In fact, this reason is only one aspect, on the other hand, because Hong Tao really can't trust the local Italian army, and their performance in World War II is too bad. Although it is the Middle Ages, and the Second World War is still hundreds of years away, it is possible that the Italians at this time have not degraded to that point. But Hong Tao didn't want to risk his life, so he had better find some more reliable troops. So the loyal follower of the emperor, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, Count Hermann, came in handy.

There are three famous knightly orders in Europe, the earliest Knights of St. John in Jerusalem, the most glorious and tragic Templar Order, and the Teutonic Knights, the latest but most successful Knights. The most famous of these is probably the Knights Templar, the mysterious treasures depicted in the American movie "The Da Vinci Code", which were left behind after the Templars were exterminated by the United Church of the French King.

These orders were all created because of the Crusades, which is a kind of religious paramilitary organization, and there is no such organization in China, if you have to find a similar organization, it is a bit like a monk, but it is much larger than the monks, and the organizational structure is much more independent. Their original purpose was not to go to war, but mainly to provide the necessary logistics and medical services for the crusaders, and slowly evolved into a military organization, and the further and further away from the Holy See, they colluded with the monarchs of various countries.

For example, the Teutonic Knights, whose full name is the Knights Hospitaller of St. Mary's of Germany in Jerusalem, with the slogan "Help, Heal, Guard", was founded by all German nobles. It was the Third Crusade, led by Barbarossa the Redbeard, the grandfather of Friedrich II, who was ostensibly loyal to the Church. But it was only natural to hook up with Friedrich II in private.

The Knights all have their own spheres of influence. The Templars and the Knights Hospitaller were based in the Crusader states. The Teutonic Knights were founded late and did not occupy a good place, so their initial development was very slow. But it doesn't matter, they don't have the backing of a powerful emperor like Friedrich II, although the craving frenzy has passed, but at this time it is just in time for the Germanic people to begin to expand eastward, and there are battlefields everywhere in Eastern Europe. With war there was an opportunity for the Knights to develop, so Hermann, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, made a wise decision. The focus of the Order's development shifted from Jerusalem to Eastern Europe.

Soon Hermann found an opportunity in Poland, where a duke named Kondra was fighting against the Prussians in the north, and was so defeated that he could not even keep his fief, so he had to send a request to Friedrich II for help, and was willing to give a part of the fief to those who helped him. Although Friedrich II was nominally emperor, he did not care about the affairs of Germany, so he contracted the work to Hermann, and issued him a golden edict allowing the Teutonic Knights to regard the Prussian territory as a knightly state. Whoever attacks the Knights is attacking the Empire.

This Herman was cunning, he was a loyal follower of Friedrich II. But he did not throw the pope aside, and in order to determine the legitimacy of the Knightly State, he went to Pope Gregory IX and said that he would go to Prussia to spread the indoctrination and spread Christianity to Eastern Europe. The Pope probably knew what he was going to do, but this reason was so high-sounding that even the Pope could not object, so he could only grit his back molars and come to a golden edict recognizing the territory of the Teutonic Knights.

So the main force of the Teutonic Knights all went to Poland to fight the Prussians, and by the way, they absorbed more religious fanatics and speculators to join the Knights, slowly expanded, and merged with an organization called the Knights of the Sword in Livonia, which is a bit strong.

Whether it was the Knights Hospitaller, the Knights Templar or the Teutonic Order, they were all very special organizations. They were originally built on the principles of ambulance, guard, and help, but over time the organization has grown stronger and larger. Nominally, they were still under the direct leadership of the Pope, but the Pope could not lead them at all. They are neither under the leadership of the church nor under the administration of the state, and have become a third organization independent of the church and the state.

In the beginning, they were mercenaries, and wherever there was a pagan war, they negotiated terms to go to war, plunder the local wealth, and then accept the rewards of their employers. After the establishment of the Crusader states, they had their own base of activities, and based on the four Crusader states, they slowly penetrated into all walks of life, not only wielding knives and guns, but also participating in the business dealings between the world of Arab and the world of Christendom, and the business was very large. The Knights Templar had many industries in Venice, and most of the cotton and sugar in the Middle East were controlled by them. There was also a mixture of the Knights Hospitaller on the side of Rena, and there were often skirmishes between the two sides over the exchange of trade.

