"Ancient Sacred Fire, it is an ancient Sacred Fire."
The Duke of Buckingham muttered to himself as he watched the fire burn on the ice lake. His pale hair was blown flying by the wind, and his steel blue eyes were a little moist at that moment.
"A thousand years."
Why did such a proud Rose family bow to the gods for a thousand years
They are clearly madmen who dare to build a mortal palace in the heart of the dragon!
Everything was ultimately blamed on that "God's Punishment War". Legrand's warship was burnt in the chants of the Holy Court, and mortals were marked as servants of the gods.
That war nearly destroyed Legrand.
Before the Battle of God's Punishment, Legrand was a unified and powerful empire, and all people surrendered wherever the badge of the Rose family passed. While other nations feared the power of the Holy See, they could proudly refuse to accept alms from the gods. Legrand's warships were able to travel across the sea—in those days, Legrand's expedition against Blasey was launched.
Nearly a thousand warships were burned on the sea, destroying Legrand's most important military force, and the most elite knights of Legrand were buried in the sea of fire along with the three princes. After the "Battle of God's Punishment", Legrand was divided, and when the Rose family was at its most vulnerable, the lords from all over the world rebelled-there were shadows of the Holy Court and other countries behind it.
The empire fell apart overnight.
At the most tragic moment, the members of the Qiangwei family used the palace as their last castle, and fought hard for three days before they received reinforcements from the north guarding.
In that case, being able to guarantee Legrand's existence was already an incredible achievement.
The empire is divided.
There are many countries, and Legrand is drawn back into the long chaos.
"At that time, many people thought that the Rose family would gradually disappear after this, but we survived." The Duke of Buckingham put his hand on the king's shoulder. At this moment, he was like the king's father. The history and grievances came to their children slowly, and then handed over the responsibility, "The Rose family has kept the throne...with blood, with bones."
Get over it, and then work your way back to glory little by little.
Little by little, I went to conquer those divided states. At first, there were more than 100 states, and then gradually it became less than 100, then 36, and finally the initial unity was completed during the period of William III.
A thousand years of shame and bowing, a thousand years of accumulated strength.
"The end of the betrayal will finally come, and the Qiangwei family will eventually regain its glory."
The Duke of Buckingham slowly knelt down in front of the fire burning on the water. He put his head close to Legrand's ground. The blood dripped on the ground from the ancestors sent their scalding temperature.
The king stood behind him, staring silently at the rising fire.
"In the future, it will be us who will rule the ocean."
He took what was delivered by the Duke of Buckingham.
A tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye, the Holy Court used this fire to scorch the pride of the Rose family, and now they will also use a new flame to burn the brilliance of the statue.
eye for eye.
…
The king and the Duke of Buckingham witnessed the ancient sacred fire ignited in the hands of mortals, and also watched the research results of two chemists - changing gunpowder from powder to granule.
As the two chemists said, the powdered gunpowder was much more powerful than before.
"Still can't break through the stone walls of the castle."
The Duke of Buckingham thought for a moment, then shook his head.
The king was not disappointed: "But they are right, aren't they? As long as we find the direction and go step by step, we will eventually get what we want."
"You are right. Your Majesty." The Duke of Buckingham laughed. After seeing the ancient sacred fire, he felt a lot more relaxed, like a cloud that had been suppressed in the bottom of his heart was dispelled, and he looked bright, "It won't be used now, but it will definitely be in the future. Yes. If you really want it to be powerful on the battlefield, then there is a problem to solve…”
"Okay, I know what you're going to say."
The king sighed.
Saltpeter, saltpeter, that damn expensive saltpeter that needs to be imported...and sulphur.
"I think it's understandable that the Five-Hong Kong Alliance often does robbery." He had a headache. "Robbery is much cheaper than importing."
"Looks like you already have an idea? For the Alliance of Five Harbors." asked the Duke of Buckingham.
"It is very difficult for the first port to accept our regulations - the Free Trade Act simply does not leave a way for them."
