[M2TW AAR] The Help of God, the Love of the People, the Strength of Denmark

[Zhangir]

The Help of God, the Love of the People, the Strength of Denmark

Greetings my friends. I am so far new person to this forum, but hope to integrate amongst you soon. I have not been doing AARs before, especially with such devout stubborness as I did when starting this AAR.

This is not truely AAR. It is not After Action, it is During Action. What I would like, is that your friendly forum people and readers in general give me advice, like the advisors at the Danish court, of how to rule this nation.

Thank you very much, and a very pleasant (whatever your time of day is now) to you.

N.B. If you don't mind i will start from the next post, just because it is there that the story begins.

I do hope the pictures are not too large? I have little experience in those pixel numbers. Could someone point to me if they are too big before i am banned thanks )

Also, if you are wondering why choose Denmark, it's because I think they have rich history, good people, little number of AARs so far (correct me, i might be wrong) and also i thought England, France, Eastern Romans and the rest are tired of AARs.

[Zhangir]

Should you ever be in Odense, on the island Funen, one of Denmark's largest cities, stop by and enter that Cathedral. A lonely monk would greet you in the Scriptorium and hand you an old pile of books. This is the History of the Danish Kingdom written by the poor old monk. He did have the opportunity to use the printing press, but refused and did only one copy of that history. You could sit down here, in St Canutes' Church and read it all, as did I, but make sure you bring some food and drink to the monk, as well as make sure you bring goodness and kindness in your heart, because the monk may have not left the church for ages, but knows a lot more about life, than many of us. And here is my short description of what happened...

Chapter I



The grim world of Early Medieval period left many countries weak, seeking revenge or rebirth. The world was full of self-proclaimed feudals, thinking they are powerful enough to challenge Kings and Sultans.



The Royal Family:

King Knut, the last surviving relative of the ancient Royal Family of Denmark. Weak man, with good genes, but little power. Since his childhood he was always abused and used as a servant in his own family. Once his relatives and ancestors perished, he became a King, married a noble woman by blood, yet with similar fate during childhood. He had a happy life with his wife, however did find it hard to rule the Danish Kingdom. The Head of State officialy, the true role of the King lies on his son and successor Charles

Prince Charles, a talented warrior with a born lust for war and control. He is not as sadistic as his Viking ancestors, yet does enjoy their ability to wage war and even a rare ability to obey to his father's requests. He is a perfect son for a weakened father, a good general for a war-oriented country and the heir-apparent to the Danish Throne

Princess Ingrid, known as Ingrid the Beautiful is said to be similar to her mother's mother, Ingrid's grandmother, who was a well known woman in Denmark, as people said her noble husband married her because she charmed him with the help of magic. Ingrid's mother never inherited her own mother's appearance, but Ingrid did, and many speculated who would marry the Danish princess

[Emperor_Palpy]

My Lord, Denmark should move quickly to cut off the Holy Roman Empire by taking the city of Hamburg. From there Antwerp and Bruges should be brought to heel. We should also bring our brother Scandinavians in Oslo and Stockholm under the Danish Crown.

Once these goals are met, perhaps we should look towards England (which after all is a bloodright of the Danish Kings!). The city of York does not presently recognize the King of England as its master. Perhaps it will acknowledge Your Majesty as its King?

[Zhangir]

My Lord, Denmark should move quickly to cut off the Holy Roman Empire by taking the city of Hamburg. From there Antwerp and Bruges should be brought to heel. We should also bring our brother Scandinavians in Oslo and Stockholm under the Danish Crown.

Extremely valuable advice, thank you. Would it be a mistake to go south and east, not to Antwerp or Bruges?
Oslo and Stockholm are dealt with )))

Once these goals are met, perhaps we should look towards England (which after all is a bloodright of the Danish Kings!). The city of York does not presently recognize the King of England as its master. Perhaps it will acknowledge Your Majesty as its King?

Much appreciated )) we will retake Danlo after dealing with Bruges and Antwerp, which are next after Stokholm

Thanks. Do u like it so far?

I have also a question

Should i tax at Very High, or does it slow my development too much?
Is it ok, if stuff is written in Russian in the screens? I'll translate it all in text.

