrian warriors who fired arrows from the outermost low tower had long since fled to the stone walled inner city.
Only some arrows fell from the sky with the help of the terrain, which caused some injuries to the Balmoks, but that was all.
They waved the cables to hang on the wooden wall, and together they worked together to open the gap.
Biyongni even found a large wooden stake nearby. He called on more than 30 people to hold the object and directly knocked open the wooden door of Waiguo City with a roar.
Graywold, who thought that the wooden walls of the outer city could withstand it for a while, could not be described as shocked.
"Soldiers! They are here! Guard the city gate! Push the wooden cart into the door and block it!"
A large amount of debris began to block the city gates, all four of York's gates. The vehicles of merchants who fled into the city were requisitioned, and a large amount of wood, stones and even soil were piled on top. The wooden carts were then pushed into the doors and removed from the wheels to become a huge obstacle.
York had never encountered such an attack, and the locals lacked the means to defend the city.
The gate is not a lift-type iron mesh gate, nor is there a mechanism for pouring hot oil, and there is not even a trench moat.
The only weapons they can use to defend the city are rocks except bows and arrows.
But the Balmoks came in a hurry and were dumbfounded as if they had actually fought their way to the city.
Some warriors tried to climb the stone wall directly, but their heads were either smashed by stones or stabbed to death by spears.
Biyongni tried to use wood to break open the door, but the method was almost in vain.
The battlefield became anxious, and Arik, who had already led dozens of brothers to the front line, thought of the storming of Boriholm again.
He restrained his men and ordered: "Crossbow! Support our allies."
It was impossible for Arik to wait for someone to attack fiercely. He didn't want to die now, but his men were all preparing for close combat. They only carried ten crossbows, and they were all light-weight goods modified from short wooden bows. The support was destined to be limited.
The Balmoks began to suffer casualties as Rurik watched.
The soldiers of the fleet clenched their teeth and watched the battle anxiously. They wanted to join the battle, but everyone already knew the Duke's order.
Except for the Sperosvilia and the two cargo ships that docked and landed without authorization, the other ships followed the Avora.
The main force of the fleet formed a double column along the river, and then anchored in the river, with the broadsides facing York, and the torsion slingshots began to charge up.
Two sailing cruisers, Avora and Duke of Ostara. Four sailing destroyers, Mercury, Venus, Mona and Mars. In this way, a total of 22 torsion slingshots on the side were assembled, and nine torsion slingshots from nine armed cargo ships were assembled to assist in the battle.
Based on the narrowness of the Maas River and the fact that the current route to York City is straight, the Ross fleet arranged a double longitudinal array.
Rurik was excited and commanded with his sword, "Shoot at York! Support friendly forces! Cast iron bullets, fire freely!"
The five slingshots of the flagship launched an attack at a very high angle. The target of the attack was not clear. In other words, the inner city of York within the stone wall was their target.
The tapered cast-iron projectiles weighed only one pound, and they could be fired an equivalent of 350 meters away.
The other ships saw the flagship launching an attack, and each ship took action immediately.
The cast iron bullet began to spin during flight due to the dents on its surface. They all rushed towards York in a beautiful parabola, carrying out probabilistic strikes on the target.
Rurik's original plan was to negotiate with King Eynred when his troops came to the city, forcing the Vikings to compromise.
At this point, it is no longer possible to discuss the matter. The battle has broken out, so try to break through the city.
After all, the strategic initiative has always been in the hands of the coalition forces.
The fleet is still too far away from the inner city of York, and at such a distance only the torque slingshot can launch an effective attack.
The cast-iron bullets immediately made the buildings in the city crackle.
The stone pillars of the small bell tower of York Church were actually hit. The unstable center of gravity caused the bell tower to collapse. The bronze bell suddenly fell and made a loud noise, which was like ringing the final death knell for Northumbria.
The people hiding in the church heard too many crackling sounds. They knelt down to confess and pray, desperately crossing their chests, praying for the disaster to end.
It was a cast-iron bullet that hit the stone wall of the church, along with the king's small palace. Because a towering stone tower was too conspicuous, it became a target. The cast-iron bullets sent stone fragments flying everywhere, and many projectiles simply smashed through the stone tiles on the wooden beams of the palace.
Many projectiles directly hit the queen's palace, forcing the queen to take refuge with her young son Ella into the cellar where the royal family's wealth was stored.
Many people thought of hail, and many people were killed directly. When people were horrified to see that the murderous object was actually a piece of iron, they suddenly fell into confusion.
The black things are still coming, more people are flocking to the church, and the bolder ones are moving towards the palace.
Simply because these two buildings are the strongest in York.