The King and the Duke of Buckingham had returned to the Rose Palace, and the chemists had gone away with a smile on their faces, taking the research grants the King had granted them.
"so… "
The king paused.
"Kill them."
The Duke of Buckingham was not surprised by this answer.
"Are you going to start a war?"
"Yes."
King admitted.
This idea was born after seeing the ancient sacred fire.
The king's previous idea was more inclined to break through the business foundation of the Five-Port Alliance and force them through an invisible war. But judging from the reaction of the patriarch of the Guros family during this period of time, this road was finally resolved by force. It's just that the buffer period is longer.
But if you use the ancient sacred fire, then things will be different.
"What are you going to do?"
The Duke of Buckingham did not object to the king's decision.
"Let's mobilize the royal fleet first... After the rest of the chambers of commerce withdraw from the Five-Port Alliance, the number of ships in the first port has been greatly reduced. The port of Kossoya is the only place they can hold their guard, and arrange for ships to arrive there. Let the Southeast Customs Governor search. Get off their ships and impound their merchant ships for smuggling wool."
Having said this, the king smiled sarcastically.
"They strictly forbid other chambers of commerce from buying and selling wool, but they smuggle tons of wool themselves... Is the royal family blind? Thanks to them, Legrand's customs wool regulations are a laughing stock."
"What if they refuse to search? Your Majesty."
"That is treason," the king replied grimly. "The traitor dies."
"I think someone can help you." The old duke smiled.
…
The foreign aid in the mouth of Patriarch Guros came from overseas.
The Holy See and the Holy See Empire directly controlled by the Holy See.
If discussed carefully, the Alliance of Five Harbors and the Holy See also have certain origins. Because the embryonic period of the initial five-port alliance was established with the support of the local monastery. However, in the later period, the mad king believed that the influence of the monastery was too great, so he removed their privileges and changed it to the jurisdiction of the local nobles.
Some of the original monastery documents are also stored in the archives of the Five Harbors Alliance.
One of the archives records that when the monastery controlled the port area, it has been trying to collect the holy relics of the temple. But before they could complete the collection, the Mad King cancelled their privileges, and even made an excuse to move them to another place.
In the hands of the Guros family, there is such a holy relic that was obtained by chance.
He is willing to take it out for the Five-Hong Kong Alliance and give it to the Holy See in exchange for military assistance from the Holy See. However, the relic was owned by the Guros family before that, so he asked the other three families - the Dawson family has remained silent so far - to advance and retreat with him.
"The Holy See has rarely dispatched their warships directly."
The poisonous spider in a black dress still raised his doubts unhurriedly.
"The Pope's envoy landed at the port controlled by Kossoa." Patriarch Guros didn't answer directly, but instead talked about the civil war that Grand Duke Glace launched before, "He is only twenty-seven years old, but he already controls one side. Cardinals, do you think this is normal?"
"Maybe he's gifted."
"He is the Pope's most favored illegitimate child." Patriarch Guros faintly said a taboo secret that no one dared to share, "His mother has a part of the blood of the Guros family."
Everyone looked at Patriarch Guros in amazement.
A few clues have finally been fully pieced together.
The people who connected the line between Grand Duke Glace and the Holy Court... were the Guros family.
They had a certain blood kinship with the illegitimate son most favored by the Pope, and they had taken refuge with Grand Duke Grace early on. Only the Guros family would be aware of the needs of the Holy Court and Grand Duke Grace at the same time, and bridged the gap between them. If Archduke Grace does succeed, then they win!
The Holy Court will not forget the contribution of the Guros family, and Grand Duke Glace will not forget their credit.
An inexplicable chill slid down the backs of everyone.
How long has the Guros family been preparing for this conspiracy
This is definitely not just a decision made recently. It's very possible... Right after the cardinal was born, the Guros family began to look for such a path. Therefore, the ancient Rus family in the Five-Port Alliance will be the toughest one against the royal family.
They were making a statement.
To the Holy Court, to the Archduke Grace.
