xymnovel Chapter 156 Ageron's Governance
Chapter 156 Ageron's Governance
Chapter 156 Ageron's Governance
Late May, 1183 in the Julian calendar, Ajron.
When Lyon arrived in this newly occupied land under the protection of the royal guards, the corpses and bloodstains of Ayub soldiers scattered all over the ground had not yet been completely cleaned up.
The castle of Ajron, which was less than half completed, with only the wooden fence and the base of the main tower finished, was now flying the flag of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Guy came forward, his armor covered in dust, but his expression did not show complete joy of victory.
"Your Highness, Ajron has been captured by our army, and the construction site of half of the fortress has also been occupied. The garrison has either died or fled. But as we expected, Issa ibn Muhannam of Amman has only gathered the defeated troops, closed the city gates, and has not sent out any troops."
Guy pointed to the faint outline of Amman on the eastern horizon, his tone heavy: "I suspect he's waiting. Our army of over 1,500 men can't hold out in Ajeron for long because of food and fodder depletion, pay expenses, and the lack of a safe fortification. By then, his light cavalry can take over these hills again in just two or three days of raiding."
Lyon climbed onto the unfinished main platform of the castle, overlooking the entire valley.
Scattered farmland and orchards lie beside the winding stream, and further at the foot of the mountain, the simple entrance to the mine and piles of slag can be seen.
The scattered villages, which should have been filled with wisps of smoke rising from their chimneys, now exude a deathly stillness.
Because this area was almost entirely comprised of Muslim settlements, the settlers either died, fled, or were taken by the knights of Jerusalem to the open ground at the foot of the mountain to await Lyon's fate.
"What are our casualties?" Leon asked.
“Slight. Their resistance is weak; they seem to have anticipated they wouldn't be able to hold out.” Guy paused, lowering his voice. “The real problem lies below, Your Highness. We've interrogated several prisoners and sent men to scout the valley. Ajron's lifeblood is its iron mines and meager olive groves. Almost all of this is kept afloat by Muslim miners, blacksmiths, farmers, and peddlers. We've counted about three hundred households, nearly two thousand people, in the entire valley.”
He handed Lyon a rough list, saying, "Among them, there are about a hundred skilled miners, more than thirty blacksmiths and apprentices, and the rest are mostly farmers and their families."
“If we follow the usual practice and expel or—dispose of them,” Guy said with difficulty, “then the iron mine will immediately cease production, and the farmland will be abandoned. To us, Ageron is just an empty hill and a few abandoned mine shafts, of no value whatsoever, and we will need to draw upon the already scarce population from the kingdom to fill it. But Your Highness, as you know, where in the kingdom are there any spare people now? Jericho, Ramla, and the reclamation projects throughout the country have already absorbed most of the migrant labor.”
“But if we leave them behind,” Guy said warily, glancing at the Muslim settlers on the clearing, “it would be like leaving us with a major threat. They have different beliefs, don’t speak the same language, and have absolutely no loyalty to the kingdom’s rule. Once Saladin is free from the north, or Issa decides to cooperate from within, they will become our weakest link.”
Lyon gazed silently at the valley and the Muslim prisoners for a long time.
He recalled Baldwin's teachings on "hierarchy" and "cost," and the true state of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in the complex land of the Levant.
The Kingdom of Jerusalem was never a purely "Frankish" kingdom, but a fragile colonial regime built on coexistence and trade with various local powers, including Armenians, Orthodox Christians, and even some Muslim communities.
Pure expulsion is self-castration, while naive assimilation is wishful thinking.
"Guy," Lyon pondered, "perhaps we should try a different approach."
"Um?"
"What is our goal? It's iron, to make Ajeron's iron mines available to the kingdom. So, who is producing iron for us? The miners and blacksmiths," Leon said. "As long as they continue to produce, is faith in Allah or Christ really that fatal to us in the short term?"
Guy seemed to be deep in thought.
"Isa dared to stand by and watch us occupy the territory based on two judgments. First, we could not sustain the high costs of a large-scale military presence in the long term. Second, they believed we could not effectively govern the Muslim population here and would eventually give up due to internal and external troubles."
Lyon looked at Guy and said confidently, "Then let's overturn these two judgments."