"Sir, I have been attacking for a while, do you think it is effective?" Jevro asked doubtfully.
"Of course it doesn't work. These projectiles are too small to break through the stone wall." Rurik shrugged.
"So why do we continue to waste ammunition?"
"Currently we are just supporting friendly forces and letting Magnute know that we are participating in the war. Damn it, this old guy suddenly launched an attack, and my plan was completely messed up."
"But sir." Yevro persuaded kindly, "We don't have unlimited projectiles. If it is just support, we have done a good enough job."
Rurik nodded, "Then change your strategy in advance! Let's go! Let's land!"
As Duke Rurik of Rus issued a clear order, the most elite Rus army in the coalition began to disembark.
Regardless of whether the city can be broken today, Rurik's main force must camp outside York.
Standing on the bow of the ship, he also saw the wooden bridge upstream of the river. He was worried that enemy reinforcements would be coming from there, so he also made some arrangements for the landing force, such as arranging some soldiers to destroy the enemy's bridge.
The fleet that was originally lined up paused shooting. After adjusting its direction, the soldiers disembarked one after another and waded ashore with weapons and equipment.
This was a quick process. Rurik ignored the wetness of his boots and focused on gathering the shooting flag team to prepare for more intensive arrow rain support.
The sudden change in the situation left Graywold, who had endured the bombardment, helpless. Some of his men were killed, while the remaining men were still on the city wall braving the arrows thrown by the Vikings to defend themselves.
The Balmoks did not shoot many arrows, and the arrow clusters were not of good quality. Even with Arik's help, the power of accurate crossbow shooting is really limited.
The warrior in white robes found Arik who was fighting hard and shouted, "Boss, the Duke wants you to go back."
"Huh? I'm fighting!"
"This is an order! Your Majesty said that the entire army has begun to attack the city. You are the flag captain and must lead the entire flag team in the battle."
Arik looked back and suddenly smiled.
The many flags of Rus were flying, and most of the uniformly dressed warriors had landed.
Cousin Arik is back, and Rurik has no time to criticize his brother's recklessness. After all, he is used to being reckless.
"Brother, it's finally started."
"Yes. Now organize your first flag team and line up! Set up a shield wall to protect our shooters." Rurik ordered with a stern face.
"Aren't you going to attack the city? Oh, okay..."
Arik roughly understood his brother's plan, and everything seemed to be a repeat of the attack on Boriholm.
Looking at the defenders here, Earl Graywulf was shocked to see a group of soldiers wearing white robes with blue stripes on them, actually lined up in a neat array?
"Are these Vikings? A group of bandits? Can the bandits form such an organized array?"
He was still confused, even envious of his opponent's neat military formation, when suddenly a rather dense whooshing sound came from the sky.
The Rus' army has reached a position where the defenders' arrows can hit, and the Rus' archers can also hit the enemy.
The flag-shooting team has complex personnel and complex weapons.
The Suomi short archers and the capable mercenaries holding wooden crossbows all launched their arrows at high elevation angles.
Jevro took the lead in commanding, and with one order, a volley was fired. Nearly three hundred whirling feather arrows came with a terrifying whooshing sound. They formed a rain of arrows, and the people inside the city wall had nowhere to hide. .
While commanding, Yevluo did not forget to make impassioned speeches, ordering the men in his hometown, "Suomi people! Shoot hard and prove to the Varyags that you are good hunters."
Then he ordered the other mercenaries in Norse, "Win the string quickly, don't give the enemy a chance to breathe!"
Fraser, who taught archery, and even the surrendered Dane Grund and others, a group of more than fifty mercenaries, carrying steel-armed crossbows, broke away from the large army and arrived at the melee army approaching the city. Shooting the defenders on the battlements accurately from a distance is like shooting a turtle dove perched on a branch.
Let's look at Glenwold. He just showed up to take a look at the current battle situation. By chance, a crossbow arrow pierced his helmet.
He was so frightened that he wet his pants on the spot. He sat down with messy brown hair and tried his best to hide the embarrassment between his hips. He looked at the iron sheet that fell on the ground and crossed himself desperately on his chest.
The arrows of the Russian army were still causing damage, and they were still mixed with falling cast iron bullets.
There was even more chaos at the top of the city, and everything was indeed similar to the tragedies that happened in Edinburgh and Bamburgh last year.
For example, there was an angry young priest holding a wooden cross high, standing up bravely and angrily denounced the evil behavior of the barbarians, cursing them that they would go to hell.
How do Grund and Fraser manage so much? A living target stood up, was quickly shot down and fell outside the city, and was torn into pieces by the angry Balmoks.
The city wall was in a mess, and many defenders died in the battle, but the stone wall surrounding York was still impregnable.