"The Holy Court affects the trade of the most important harbors in the Abyss Sea. Sanling Bay is known as the Pearl of the Abyss and a bridge between continents. As long as we can get the support of the Holy Court and rely on the entire Abyss Strait, then no one can still win the battle. Take our things." Patriarch Guros said in a deep voice, "Let's make a statement, if we promise we will form a real alliance."
"When will the fleet arrive?"
Chief Nieus, who was marked by a flamingo, asked in a deep voice.
"I have already sent someone to deliver the holy relic." Patriarch Guros showed a gloomy smile, "At this time it should have been delivered to the Pope, and the fleet will be able to arrive in at least a week."
"Alliance with the Guros family doesn't sound like a good idea."
The poisonous spider lady sighed faintly.
"But who made me have no choice."
She stood up, the figure shrouded in black dress was slim and beautiful, the lady who was famous for "snakes and scorpions" smiled slightly: "Then that's it."
The wind shrouded the Abyss Strait, and the waves rolled.
The king's governor was calling for a search of the merchant ships of the Five Harbors Alliance, while the royal fleet was quietly gathering.
A storm is coming.
The author has something to say: Here are some questions about the Academy of Mad Men.
To answer most people's doubts:
The ancient sacred fire has already said the prototype Greek fire. Although the main raw material of Greek fire is petroleum, it also uses asphalt, sulfur, turpentine, etc., and the recipe of Greek fire is lost later. It is not simply possible to equate oil with Greek fire... Saltpeter is the main raw material of gunpowder, but can you point to saltpeter and say that this is gunpowder
The restoration of chemists means that they have completed the restoration of the Greek fire, including the proportion of various raw materials, and the process of refining. It is an accidental product in the process of improving gunpowder. They are trying to use various materials and methods to reform the composition of gunpowder. This has the same nature as the ancient Chinese alchemists who came up with gunpowder.
Second, they're not "studying a century of work in a month."
I don't know what your definition of "cross-century" is, it seems to me that there has never been -- or very rarely -- anything that really popped up across the century. All the "cross-century" in the eyes of latecomers are actually brewing after a long period of development.
I don't know if you will have such a stereotyped impression that when you mention gunpowder, you subconsciously feel that it appeared at the end of the Middle Ages and ended that era. Before that, it did not appear on the stage of the Middle Ages. When it comes to heliocentric theory, it is believed that it was produced in the period of Copernicus.
In fact, the concept of heliocentric theory has a long history, and the concept of the movement of celestial bodies in history is by no means only a single geocentric theory. Here is a book called "A Brief History of Space", which introduces the entire context of the development of human space concepts. Historically, scholars of the ancient Greek Aristarch have proposed the heliocentric theory. Discussions about heliocentric theory have persisted since then, and in more recent 15th century Latino scholars have rethought heliocentric theory. Kuss, a scholar born in Germany in 1401, re-proposed the heliocentric theory at that time. After that, in the 16th century, Copernicus began to study and complete his "Theory of the Movement of the Celestial Bodies".
And the attitude of the church to heliocentrism at that time was not what it is used to think... Copernicus even presented his work to Pope Paul III, and the cardinal, an opponent of Galileo, examined his work and found that there was no heresy. It was published after Copernicus' death in 1543.
see it
There are more than one or two people behind great things, but we only remember a few people.
Let's bring our perspective back to the scientists in the lunatic asylum.
I don't like the kind of plots where muskets and cannonballs are created all at once with no background, and people haven't discovered them before... It often has a latecomer's preconceivedness and arrogance of the times (I have written about the king earlier. To observe the war at that time in person is to avoid the arrogance of the latecomers).
I don't like that, and I certainly don't write that way.
Let me explain a little bit, using the chemist brothers as an example. Their research results are not cross-century and cross-generational, but in that context, they have reached the moment when the door is knocked out. In the last chapter, I introduced the background of the use of Legrand gunpowder at that time, so as not to make you feel that your achievements are advancing by leaps and bounds.
Come see the history of the Gunpowder Revolution in the Middle Ages.
It's unclear when gunpowder first started in Europe, but "Greek fire" was used by Byzantium in AD 678.
