CHAPTER 10 The Emperor Has Not Yet Recruited Soldiers
After leaving the Black Forest, Marin noticed that the number of prey started to drop dramatically.
Why was that? Because Marin had entered the agricultural region of southern Germany. This area was relatively warm, and agriculture was more developed than in the north. The population was denser, and the level of development was higher. Higher development meant fewer natural forests, and consequently, fewer wild animals.
On the way to Vienna, the three of them initially planned to repeat their usual hunting routine. Unfortunately, in densely populated areas, wild animals were already scarce, and with local hunters around, Marin was no longer able to catch prey every day.
Sometimes, they had to go two or three days before they managed to catch anything, and even then, it might only be a hare, barely enough to satisfy the appetite of Kahn, who ate like a horse.
To supplement their food supplies, Marin began to specifically choose routes that passed near forests. After all, southern Germany is a mountainous region, and wild animals are more abundant near the woods.
However, this strategy had its downside. Once, the three of them were ambushed by a group of bandits. Fortunately, the bandits weren't particularly formidable. When Marin gathered his courage and charged at them with his lance, sending their leader flying, the rest of the bandits fled in panic.
Realizing the danger, Marin no longer stored all of his weapons and armor in the wheelbarrow. Instead, he always wore his breastplate. However, Marin found that the breastplate of traditional Gothic plate armor restricted his waist too much, making it difficult to bend or turn quickly to avoid spears or lances. That's why, in battles between knights, they often just charged at each other with lances like mechanical robots.
So, he found a blacksmith skilled in making armor and had him craft a breastplate using cold forging, similar to the two-thirds breastplates worn by French cuirassiers during the Napoleonic Wars.
This type of breastplate only protected vital areas and left the waist exposed, allowing the knight more flexibility to bend and turn while on horseback. Its structure was also simple, consisting of two sturdy cold-forged iron plates tied together with rope and worn over the shoulders. The lower part was tied with rope as well.
Marin also had the blacksmith forge a cavalry sword with a handguard, similar to the ones used by European cavalry in later centuries. The reason for the sword was to prepare for emergencies.
Typically, Marin's plate armor and lance were stored in the wheelbarrow. If they encountered foot bandits, Marin had enough time to put on his armor and grab his lance. But if they were attacked by mounted bandits in a swift assault, he might not have time to react. In such cases, drawing the cavalry sword at his waist would be the best option.
The cavalry sword he had made, based on later designs, had a relatively straight blade that could be used for both thrusting and slashing, making it practical and versatile. Plus, it looked quite impressive.
As for Kahn and Kohler, Marin bought each of them a spear. In case of emergency, they could use the spears to fend off enemies.
To Marin's surprise, Kahn didn't end up using the spear on bandits but instead speared a wild boar.
One day, while they were traveling, they suddenly encountered a wild boar that seemed to have gone mad. The boar charged directly at Marin's horse, and Marin was so startled that he didn't know what to do. Drawing his sword was difficult because the boar was too low to the ground, and getting his lance from the cart seemed impossible in time.
At this critical moment, Kahn stepped forward, raised his spear, and thrust it at the boar. His first attempt failed because the boar's hide was too thick, but Kahn thrust again with all his strength. Finally, just before the boar could ram into Marin's horse, Karl, Kahn struck the boar in a vital spot, and it began to thrash and wail on the ground.
Marin quickly dismounted and finished off the boar with his cavalry sword. Later, they sold the boar for a good price.
Grateful for Kahn's loyalty and bravery, Marin gritted his teeth and took out 1,800 shillings from his private funds to buy a strong black ox. He also bought a small four-wheeled wagon and harness for it.
Thus, Kahn was promoted from a humble wheelbarrow pusher to an oxcart driver.
However, the black ox had quite a temper. Marin used the same method as before, employing strong liquor and a brass nose ring to tame the animal. Afterward, the ox, which Marin named "Li Chen," became their cart-pulling beast.
Unfortunately for Kahn, he didn't seem very good at driving the ox cart. Instead, the smaller Kohler quickly mastered the skill. As a result, Kahn ended up riding the smaller ox, while Kohler took over driving the cart. Marin, with a mischievous grin, named the smaller ox "Dallas."
Watching Kahn riding the ox with a spear in hand, Marin had a sudden mischievous idea. He decided to train Kahn as a "cavalryman" who rode oxen. He began teaching Kahn how to use a lance and spear while riding.
Thus, the bewildered Kahn began learning how to become an "ox cavalryman" under Marin's guidance.
By the time the three of them arrived in Vienna in early May, Kahn had actually learned how to use a spear while riding his ox. Even more impressively, his ox, Dallas, could perform a short sprint for a brief charge.