[TheTrueGreek]

This looks good, and take hamburg then block the brigde thats next to it on the left, that ensures that the hre will not get through you easily, where you go after you take out norway is really up to you, you could take out england or go east into poland, but i would not advise you to take on the H.R.E quite yet,or if you want fun, take a navy to the russians and show them viking might

[Zhangir]

Summer 1080

Across all of Denmark the mighty sons of Thor and Odin left their homes. Most of them were young, unskilled. Denmark was no longer a Pagan nation, but the peasants kept praying to the old gods. That was the reason most of them even joined the army of the young Prince. Charles, the son of King Knut was only 19 years of age. He was famous of his appearance, might of a warrior and lust for an opportunity to prove himself. Of course nobody could read in the Danish countryside, but the King's messengers reached the furtherst points of Denmark, where peasants and herders took up spears and bows.

By late summer a person entering the camp of Charles would see a pile of stones beside the nearby church.

There were 735 stones exactly. That was the size of the army the Prince would take to conquer and loot.

(I hope nobody needs translation for this next screenshot)


As autumn started, Charles, although impatient to lead the army decided to heed to his tutor's call and wait out for the rains to stop. Marching in mud, with no roads, as seen above, could be exhausting. And so the young and popular Prince adressed his camp and shared his plan... The conquest of Hamburg.

[Zhangir]

This looks good, and take hamburg then block the brigde thats next to it on the left, that ensures that the hre will not get through you easily, where you go after you take out norway is really up to you, you could take out england or go east into poland, but i would not advise you to take on the H.R.E quite yet,or if you want fun, take a navy to the russians and show them viking might

Hey, welcome ) Thanks a lot ))) Well, i thought of taking all the rebels available, as far as prague, and then off to Russia or England, nations who used to suffer from the Varyags or Vikings as the respective nations called them.

[TheTrueGreek]

england might be the smarter choice as it is more financialy stable, but first, focus on whiping some rebels down a peg, then talk of further conquest

also, dont worry about translations as most of us will be able to identify what unit or person your talking about from the picture

[Zhangir]

england might be the smarter choice as it is more financialy stable, but first, focus on whiping some rebels down a peg, then talk of further conquest

I thought so, esp. considering England is an island and could be used as safeharbour )

also, dont worry about translations as most of us will be able to identify what unit or person your talking about from the picture

Thanks a lot ))))

[Zhangir]

Well I actually played more, so here u go the rest of my game until tonight...



Winter 1082


The long wait at the camp was ended as soon as the mud dried up, but the snow didn't start yet. Prince Charles recieved last words of comfort, wishes of luck and farewells from his numerous followers amongst the higher nobility of the Danish Kingdom. His own mother left Arhus to join her noblemen and women to salute the army. This was rare for the old Denmark, but now things have changed and people get soft when saying farewell after long periods of being together...

By the end of February the army of the Prince has reached the gates of Hamburg. This was a mighty citadel with bastions and walls, rare for Denmark, but so common for England after the Norman invasion...


Back in Arhus, there lived a merchant. Perhaps this would sound ridiculous if this was not Arhus, but Venice, but in Arhus there were fewer merchants. And even fewer were granted a mission by their King. The King has always had little authority, and even now his lack of power allowed the merchant to make a more favourable deal for himself. 2/3 of the gold the merchant earns would stay with him, with just a third going back to the underground cellars of the Danish King. The merchant took off to trade in the area around the besiged Hamburg the same night...


The weakness and helplessness of King Knut was showed even in the way he dealt with the mission his own Council, which was supposed to advise him, imposed on him. That snowy day Knut has entered the Council's Chambers. They greeted him with respect but coldly. Even colder was their speech of how annoyed were they with his, the King's, foreign policy. The oldest member of the Council insisted that he should send an emissary to the Germans, he insisted that they are not the Holy Roman Empire, but simply Germanic tribes. After the mission was given there were numerous helpful advices, that the King should have listened more careful. One was to take Antwerp and Bruges, then later Oslo and Stokholm. The man told the King that he should take up England, the bloodright of the Danish Kings, as he said, and take the rebellious York, which would recognise Knut as it's leader.
The second advisor was in favour of blocking the river, Hamburg was on, by so closing the way for the German armies. He went on to offer a choice between England or Poland, but argued that the Germans were dangerous target. He then jokingly added that he would be pleased if the King kept the traditional looting of the Eastern Slavs.