Not only did they buy and sell, but they also lent money in a different direction, such as the Templar Order, which was eventually eliminated by the French king, because they were the biggest creditor of the French king. The king couldn't afford to pay the money, so he finally came up with the same method as Saddam Hussein, and directly united with the Church to destroy the Templars, so that not only could he pay off his debts, but also make a fortune by confiscating the Templars' property. Therefore, Saddam Hussein was not the first state to repay debts, and Kuwait was not the first creditor to complain. Saddam Hussein was just learning from the French king, but he didn't play well and failed.

The author is more inclined to this statement, everything that is happening now, can find precedents from the long river of history, and many things are just changing the soup without changing the medicine. Didn't the ancient Chinese say that history is a mirror, and you can know the truth by looking at it.

"That's what we're called a rabble! Three groups of people with three hearts, they can still win the battle, it's really evil! "The ins and outs of the Teutonic Knights and the other two Knights, of course, were provided to Hong Tao by Karl, the European traitor, and the two of them stood on the stern of the Golden River and watched the hot and sub-schooners sail out of the port of Palermo.

Herman came, but the more than 100 knights and 800 infantry he brought back were all patchwork mercenaries, and there were few real Teutonic knights. His main force is fighting the Prussians for territory, and even if he is willing to call them back, they will not return. What's more, this matter can't be said explicitly, no matter how independent the three knights are, after all, they are nominally directly led by the pope, and you can support Friedrich II, one of the popes' biggest enemies, but don't make a show, don't let the pope catch the handle, otherwise it will really force the pope to be anxious and excommunicate all the knights from the church, it will not be fun.

It's interesting to see Europeans who only follow superficial agreements and don't pursue substance, which seems to be a side effect of the culture of contract. For example, there was once a Frankish nobleman who swore allegiance to the Frankish king, but he received a sum of money from the king of England to release water in the Anglo-French war. If this matter is left in China, this nobleman will definitely have to choose a side, you either don't collect money and do things, or you pay the money to remain loyal, and if your character is too inferior, you will collect money and don't do things, anyway, these are the three ways.

But this nobleman had a fourth way to choose, he had an army of 1,000 men under his command, and when England and France were at war, he sent 800 men to support the British king, which was agreed upon when he received the money, and he did not break the agreement, right? Then he himself took the remaining two hundred men to stand in the ranks of the King of France, and then went to fight against the King of England, which was his duty to the King of France, and he did not break it! When he first swore allegiance, he took the oath alone, and did not swear an oath on behalf of a thousand of his men, who swore allegiance to him, not to the king of France. See, some of the truths in Europe are different from those in China, people bet on chips on both sides, and they come clearly, and no one can accuse others of bad character.

This is the trick that Herman is playing now, he does not fight in the name of the Teutonic Knights, but in fact he has found these people. As long as he is not caught, the Pope will not be able to deal with him, because this team is under the banner of the Empire, the army of the Holy Roman Empire, and has nothing to do with the Teutonic Knights. According to Karl's introduction, the wars between various European principalities, candidate countries, and kingdoms are often fought like this, and they are all chaotic when they fight, some of them go home and quit, and some defect and rebel on the verge of battle, and they really stick to the end of the ten. Often a big battle of 10,000 against 10,000 people, in the end there are only 1,000 people left against 1,000 people, killing for half a day, 50 dead and wounded on both sides, and then fighting again after half a year, because there is no food, you have to go home to collect taxes and grain.

"Actually, there are more than three groups of people, Herman has already informed the Knights Hospitaller that they should not participate in this battle, and if they have to participate, they will send some edge knights to support the façade. In addition, there were Knights Templar in his ranks, at least five to be exact...... Just like you said, the five groups of people have different purposes...... "Carl still didn't think Hong Tao was annoying enough, and added some ingredients.

"It's worth it, the three knights often get mixed up and pit people, right? The Pope has finished pit emperors and dukes! Hong Tao understood that what these three knights did was similar to his own. They are also betting on multiple sides, and then focusing on the harvest, and they can't let the war expand too much, and they can't have no war at all, so they will be all unemployed.

"Compared to you, they are far behind......" Carl's words directly choked Hong Tao.

"Okay, I'll let you see what happened to the grass on the wall, and let them learn a lesson at one time, and the pattern of war has changed!" The angry Hong Tao can only play ruthlessly, Carl is right, everyone should not say anyone, they are all virtuous.

(To be continued.) )

PS: 400 monthly pass plus change