The Restoration of Rome: In the Name of Augustus

Chapter 79 Jerusalem Military Parade

The arena in Jerusalem fell silent again, and as the dust settled from the jousting, the clatter of armor grew louder as it approached.

At Baldwin IV's behest, Lyon mounted his horse and stood on the high platform, calmly raising his arm. Immediately, horns blared to the heavens in a new rhythm.

First to arrive, with earth-shaking strides, were the absolute elite of the Kingdom of Jerusalem—the Royal Guard and the Knights of Jerusalem.

They consisted of the most elite royal guards and chainmail knights, both men and horses heavily armored, forming a wedge formation.

Following closely behind were the knights' squires, these future reserve knights who were already skilled at coordinating with the knights in battle.

The rear guard consisted of experienced Jerusalem infantry, who were responsible for maintaining the solidity and stability of the formation, and for quickly expanding the gains after the knights' charge tore open a gap in the enemy lines.

However, what truly made Bohemond III and the others in the stands narrow their eyes was the crossbowmen and infantry phalanx that followed, composed of mercenaries from various countries. They moved slowly, unlike heavy cavalry which were full of impact, but they were like a mobile steel fortress, exuding an oppressive aura no less than that of a knight's charge.

At the outermost edge of the phalanx were combinations of Jerusalem pikemen and Bohemian soldiers. They were not closely packed together, but rather deliberately maintained a subtle distance between them.

The spearmen held a forest of spears, their ends deeply embedded in the ground, the tips slightly lowered, aimed forward.

Standing beside them were mercenaries from Bohemia, clad in heavy armor and wielding battle axes, capable of effectively cleaving through the weak points of a fallen knight's armor in battle.

The pikemen in the phalanx were responsible for barricades to defend against cavalry charges. If any cavalryman managed to break through the forest of spears or was stabbed off his horse, the Bohemian soldiers would swarm forward and fight the enemy at close range with their battle axes.

Inside the phalanx, crossbowmen, carrying massive shields, stood behind gaps deliberately left by the spearmen. Upon engaging the enemy, they could quickly insert their shields into the gaps, instantly forming a shield wall capable of long-range fire. Each shot from their powerful crossbows was enough to pierce most armor at three hundred paces.

Behind the crossbowmen were two other types of foreign mercenaries. The Catalan javelin throwers wore perforated iron helmets, sleeveless sheepskin tunics, and short-sleeved, belted outer garments that reached their knees, and carried several javelins they called Asconas.

Bohemond III and the nobles of Jerusalem were taken aback. Why were there such poorly equipped, lightly armed mountain bandits mixed in with their ranks?

In fact, they perfectly complemented the crossbowmen's firepower, and their dense javelins were also a formidable threat to lightly armed troops and warhorses.

Guarding the rear were the towering Danish axe-wielding warriors. They served as both the final barrier protecting ranged units from flanking attacks and a formidable assault reserve.

Once the front lines become deadlocked, or a valuable opportunity arises, these warriors wielding giant axes will throw themselves into battle like berserkers, crushing the skulls of all heretics with absolute power.

On the high platform, Lyon raised the Jerusalem Cross flag high in his hand, then pointed the tip of the flag forward. The trumpeter immediately blew two short and one long blasts, the sound loud and long.

The Jerusalem pikemen and Bohemian soldiers, positioned at the outermost edge of the phalanx, moved at the command. They did not rush forward all at once, but maintained precise formation and began to advance with uniform steps.

The spearmen carried their spears on their shoulders, the tips slightly lowered, maintaining an angle at which they could be laid flat to repel the enemy at any time while moving.

The Bohemian soldiers beside them held their iron shields high, their battle axes always resting against the edge of the shields, slightly behind the spearmen by half a body length, maintaining an astonishing synchronization with the spearmen's steps.

The entire formation, in such astonishing coordination, slowly pressed forward towards an area filled with straw men clad in Saracen armor—the "enemy formation" that Lyon had pre-planned for the formation.

When the phalanx was about 300 paces from the "enemy" position, Lyon did not order a volley, but instead waved the command flag horizontally.

An orderly flow immediately began within the formation of the crossbowmen.

The crossbowmen in the front row quickly knelt on one knee, slamming their massive shields down in front of them to form a temporary low wall. Almost simultaneously, the second row of crossbowmen stepped forward, resting their crossbow arms on the shields of their comrades in front for added stability, while the third row of crossbowmen remained standing, their crossbows pointing skyward in a ready stance.

Lyon seized the opportunity and swung the command flag downwards sharply.

The second row of crossbowmen immediately pulled the trigger.

A deep, rhythmic twang of the bowstring rang out, and dozens of crossbow bolts flew out, tracing low, flat trajectories, precisely striking the chest and abdomen of the straw man's armor.

After the first volley of shots was completed, the second volley of crossbowmen immediately knelt down to reload. Although the reloading speed of the crossbow was much faster and easier than that of the old crossbows that required stepping on stirrups, the gap between the two shots was still unavoidable.

During this lull in the firepower, Lyon quickly raised the command flag upwards.

The first rank of crossbowmen, who had been waiting in ambush, fired a second volley, and the sound of bolts piercing the air rang out once more.

Then, the third row of crossbowmen who had been standing instantly stepped forward, passing their comrades who were loading their crossbows. Almost without pausing, they leveled their crossbows and fired a third volley, the sound of crossbow bolts piercing the air ringing out once again.

Immediately afterwards, the original second row of crossbowmen finished loading and took over for the fourth round of firing.

And so the crossbowmen launched a continuous barrage of fire. Wave after wave of bolts rained down on the Saracen dummy three hundred paces away, almost without pause.

Seeing that the crossbowmen had already started firing automatically, Lyon pointed his command flag to the two flanks of the square formation and made a circling gesture.

As Lyon gave the order, several riders outside the arena dragged dozens of wooden planks with Saracen mannequins standing on them and rode towards the side of the square formation.

The Catalan javelin throwers, who had been waiting in place, immediately spread out nimbly from the flanks and rear of the square. Holding light javelins, they used a running start to throw the javelins with all their might.

These javelins traced high parabolas, passed over the heads of the spearmen and axemen in front, and plunged deeply into the fast-moving Saracen dummies.

The Danish axe-wielding warriors followed closely behind, letting out a low growl as they charged swiftly out of the ranks. With a few swift swings of their massive axes, they shattered the dummies, armor and all, into pieces.

Finally, Lyon waved his command flag forward with all his might, signaling the final assault.

The spearmen in the front row shouted in unison, slammed their spears down, quickened their pace, and charged towards the remaining dummies like steel hedgehogs.

The Bohemian soldiers behind them raised their battle axes and followed closely, tasked with clearing out any surviving enemies beneath the spears.

The entire formation moved smoothly and seamlessly between marching, firing, assaulting, and mopping-up operations.

Despite his extreme weakness, Baldwin IV still managed to lift his right hand slightly from his bedchamber, making a gesture of approval.

The Jerusalem nobles exchanged glances, expressing awe and admiration.

Bohemond III couldn't help but lean forward, making "tsk tsk" sounds of admiration and clapping his hands vigorously.

Isabella looked at her younger brother with admiration.

Raymond had never seen anything like this before and was completely stunned.

Bohemond Jr. gritted his teeth, his face contorted with extreme jealousy, his hands clenched into fists, his nails almost digging into his palms.

When the last dummy was completely destroyed, a moment of silence fell over the entire arena, with only the King's Cross of Jerusalem fluttering in the wind.

Immediately, thunderous applause and gasps of amazement erupted from the viewing platform like a tidal wave.