(here I tried to show the advices of those writing in this tread hope u like it)

As the King left the Council, he showed his weakness and paranoia. He was scared to send anyone to the Holy Roman Empire, as he called it, but the most trusted diplomat he had...

Ingrid, the Danish Princess was known for her Beautiness, braveness, cunning mind, like that of her brother. She was already 18, but was not even married, as well as her brother, who was already 19. This created rumors that they had a love affair, which was encouraged by their father, and destabilised his reputation futher. In any case, it was her that King Knut sent off to the Germans. Was he scared of having her and her brother, his own children, near his throne? Or was it just the will to allow the son gain reputation and for the daughter to see the world outside the King's court in Arhus.



Summer 1084

The work for building the siege weapons has now been completed. What was next? Of course the siege itself. Prince Charles personally lead the mighty attack on the well defended Hamburg. Although the defenders were numbered at 260 men, lead by their self-proclaimed Governor Berngard of Hamburg, the castle walls were much more of a challenge.



Rarely have the Danes been sieging fortresses, but Prince Charles has proved the world, that walls cannot stop the Danish sons of Vikings.



It took a hundred warriors to take Hamburg, but that was a small price to pay. Hamburg was looted and sacked. The Danish warriors were well organised at looting, their commanders watching over them, so that none of them puts the gold in his own pocket. By dawn, Hamburg had all of it's treasures lined up along the bank of the river, with Prince Charles, still in his armour and war equipment, personally dividing the loot.




Winter 1086

The war spoils from Hamburg and the increasingly Very Very High Taxation, King Knut was using in Arhus, brought prosperity to the Danes. Their armies were well fed, the generals, or at least the general and Prince, since it was the only general and Prince in the country, was still young and ambitious.



To the south-east there was the region controlled by Wolfgang of Magdeburg. Although he didn't belong to any of the countries in the region, he took the Magdeburg castle for himself and proclaimed himself as the King of Magdeburg. This was the act of petty parody and his own guards and peasants laughed behind his "royal" back. He wasn't even a nobleman, but just a leader of a brigand band, which once took hold of the wooden castle. Unlike Berngard of Hamburg, he did not have a stone-built castle to rule in, or even riches, enough to be conquered for.
It was the title that angered Charles. The young Prince was always supportive of legitamate rulers, and believed nobody should ever recieve a throne, unless a direct descendant of the previous holder of the throne. This was the reason, along with the will to keep his soldiers fit, that he went on to lay siege on Magdeburg Castle.




Summer 1088

The nobility of Denmark consisted of those who gained the title through excessive drinking with the Kings, or friendship and of those who gained the title through money from the loot or directly through war. There was that brave and honest, loyal man, belonging to the closest friends of King Knut, who had a son, also brave and also loyal. The son was famous of his loyalty to the weak King, even though the King was unpopular. He once met Princess Ingrid the Beautiful, and since that very dinner (and it was a dinner between the then young Prince, Princess, the King and the Queen and his own family) he desired her to be his wife. Perhaps it was not her throne potential, but beauty that conquered his heart, but no one will no for sure. It is only known that Svein Hunger has proposed to Ingrid the Beautiful via his and her father. Although Ingrid had her own, if not love, but fancy, towards the young and brave nobleman, whose braveness during numerous hunts has astonished her, the King, i. e. her father has not just said "no" to Svein and his father, but ordered the execution of Svein's father, because of his remark, that the young Princess was not against the marriage. This has consolidated towards his unpopularity, even amongst the nobility.


The other event that took place the same time, was the ending of construction of siege rams and ladders, in order to take Magdeburg, which had the same number of defendants as Hamburg. Prince Charles was young, energetic, brave and impatient. He even had one of his guard killed, because his horsed guard and himself were taunting the archers of Magdeburg too close to the gate. He has recieved reinforcement earlier in spring, with 5 units of spearmen and 4 units of archers making up his army.

Late in the evening, on the first day of August, "King" Wolfgang of the free city of Magdeburg, as he called it, was walking on the wall of his own castle. The sun was shining into his eyes, as couple of hundred arrows glistering in the sun rays fell on his garrison. The assault has begun...

