King of German Mercenaries

Just as he was talking, Tranmere, the captain of the royal guard, suddenly came in, as if he had something to report. Tranmere looked at Marin who was chatting with the emperor, and then looked at the emperor, and found that the emperor did not mean to ask Marin to avoid him, so he reported directly:

"Your Majesty, there is news from France that Louis XII has arrived in Lyon in southeastern France with 20,000 French troops. However, they stopped there."

"Oh? Stopped? Why?"

"It seems that he is recruiting more Swiss mercenaries. Louis XII felt that 20,000 troops did not seem to be enough, and he seemed to want to recruit another 10,000 troops..."

"Not enough? Haha, does he really think I'm going back to Italy? I don't even think about going to Italy, he's enough to bring 10,000 people."

In fact, the French army is powerful in combat. Plate knights traverse the European continent, and the other 10,000 people are the most powerful infantry in Europe - Swiss mercenaries. So, 20,000 people is definitely enough.

However, Louis XII is still recruiting. Obviously, Marin guessed, that Louis XII did not intend for the emperor, but for the territory of Italy. . . .

As a liberal arts student who had studied European history, Marin naturally knew that in the original history, Louis XII sent troops to Milan and Naples, and both achieved success. If it weren't for the subsequent defeat to Spain in Naples, Louis XII would have really dominated Italy.

No wonder, the Sforza family is so capable. Over the years, under Sforza's hard work, the Principality of Milan has developed agriculture and strong industry and commerce.

It can be said that the Principality of Milan is one of the richest regions in Italy. If it weren't for the fact that Venice was more wealthy by virtue of its commercial advantages, Milan should be regarded as the most prosperous area in Italy.

The Sforza family ruled Milan and should be considered a tyrant. Because, Duke Sforza's father, who was originally a mercenary general, forcibly ascended the position of Duke of Milan by force and by marrying the illegitimate daughter of Duke of Milan who was originally extinct. According to the original plan of the extinct Visconti family, it was planned to be inherited by the then Duke of Orleans, the father of Louis XII. However, the Milanese did not agree at the time and formed a republic by themselves, but it was later annexed by the Sforza family.

The Sforza family also knew that their position was not right, so they tried their best to please the people and built water conservancy in the Principality of Milan, which led to the great development of Milan's agriculture.

Milan's handicraft industry is also very developed. In the early days, Milan plate armor became a famous product that European knights flocked to. The handicraft industry in other industries in Milan is also very developed.

In the Middle Ages, European cities were mainly composed of nobles, armies, craftsmen and merchants. The nobility accounted for a small proportion of the population, and the number of troops was not the mainstream. Although there are many merchants, they are not the most important. In general, the citizens of medieval cities were mainly artisans and their families.

The city of Milan, with a population of up to 100,000, ranks first in the Holy Roman Empire. It can be seen that there are many craftsmen and merchants in Milan. The urban population of Western Europe in this era can directly reflect whether the city's economy is prosperous. As the most prosperous city under the control of the Habsburg family, Ghent has a population of 75,000, ranking second in the Holy Roman Empire. The reason why there are so many people in Ghent is that Ghent is the wool textile center in Flanders. There are naturally a lot of handicraftsmen and a lot of taxes for the Habsburg family. At the same time, Austria had only 20,000 people.

With such a prosperous city and such developed agriculture, it is no wonder that the Duchy of Milan is not coveted. Coincidentally, the new king of France, Louis XII, just reiterated the past by his father being selected as the Duke of Milan, and asked for the Duchy of Milan.

In fact, as early as when Charles VIII launched the first Italian war, Louis XII, who entered Italy with his army, tried to win the Duchy of Milan. However, at that time, Charles VIII focused his energy mainly on the Kingdom of Naples,

I don't have the energy to take care of Milan's affairs. Moreover, the theoretical heir of the Duchy of Milan is Louis XII, not Charles VIII himself, so Charles VIII naturally doesn't care. Not only that, but when Louis XII led thousands of troops in an attempt to occupy the Principality of Milan, he was besieged by an army of 30,000 Milan and had to surrender.

It can be seen that the strength of the Principality of Milan is still very strong. Of course, don't look at the fact that the Principality of Milan can raise 30,000 horses, but it was also recruited temporarily during the war. Under normal circumstances, the Principality of Milan also maintains a standing army of about 10,000 people.

But this time, Louis XII was very cunning, and led his troops south under the banner of "supporting the Pope", and did not publicly request the Principality of Milan at all. In this way, the Principality of Milan will not have much preparation at all. When the French army reaches the door, it will be too late to raise enough troops...

Thinking of this, Marin immediately said to Maximilian I:

"Your Majesty, the Duchy of Milan is in danger!"

"Ah? The Principality of Milan? What danger are they in?"

"Louis XII this time, I'm afraid he is going to take the Duchy of Milan!"

"How do you see it?"

"If it is to 'support Rome' or capture Naples, does Louis XII need to recruit another 10,000 Swiss mercenaries? With the elite of the French army, whether it is dealing with His Majesty's army or attacking Naples, 20,000 elite troops are enough. But Louis XII was not enough. Obviously, Louis XII had to deal with the equally powerful Duchy of Milan at the same time..."

"Duchy of Milan? You mean that Louis XII will bring up his father's election as Duke of Milan?"

"Yes, he will definitely do it!"

"But why didn't he bring it up earlier, with the slogan 'March to Rome'?"

"Your Majesty, have you marched on Graubünden to open your banner?"

"That's true. I didn't expect Louis XII to be so cunning. Oh, I hope Duke Ludovico can be prepared... No, I have to send someone to inform me!"

"How about I go for a run?"

"You? No need, I have a lot of people..."

"That's right, I just need to go to Milan, recruit some craftsmen, and build weapons and armor for me. You know, Milan's craftsmen are very famous..."

Marin's statement is reasonable, but in fact, he is not very interested in building plate armor or anything. He just wants to hire skilled craftsmen who are good at making steel clockwork.

Relying on the few craftsmen now to build the steel clockwork, the production speed of clockwork muskets is too slow. Therefore, Marin plans to recruit a few more clockwork craftsmen to go back to Milan, the city of handicrafts. Of course, other types of craftsmen can recruit a few more if they have the opportunity.

"Okay, then, I'll ask you to run this trip." Since Marin offered to ask Ying, the emperor thought it was okay. Anyway, the matter of Marin coming to his side to cooperate with the acting has been completed, and he really helped him deal with the wound, and told his doctor the secret of dealing with the wound. So, Marin doesn't really need to stay anymore. Therefore, the emperor entrusted him to go to Milan to warn the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza, and let him prepare in advance to guard against the French...