"We will not maintain a large, permanent garrison," Lyon said, pointing to the map. "We will establish a defense system based on early warning and rapid response. First, at the high point of Ageron Castle, we will build a usable wooden lighthouse, with its beacon burning day and night, establishing a signal chain with Beitshean, Nablus, and even further castles. Second, taking advantage of Ageron's mountainous terrain, we will establish a series of small outposts along strategic routes and passes leading to Amman and other directions. Each outpost will only require about ten soldiers, equipped with horses, whose duty is lookout and early warning."
Guy immediately grasped the key point: "A small number of elite troops? Your Highness means—light cavalry? But our reliable main force of cavalry needs to protect the core territory and cannot be transferred here for a long time."
“We have a readily available force that many have overlooked,” Lyon’s eyes gleamed, “that’s Tucopo.”
.
Seeing Guy's slightly puzzled expression, he further explained, "Those native Levantese who have converted to our Lord have lived here for generations, familiar with every hill and oasis. They are not only excellent light cavalry and archers, but also living bridges connecting us to this land."
"I will inform the lords throughout the kingdom, especially the Tucopo community in Tripoli and Galilee, to recruit a company of about 150 men. They will bring their own horses and bows and arrows; we only need to provide them with uniform insignia and allowances superior to those for infantry."
They will become the core of Ajron's patrols, communications troops, and garrison. The recruitment cost in Tukopo is far lower than maintaining hundreds or thousands of heavy infantry, yet they are better suited to the mountainous and desert terrain and can better fulfill their role in protecting Ajron.
Looking down at the Muslim prisoners below, Lyon continued, "The Charter of the Ajron Valley shall be issued to the Muslim settlers in the valley. All existing inhabitants who are willing to swear allegiance to the King of Jerusalem and abide by the new decrees shall have their lives and property protected by the laws of the Kingdom and shall not be arbitrarily expelled or deprived."
"Abolish any arbitrary levies that may have existed in the past, and implement a clear tax system. All farmers shall pay taxes in kind based on the output of their land, at a rate slightly lower than that of the Christian serfs of the kingdom, but they must also pay an additional special 'security tax,' which can be deducted in dinars or equivalent iron products. This tax will be specifically used to maintain the Tukopo troops and the outpost system, so that they understand that this army can protect their production and livelihood from desert bandits."
"All iron ore veins are declared the direct property of the Royal Family. However, active miners and blacksmith guilds may contract to produce in the mines."
The royal family would appoint a small number of overseers and scribes to determine the base output for each mine. Any output exceeding the base output would be shared as a percentage of the profits by the miners.
"Furthermore, Muslim communities are permitted to continue to have their own judges adjudicated in accordance with their legal traditions in matters involving marriage, inheritance, and minor disputes, but the final rulings must be reported to royal officials. In cases involving Muslims and Christians, or serious criminal cases, the royal courts will adjudicate according to the laws of the kingdom."
"They are allowed to practice Islam and engage in religious activities, but public calling to prayer is strictly prohibited, and the construction of new mosques requires special approval. At the same time, the royal family will fund the construction of a small chapel near the castle and encourage Christian merchants and artisans to settle there with their military families, thus slowly changing the demographic structure."
"Moreover, the Tukopo soldiers speak the same language and share similar customs with the local Muslim settlers. They can serve as effective interpreters of the kingdom's laws and primary mediators of disputes, greatly alleviating the antagonism among Muslims."
"At the same time, the kingdom will secretly encourage and fund devout Christians among the Tukopo soldiers to engage in gentle religious exchanges in their personal capacities, subtly inducing Muslims to convert to Christianity."
"In this way," Lyon concluded, "Ajeron will be firmly in the hands of the kingdom. In time, there will be more and more Christians here, and once the proportion of Muslims drops, it won't be too late for us to abandon them."
Guy's eyes lit up, then hesitated slightly: "Your Highness, this—is too unusual. To give such protection to infidels, the Church and some lords—"
He looked toward Calleburg: "Especially Reinard. They might have something to say about it."
"Reinald? He's been trained to be completely obedient by me, he won't have any objections. As for the other lords," Lyon waved his hand dismissively, "in Ageron, every iron ingot produced adds to the kingdom's strength; every year of stability adds another nail to Saladin's borders. It's all based on the kingdom's interests, and I think they know how to weigh the pros and cons."
As for Issa—”
He looked toward Amman. "When he discovers that Ajron is not only not in chaos, but its iron ore production is even more efficient, its garrison costs are not high, and it is even starting to attract merchants, the price he would pay if he wanted to take it back easily would be completely different."