Later that night, Prince Charles, tired, slightly injured and happy, was walking in his new territory... I beg your pardon, he thought to himself, not mine, my Father's. As he walked on his castle's wall, he heard screams of former subjects of "King" Wolfgang, praying for the soldiers not to touch their families or gold, as the Danish vikings carried the gold into the square in front of the castle, where Charles stood.



As King Knut was about to wake up, his shoulder was shaken by his servant in a manner unacceptable for a King. The King however, did not shout at the servant, but simply looked at him with a question in his eyes.
- Two news, my King, - the servant said, without the needed stress on the last word, - A Bad one, and A Good one.
- Start with the Bad one, Leofrick, - said the King, looking at his servant, who in fact was a nobleman, since only noblemen were allowed to King's room
- The treasury was depleted enough for other nations to take over the lead in finance matters, my King, - said Leofrick from Drager, the King's servant, secretary and his daughter's nightmare.
- What's good then? - asked the King as he put on his shirt, made from the best cotton, ever found in Denmark.
- Well, His Mighty Highness, Prince Charles, has been victorious in his battle against King... er... Governor Wolfgang of Magdeburg.
It was only due to the loudness of the remark and Leofrick's good hearing, that he heard the King mumble:
- The damned boy is alive...

[TheTrueGreek]

real nice, i like your inclusion of our advise

cant wait for more

[Zhangir]

Thanks ))))
I edited the post and added the latest siege of Magdeburg

[Zhangir]

Winter 1090

The celebrations of the New Year, and Birth of Christ were due, in the Holy roman Emperor's residence, when a horseman came galoping from far away. He was a messenger from one of the armies of the empire on the northern border. He brought news...
Peasants and craftsment were whispering to each other, as the Emperor personaly greeted the messenger in the middle of the village. The Emperor normally stayed in Frankfurt, but this was a trip to his winter residence, to make sure his people saw him travel and to raise their morale. As the messenger bowed and handed over a letter, the noise from the crowd worsened. Someone even started shouting that the army might have been destroyed by the well known Danish Prince, who has already taken Hamburg and rumours say, Magdeburg didn't hold as well.
The strict gaze of the Emperor stopped the crowds mumbles and he called his reader to read it to him in a quiet place.
Alace, as one of the Emperors said, I am the Emperor of Rome, and above grammar, the current Emperor was quite illiterate.
The letter told the Emperor, that his general, Etelwolf, has made a deal with the Danish Princess. Did he have the authority to do that, and only then to inform the Emperor? The look on the face of the monarch said that he did not.
Yet the deal was a deal, and the Emperor wouldn't break it... For now



(since the AI is doublecrossing i decided to put it that way, so if the HRE betrays me, he has a reason to do it
The picture basically says:
we offer - alliance, trade, map; we demand - map, and down at the bottom it says - generous offer)


As the Council of Denmark's Most Wise and Noble was paying the King his reward for the Alliance, Trade Routes Deal and the Double-sided Map information deal, the King looked unhappy. His aide and servant, the noble Leofrick of Drager, has been proving himself worthy of the Princess. And King Knut was already going to accept him as a son, but a refusal, not just a refusal, but a letter showing how disgusted she is of "that wicked man" deeply troubled the weak, power-less King. Yet another NO, to another Person Offering his Hand and heart to the princess of Denmark.

The other event of that time was the Council's new order. This was launched by people supporting Prince Charles, and the order was to take Stettin to the east. The very same year, Charles, who was already up to that task, took the castle... He was sieging it for a while now, and with fresh reinforcement, he took the castle and once again looted it, in the best Viking tradition.



(That is Leofrick of Drager,i am not sure how to spell it, it is a bit different in Russian in the picture, and the refusal)




Winter (dates from here on will be updated rarely, because of strange aging system for characters and turn time in years)

Ingrid was already far from the Holy Roman Empire, her next mission, given to her by her brother secretly, was to forge an alliance with France, as well as create trade links and exchange map information. That was done by her easily, as the French court was charmed at Rheims, at her skills of influencing people, even as resistant and experienced in dipomacy as the French

(Alliance, trade, map both sides with France, sorry no screen)

The worry amongst the nation of Denmark, of the unmarried son and daughter of the King were over. This winter, the Polish Princess, Annes Herman, a moderate lady, compared to some of the Princesses in other parts of Europe, has come to the borders of Danish Kingdom with an offer herself. She offered a trade deal, but got herself a marriage. She was taken by Prince Charles, who wasn't too pleased or displeased with the marriage, taking it as something everybody does, wants it, likes it or not.