Although the Greek fire did not spread, it has been shown that the use of gunpowder in Europe has a longer history than we are accustomed to realize. However, it was not until the thirteenth and fourteenth century that it really began to be widely used. After 1255, gunpowder was introduced into Islamic countries. In 1290, when the Muslims besieged Yaga, gunpowder threshing machines were used.
The gunpowder revolution was carried out in the 14th and 15th centuries. Europeans did not notice the power that gunpowder could bring until the end of the Middle Ages. Since the 14th century, many saltpeter production houses appeared in Europe, because they were used to the high proportion of saltpeter. Gunpowder thereby increasing the explosive power - see? Technological improvements have been made from a very early age.
In order to increase the power of gunpowder, people have tried various methods at that time, and the attempt of chemists in madhouses was one of the common attempts of people in the 15th century. Granulated gunpowder was part of a technological revolution, and it was gradually used after the 1520s. In every change, people will adopt a variety of methods, but the right method cannot be recognized and fully utilized by people as soon as it appears. Many get overwhelmed by the rest of the wrong approach and then wait for time to pass before being discovered.
Granular gunpowder is the right direction, but it took time for people to choose to accept it. The time of acceptance is not the same as the time of appearance. The chemists of the Academy of Mad Men have tried the correct method at such a time when various attempts are being made, and the king who is a latecomer can affirm this method.
They tried it right and got lucky, and that's it.
Far from talking about trans-epoch.
If there is no understanding of these histories, the gunpowder is limited to the fact that it blew the gate of the castle and ended the Middle Ages. Such an impression is indeed easy to produce the impression that they "studied the cross-century results in one month"...
But that's not the case, they can't even be called a cross-generational achievement, they just increased the power of gunpowder, but this improvement is also limited - that's why it is said that the king chose to witness the power of gunpowder with the Duke of Buckingham. In order to truly complete the entire gunpowder revolution, there are still countless problems that must be solved, such as the price of saltpeter, the production process, how to use it specifically, and so on.
Otherwise why would the king have to form his standing army? With the spear and cannon, you can go all the way and kill it all the way
-Because the entire change requires cooperation and time from all parties.
Of course, I can also casually write about the war mode in which the king has gunpowder for three days and one year can complete the war with gunfire.
But is that still the Legrand world I want? no.
The same is true of other people's achievements, they are making their choices in the trend of the times.
Finally, what is the so-called cross-century and breakthrough era
From my point of view as a history student, that's a long series of endeavors with key developments in context at the right time. It never comes out of thin air. What future generations will remember are the most famous characters, but behind them are the shadows of more people.
The dark Middle Ages are not completely dark. There are always countless sparks of wisdom flashing in the long river of time. Nothing is a sudden rise and a sudden tear of the era, and some are just the final result of step-by-step efforts.
All historiography can do is to listen to their voices as best they can, so as not to drown out all those who work hard.
Conventional references:
[1] Xu Guangtai. Research on the "firearms" reform in Western Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries [D]. Tianjin Normal University, 2019.
[2] Zhang Yuanwei. Historical evolution of gunpowdering military revolution [J]. Journal of Xi'an University of Arts and Sciences (Social Science Edition), 2009,12(03):34-38.
[3] Zhang Yang. The Gunpowder Revolution in the European Military Field in the Late Middle Ages [D]. Capital Normal University, 2009.
[4] Zhang Yuanwei. Gunpowdering Military Revolution and Its Characteristics [J]. Journal of Xi'an University of Arts and Sciences (Social Science Edition), 2009,12(02):109-111.
[5] Xu Erbin. The Military Revolution and Social Transformation of Europe in the 14th-17th Century [D]. Northeast Normal University, 2003.
[6] Su Cong. An Analysis of the Greek Fire, a Secret Weapon of the Byzantine Navy [J]. Journal of History, 2017(01): 17-22.
[7] Xu Erbin. The Military Revolution and Social Transformation in Europe from the 14th to the 17th Century [D]. Northeast Normal University, 2003.