As they entered Vienna, the city gate guards looked at Kahn with disdain. Kahn, however, rode his ox proudly, holding his spear as if he were a true knight, following Marin into the city.
Meanwhile, Kohler, with the air of a nobleman, quietly whipped the black ox "Li Chen" and drove the cart behind them.
Once in Vienna, after settling down at an inn, Marin eagerly started inquiring about the emperor's recruitment of soldiers.
However, to his disappointment, the emperor had no plans to recruit mercenaries anytime soon.
Back in 1487, Maximilian I had recruited an army of 15,000 infantry and 1,500 cavalry, led by Count Frederick II of Hohenzollern.
But there was a problem: at this time, almost every emperor, king, and duke in Europe had terrible financial situations.
Even the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian I, had to rely on the taxes collected from Austria, controlled by the Habsburg family, and the newly acquired Burgundy to support his large family and even larger mercenary armies.
The 15,000 infantry and 1,500 knights had already stretched Maximilian I's finances. With no immediate war on the horizon, Maximilian I had no reason to expand his army.
Moreover, the taxes collected from Austria and Burgundy under Habsburg control weren't solely used to maintain the army. A large portion of the tax revenue had to be used to support the vast bureaucracy and nobility in both regions. The Habsburg family itself had a significant number of cadet branches that needed financial support. Otherwise, the emperor's finances wouldn't have been so tight.
Additionally, during wartime, the emperor could levy temporary war taxes on the commercial cities of the Hanseatic League and other imperial cities within the Holy Roman Empire, according to agreements between the parties.
These independent commercial cities had been granted their status by the emperor, so in return, they were obligated to provide military funding during the emperor's wars.
However, this money wasn't easy to get. If the emperor was fighting a war to resist foreign invaders (like the Ottoman Turks), these cities would willingly provide a certain amount of taxes. But if the emperor was fighting an internal power struggle, these cities might not pay taxes. Even if they did, it would likely be heavily discounted, or they would delay payment. At the same time, during the war, the emperor could temporarily increase taxes in Austria and Burgundy, which were controlled by the Habsburg family, to fund the war.
However, the regular tax revenues from Austria and Burgundy were already stretched thin to support the existing mercenary army. Unless there was a war, the emperor simply didn't have the financial resources to expand the army.
This was the drawback of Europe's feudal system—taxes didn't go to the central government but to the local lords. This made the central monarchy's finances more challenging, and there wasn't enough money to maintain a large army. Unlike China's feudal dynasties, where, since the Qin Dynasty, all finances were controlled by the central government, allowing Chinese dynasties to have sufficient resources to support large armies of hundreds of thousands of troops. It seems that Europe didn't establish a stable, unified modern tax system until the late 17th century. By the 18th century, European wars were no longer fought with just a few tens of thousands of soldiers but with armies of hundreds of thousands.
Marin recalled the history he had learned in his previous life and realized that although King Charles VIII of France had announced his claim to the Kingdom of Naples earlier this year, he had not yet gathered enough troops to invade Naples.
It seemed that Charles VIII didn't gather his 37,000 troops and march into Italy until late August this year. Currently, Charles VIII's envoys were probably still recruiting mercenaries in Switzerland.
News of Charles VIII's military preparations should have already reached Vienna, but it would likely take a long time for Vienna to make a decision to respond. After all, the Holy Roman Empire had a kind of noble parliamentary system. Whether or not to go to war with France would probably lead to lengthy debates in the imperial council. The key issue was that if the emperor wanted to go to war, he would need to expand the army. Expanding the army required the imposition of war taxes, and commercial cities would need to temporarily increase their taxes. Even dukes and counts across the land were obliged to contribute money to the emperor during wartime. But just to discuss this money, they would probably argue for months without reaching a conclusion.
Of course, those nobles weren't simply stingy about the money. They were more concerned that if the emperor expanded his military power, he might use it to suppress them. It's worth noting that there was a historical precedent for this. French kings had done something similar, starting with Philip IV, who began suppressing the feudal lords and even confiscated church property. Philip IV, that brute, even got into a conflict with the pope over the collection of the tithe and sent men to kidnap the pope to Avignon, France. It was precisely because this brute kidnapped the pope that Italy, without papal restraint for a century, began the Renaissance... But that's a digression. In short, if those nobles fully supported the emperor, they might end up facing disaster themselves, losing their autonomous privileges. After all, monarchs can be ruthless...
According to memory, the "Holy League," which opposed France's invasion of Italy, wasn't established until March 1495. It wasn't until then that the Holy Roman Empire truly joined the war.
So, Marin was certain that the Holy Roman Empire wouldn't expand its army anytime soon. Even if they did, it would likely only be in response to the French army's formal march into Italy in August.
And now, in early May, Marin realized that for at least the next three months, he wouldn't be able to join the emperor's army...