Not only the trade, alliance, marriage were agreed upon, but also the map information was given by the Polish to the Danes and backwards. Once again, showing his weakness, King Knut insisted on not asking any dowery from the Polish Princess.

The very same year, Princess Ingrid has reached Caen, the English castle in France. Although the nation of England was not recognised by the Danish Crown, she found herself understood, loved and cared of in the English castle. The Prince, who did it was soon answered and the couple married while the celebrations of the marriage of the Prince were on.



(I thought you would like a picture from the ceremony)

[TheTrueGreek]

nice, trading queens for kingdoms

[Zhangir]

Naaa, just tryin to make danish royal family relative to other families... just in case

[TheTrueGreek]

is it me or are our aars being written at the same time?

i post and 5 minutes later you post

[Zhangir]

is it me or are our aars being written at the same time?

i post and 5 minutes later you post

hehe must be )))
It's just that i write it now, but already played like 20 turns... so i just have to report

[Zhangir]

Winter

Prince Charles sat at the dining table next to his new Polish wife Annes, in a cosy dining room of what used to be an estate, belonging to one of the brigands, who make their estates and money on robbing people. Annes was looking out of the window at Stettin, just a few kilometres away, while her husband was consuming her portion of the food. The window had no glass and normally people would shut it, but Annes and especially charles were used to coldness of winter and preferred the window that way. As they sat there, she suddenly saw a horseman, riding fast towards the village, and the estate they were in from Stettin.
- A messenger, - she said quietly to herself.
But her husband heard that, and instead of continuing the meal stood up and called the guard outside
- Get my horse ready, I want to know what happened now, even if I will have to meet that messenger half way.

Less than fifteen minutes later Charles stood in front of the messenger, who read out the letter. Charles could read, unlike his father, or even Holy Roman Emperor, but didn't like to do that too often as he did make occasional mistakes.
- Regner, whose horsemen were near Breslau, sends a warning saying that a Polish Army is near Breslau village.
The Prince stood there for a moment. Could it be, that the Polish were faster than him in taking Breslau. That would mean his next target, Prague, a Bohemian city further south, would be cut off.
- Prepare the men. We are to cross Breslau region and take Prague before the Polish take Breslau.
- But it has no walls, my Prince, - said one of his guards, a man who has travelled around the area a lot, - They will fall to the Polish in less than six month.
- Then hurry up, - shouted the Prince, who was determined to take Prague, - and make sure my wife has a horse, she is going with the army.



Back in Denmark, the King stood waiting. That was the fourth time his wife delievered a baby, but they are much older now, and it all could go wrong. Despite his fear of her, as well as of his own children, King Knut was in love with his Queen, and only the news of a successful birth would calm him down. And if it is a boy, thought the King, Charles would have a competitor, which I will raise myself...

- A girl, - shouted the crowd outside the Royal Residence in Arhus, as the grim King appeared on the balcony after his servant spread the news to the crowd...

Rudolfus, the young commander in Bohemian army was shocked to discover his settlement was under siege. Just two days ago, he has scanned the area himself, sending patrols north, making sure the rumours of Danish Prince are false. But now, after just two days the army has appeared and it seemed it was not even exhausted.
- Damned Prince, - muttered the Commander, as he climbed down the ladder from the watch tower, - If I will not get you, I will make sure the Germans or the Polish would do it...
As he hurried to the Council of Prague, two messengers left Prague, galloping away from the army of the Prince, one east and one west.

Once upon a time, in ancient Rome, Julius Caesar was known to say: So big events and decisive fates rest upon so petty reasons, in this case whose horse will be faster.

