The recruitment of mercenaries is in full swing, and the news that William wants to recruit mercenaries in large numbers has long been spread by the Osborne steward, and the Christians of the whole Europa are eager to gain fame and title under William's command.

William, Duke of Normandy, defeated the allied forces of King Henry I of France and spread throughout Europa by word of mouth, from Ireland, Scotland, England to the Khitan in the far East.

A young duke, less than fourteen years old, defeated his monarch, the mighty King Henry I of France, and was known for his night raids with the Normans for which he was famous.

Of course, the most famous was William's generosity, who forciously freed his captive, the Duke of Champagne, and shook hands with his former enemies, King Henry I and the Duke of Aquitaine.

What attracts everyone's attention the most is that William canonized five earls, more than a dozen viscounts and barons, knights and knights and other low-ranking nobles in just four or five years, and there are more than 1,000 people, which is a real noble title and fief.

Especially among the thousands of nobles who were entitled, there were many warriors from civilian backgrounds who were rewarded by William for their bravery and good fighting, and became glorious nobles.

For such a generous lord, illegitimate children, commoners, second sons of nobles who did not inherit, and even minor nobles, they were all moved.

This time, they gathered from all over the world at William's call and traveled together to Normandy.

Of course, it was William's Duchy of Normandy that received the most entries, and the Normans still retained many of the qualities of their pirate ancestors, the Vikings, who showed a terribly restless and reckless temperament, a belligerent spirit that bordered on foolishness, and a cunning instinct for shameless disloyalty.

The Normans then expanded into other parts of Europe, setting a record for astonishing adventures, often conquering several times as many enemies with only a small number of men. The unrivalled ability to cross the country quickly, the use of brutal violence, and the premature use of money and a sense of value were all Norman traits.

After settling in Normandy, the adventurous Normans launched several major campaigns of territorial expansion in Europe. The most important of these was the invasion of England in 1066 by William, Duke of Normandy, who became King of England after his conquest, now known as the Norman Conquest.

In the early 11th century, Norman adventurers also began to move a little more casually, serving as mercenaries for the local nobility in southern Italy and Sicily, fighting against the Arabs and Byzantines. As more and more Normans moved to the area, they were given small principalities for themselves from their old employers. The most famous of these Norman adventurers were the sons of Tancrede de Ottville, who ruled Calabria and Apulia in southern Italy in the 1050s and Sicily in the decades that followed.

In the early 12th century, Roger II, the grandson of Tancred, merged these regions to form the Kingdom of Sicily, which was largely Norman until the end of the 12th century.

Although William's standing army absorbed a large number of Norman warriors, the adventurous Normans were still eager to conquer, and many local knights and nobles wanted to join the mercenaries and launch an expedition to seize wealth and land.

However, William did not want these Normans to go to Italy to fight, they were William's basic plate, and they were his final soldiers, if these brave and warlike Normans went to Italy or other parts of the Mediterranean to take risks, then William would not have many soldiers to recruit, so that his rule could still be stable?

Faced with this situation, William immediately issued a decree that all Normans were forbidden to participate in any expeditions and adventures, but to join his army, and to exchange their military exploits for hereditary estates.

After William's edict was strictly enforced, many Normans who were ready to move discouraged the expedition to Italy.

In order to appease the Normans, William began to issue privateer certificates, allowing them to plunder the Moorish pagans in Spain, the enemies of Ireland and Wales by boat, and they could obtain cheap supplies, equipment, sales channels, and military protection provided by William, in turn they were to give half of the harvest to William, and if necessary, they were to be called upon by William to fight for him.

This was a method that William had come up with, one of the intentions of which was to open an opening so that the Normans would pour out their desire for conquest, otherwise something might happen if they held it for a long time.

In addition, this method can also increase your own military strength and combat power reserves, raid enemy territory, weaken their war potential, and make them take care of one or the other.

After a few days, the mercenaries had recruited no less than two thousand, but the number was still far from enough, and there were not many Swiss mercenaries that William hoped to recruit, so he summoned the butler Osborne, who was in charge of recruiting the mercenaries, and asked:

"Steward Osborne, why is it that the Swiss have come to recruit mercenaries in so few hundreds. How did Captain Daniel reply over there, can he bring someone over? ”

"Young Master Wilhelm, you also know the situation there, His Majesty Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor, is fighting with Otto III, Duke of Swabia of the House of Ezzoen, and Henry VII, Duke of Bavaria of the House of Luxembourg, for the Duchy of Bavaria, and the three of them have hired almost all the mercenaries in Germany and the Holy Roman Empire, and there are not many experienced Swiss mercenaries left.

Captain Daniel, however, did not accept the employment of these three parties, and according to his agreement with us, he would fight for you within a month with five hundred experienced Swiss mercenaries. Steward Osborne shook his head helplessly and explained.

"So how about we recruit Swiss mountain people directly?" Still unrelenting, William asked.

"This doesn't seem to be feasible, most of the Swiss who are capable of fighting are employed, and the rest are in the hands of their respective lords.

Now you can hire inexperienced Swiss mountain people, and the amount of time, energy and material invested in training them for the army is completely outweighed by the losses. Steward Osborne still shook his head, and said in a rather regretful tone.

"Then hire more Spaniards and Englishmen, and write a letter to King Ferdinand I of Castile, and my cousin Edward, asking them to help recruit mercenaries, and they will certainly be willing to help.

In addition, some local Italian mercenaries should also be recruited, although these Italian mercenaries are not strong in combat, but they are better at home, familiar with the terrain, and have local connections, which is beneficial for us to enter the Apennine Peninsula to fight. William thought for a moment, looked at Steward Osborne, and suggested.

"Yes, Master William, I will do as you tell me at once." Steward Osborne bowed in response.