After all, it was tall, and the army that suddenly attacked did not prepare a long ladder at all. Among them, the Balmoks attacked with enthusiasm, and the chaotic battle lasted for a long time. Even though Rurik expended a lot of arrows and projectiles to support them, York still stood tall. , the persistence of the defenders on the city wall is also admirable.
Both armies were beginning to show signs of fatigue, and the sun was about to set.
The city gate was smashed into pieces. When Biyongni saw a large amount of debris piled in the doorway, he cursed and became discouraged. Because now we are preparing a siege vehicle that can smash the gate to pieces. How can the heavy debris inside be knocked away?
The Balmoks were tired, as were the defenders.
One after another, soldiers began to follow their family leader and retreat to the rear, panting, and Rurik also suspended all fire support.
Magnute, who was getting stronger and stronger, finally couldn't hold on any longer. He led his men to withdraw, which immediately caused all the Viking army to retreat.
"Is it all over? They..." Graywold poked out one eye and cautiously saw the Vikings retreating against the big buckler, and did not take away their war dead when they evacuated.
He didn't feel any relief, but was very worried.
Look at the white flags with blue stripes flying on the big boats on the river. The colors of the flags change under the sunset.
They were Viking raiders, even though their flag resembled Mercia. If this army rushes towards Mercia, the army there will also be destroyed. I am afraid that no kingdom in the whole of Britain can defeat this army by itself.
But everyone still defended York!
Graywold raised his right fist and endured the exhaustion and tried his best to roar. Even now, the soldiers seemed to be relieved of their burden and started roaring.
"Listen, they seem to be mocking us." Jevro heard the roars and admonished, "Sir, let's shoot another round."
"No, there is no courage in this roar. They are just saying that they are still alive."
"But we didn't take York."
Rurik shrugged, "It doesn't matter. Prepare tomorrow and attack the next day! However, I still have to make some new decisions."
Magnute lost a lot of his vigor. He was angry that even though he had used up so much strength and had his son-in-law to help him, York still could not be defeated.
The Viking army had begun to camp outside the city. In order to prevent the enemy from escaping in the chaos, Magnut cleverly sent people to set up camps blatantly near all four city gates.
Before the camp was set up, he first found Rurik and asked for his son-in-law's opinion as soon as possible.
Rurik was too lazy to be polite to this old guy now, so he criticized harshly: "I gave you a chance, but you didn't use it!"
Magnute was taken aback, and then thought again that he had indeed failed, and it was hard to defend himself.
Rurik added: "If you attack the city, you should obey my command! We agreed to land first, and then negotiate with them. If we can't reach an agreement, we will attack. It's better for you, now we can only attack the city. For your recklessness, Many people died fighting.”
Biyongni felt a little displeased and said, "Brother, my father is too eager for glory."
"Okay! My father Magnute, I was the one who spoke fiercely. I am speaking on behalf of the brothers who died in the battle. Please forgive my rudeness." After saying this, Rurik's face was still full of complaints.
After saying this, Magnut felt even more ashamed. He sighed and said, "You should have the right countermeasures."
"Yes! Let's rest and cremate our fallen heroes. Just follow my instructions on how to attack the city!"
Soon after the army was encamped, Rurik immediately adopted traditional tactics. Massive bonfires were lit on three sides of York, and the river was full of boats!
York was surrounded by bonfires and fleets, which put huge pressure on the soldiers and civilians in the city. They had no choice but to escape.
Graywold was still expecting reinforcements, and people prayed in churches all night long. As many as 200 people died in the city, and more than 300 people were injured to varying degrees. The casualties were mainly caused by arrows and projectiles.
Of course, the Vikings also paid more than fifty deaths, and most of them were broken by stones and wood thrown down.
Suddenly, a fire broke out upstream of the river!
Graywold, who was busy praying in the church, was called to the top of the city. He was so angry that he almost fainted when he saw the fire on the upper reaches of the river.
"York Bridge! They are burning York Bridge! How are the reinforcements coming from the west! How are the king's troops..."
After being scolded for a while, he still fell into a coma. He was carried to the church by his men, was given a sip of rose essential oil holy water, coughed and then slowly woke up.
As soon as he woke up, he shouted, "Quick! No matter what, all of you must ensure the safety of the prince."
A soldier said: "Sir, the prince is in the cellar."
"Oh, that's great. Listen, no matter how chaotic the situation is, the prince's safety must be guaranteed."
Yes, at least these remarks made the priests feel that this man who took over the position of city defense commander was indeed a loyal man of the kingdom.
Unfortunately, York is already an isolated city. The peaceful days are gone, and darkness has fallen.