The distance from Stettin to Warsaw is 564 kilometres
The distance from Prague to Warsaw is 611 kilometres

If someone stood that day outside Warsaw and looked west, there would be two roads. One from Stettin via Torun, and the other from Prague, via Breslau. If the person standing on the two roads would stay there in early hours of the morning, he would see the two riders, one coming from Stettin, a few hours earlier than the one from Prague. Both would race as made and both would head to the Residence of the Polish King. And only the fact that the one from Stettin was faster, meant that the Polish army didn't head for Breslau.

If you would ever visit the camp outside Prague, you wouldn't see a group of senoir thanes and earls, talking in a nearby forest. But if you would tell the servant of one of the earls the password: "Knut is nuts", then he would show you the forest.

The plans of coup and revolution were always the plans of the nobility in the camp of Charles. However Charles was not involved, but was still a suspect in his father's eyes. And the plan of the rebel earls and thanes was simple. Before the son of the Prince is born, he will need someone to treat as his own son... an adoption of one of the earls, would bring that person to Charles... The traitor would then influence the Prince... or dispose of him...

[Zhangir]

Summer

The coup against the Royal Family of Denmark was lead by a man called Ulf the Honest. He was the key figure amongst the earls' and thanes' secret council, which would form a kind of military council to rule Denmark. This council of Earls and Thanes would then divide Denmark up into feudal lands with a certain degree of autonomous rule, under one Grand Earl of Denmark.

But these plans required one thing, to get them into motion - the death of the Royal family.

It was one of those summers, when you don't often see the clear sky, and constantly see rain and thunder. Still pagan peasants in Denmark were whispering of Thor and Odin, the Gods of the Pagan Denmark. The siege of Prague was soon going to be over and Ulf the Honest proposed a plan. His plan was simple, there are two ways Prince Charles wil die:
- During the siege of Prague
- After the siege of Prague
The first plan involved an attack by a mercenary unit at their own general. The second plan involved adoption, and was far more complicated but gave Ulf the power Kings before Knut enjoyed.



The Battle...
The battle was a chaos. People slaughtered, as mercenary troops pillaged, killed and did other war crimes, while refusing to obey either Prince Charles, or even Ulf the Honest. Although he was called Honest, he was actually quite tight when it came to paying, so the mercenaries simply pillaged Prague, as compensation. The defending commander Rudolf got slaughtered as well as most of the peasant force, as the Danish army swept passed the defense.
Prince Charles was leading the attack when a peasant took a knife and jumped from the roof on the Prince...
In the chaos of the battle Charles had his helmet broken and his face cut badly by the knife, yet he did manage to overwhelm the attacker and slit his throat with his own knife.

Victory made Charles, now known as Charles the Scarred, famous and once the loot was divided, Ulf the Honest had only one option, to officially offer himself as a son to the younger Charles, to which the Earls and Thanes, most of whom were participating in the coup, agreed and cheered. The Scarred Prince agreed, but asked for the ceremony of official acceptance to wait until the next day.

It was only this that saved Charles, as well as the fact that Regner, his bodyguard, had a wound, which he wanted to heal using some herbs from the forest. As Regnar said, nothing is better than a herbal treatment. That very same forest, Regnar went to for the healing herbs, was the place the earls and thanes met Ulf the Honest, who was about to become their King. They were all excited and spoke loud and celebrated...

The next morning was the ceremony of official acceptance of Ulm the Honest as the adopted son of Prince Charles the Scarred.
Crowds of Bohemians, Danes, Saxons, Bavarians, Polish were outside the ceremonial high scene. That was a wooden scene, where the ceremony would take place, right outside the gates of Prague.

As the Prince appeared with his guards and some troops the crowd got more and more loud. He stopped his horse in front of the wooden scene, where his new family member stood. That was Ulf the Honest, in his best armour and below him stood the whole council of thanes and earls, who accompanied Prince all along. More than half of them had a pleased face, the rest were simply mildly happy or just simply didn't care. As the Prince stopped his horse, he raised his hand and the crowd went silent. This is my moment, thought Ulf.
- Ulf the Honest, son of Thorsten the Bold, - started Prince Charles in a loud voice, so that all the crowd heard him, - I hereby declare you an outlaw! You are to be punished by execution on that very scene you are standing by my loyal bodyguard Regnar!
The silence was so tense, that you could hear the cries of widows inside Prague.
- Why do I deserve such a..., - started Ulf, when troops began to seize and tie up his friends amongst the rebels.
- You, - shouted Charles with anger in his voice, - and half of the Thanes and Earls present are all to be executed! Hang the Thanes and Earls! Chop the heads of the leaders of that attempted coup!



As months went on, the coup was half-erased from the memories, as well as Ulf the Honest, who turned to be a Cunning Fox, yet a Dead Fox.



That summer the country was united by the news of a grand daughter for the King, and a daughter for a Prince. Isibel was the name of the baby. The celebrations of the victory at Prague, beheading of the rebel earls and thanes and the daughter of the beloved Prince brought the nation of Denmark peace, yet they did have many grievences, which were less noticed, like the growing amount of the tax to pay for the wars. The wars were tolerated as they brought in money, women, lands and glory. The casualties were minimal in the wars so far and even when Charles took Breslau, there were only 17 men killed.



Denmark was proud to have the best army and economy in the world, under the leadership of King Knut, but de facto his son, the glorious winner of Hamburg, Stettin, Prague and Breslau, Prince Charles the Scarred.

[Zhangir]

Winter

If you kill one man, you are a muderer;
If you kill a thosand, you are a hero.

Charles the Scarred was eager to continue his conquest. Or as he called it the Reconquest of what is Danish by the right of sword, God and the Danish People.

A similar type of scenes occured all over the new Denmark. Although the majority of the villages were not really Danish, but only recent conquests, they were eager to join the Prince, as he has shown himself Chivalrous in the countryside of the castles and cities he conquered. The peasants and local nobility took up swords, axes, spears to join the largest Danish army gathered since the Viking times. Over 240 horsemen, accompanied by 750 warriors, both noble and peasants, as well as the notorious mercenaries, numbering at about 150 men, which adds up to 1150 men plus Charles and his own men.

The army was gathered secretly in a forest near Stettin, as news of rebelious armies and a large group of brigands, under the command of the brother of "King" of Magdeburg, who was slain by Charles.



As soon as the army was gathered, the fleet was prepared to transport those men to reconquer the northen lands of Scandinavia.



Admiral Jon was an expreienced Admiral, who had sent a spy to Oslo, a castle under the control of earls, hostile to the Danish crown. The fleet was on the way...



Travelling on a viking longship could be a real experience. It is dangerous, challenging and wet. However, Charles was not new to danger. In fact, he was the most popular hero of his time in Denmark. He was famous, young and just a father. People's love to the Prince has affected the decision of the council, who decided to give a donation of 1000 golden coins to the treasury, to fund the Danish armies.



Unfortunately, as it always happens, the cost of running an army, building in every settlement available, as well as having only 2 well taxed cities, leads to an economic slowdown, and that is precisesly what the Danish crown faced...



Summer

As the summer month lighted and warmed the ever cold Scandinavia, the ships of Admiral Jon have reached their destination, the shore near Oslo...



As the ships were unloading, Prince Charles was sitting on a stone, further from the shore than anybody, but his loyal Regner.
- Tell me, Regner, the people love me, my wife loves me... But my father... Does he?
The bodyguard was silent, as he only answered orders or less political questions.
- Then again, - went on Charles, - he is mad at me, I never share my fame, I never visit...
The sad mood of the Prince was also the consequence of the fact his two kids were girls. As a Prince he wanted his wife to deliever a boy. Regner was well aware of that, yet couldn't find a way to calm his master down on this issue.
- My father has a son and three daughters. I have only two daughters... does it mean I will not have a son? - demanded the Prince with an angered voice.
- I have no knowledge of that, milord, - said Regnar quietly
The Scarred Prince looked up at Regnar, then back at the see, somewhere to the south, where his new-born daughter was, with her mother...



The Royal Residence was full of excitment, the only person quiet was the King. Knut was not calm, but he was quiet. His heart was demanding him to stand up and take a sword, break into the chambers of the Polish princess and kill her new-born as well as the other girl. The only thing that stopped him was his old age, and doubt, whether the Polish bodyguard, the princess had would understand him...

Meanwhile Paris, London and Warsaw had sent their messengers telling how happy their Kings and Queens were of the fact the Danish Prince had another daughter...



(it says relations with England, France and Poland - good)