On April 30, after a week of Mortar bombing, the morale of the Erzurum defenders collapsed and they spontaneously opened the city gates and surrendered.
Damien asked the prisoners of war and found that they did not know the specific location of Uzon Hassan.
"Where is White Sheep Main Force?"
Damien stared at the map irritably, sent someone to send the message to the rear, and requested the emperor's next order.
In early May, Vitus continued to attack eastward.
Kars and Gyumri in front both built new-style city walls. Eastern Roman Empire had sufficient troops, so it launched a siege on the two cities at the same time.
Generally speaking, this area has flat terrain, sufficient water resources, and good farming conditions. On the periphery of the area, there are numerous mountains as barriers:
The north and east are Lesser Caucasus Mountains, the south is Mount Ararat, and the west is hills. The Eastern Roman Empire army has less defensive pressure, so there is no need to worry about White Sheep Main Force suddenly attacking the siege troops.
At the same time, the north of this area is Georgia, and the army can obtain supplies from this direction. After the summer harvest, the local area can also provide a large amount of grain, easing the logistical pressure on the army.
He set up the Chinese military tent beside Lake Çıldır and notified Georgia Army to come over and join him as soon as possible.
A week later, Vakhtang crossed the border with nearly ten thousand troops and returned to Armenian Highlands.
After several previous failures, the king asked New Army to copy the organizational structure, equipment and tactics of the Eastern Roman Empire Field Legion, even including those brisk and melodious marching tunes.
The only obvious difference is that Georgia Army is holding St. George's Cross (red cross on a white background), and Eastern Roman Empire troops are holding Beta Flag and their respective legion flags.
On May 9th, Georgia Army arrived at Lake Çıldır.
The sky was blue, and the lake reflected the long white clouds. Under the gaze of tens of thousands of people, Vitus and the king were walking and chatting by the lake.
Leo stared at the fishing boats on the lake in a daze, yawning boredly, "How long are they going to talk?"
Thomas picked up a stone and threw it towards the lake. The stone bounced a few times on the lake, causing ripples that gradually spread in circles. Leo watched his uncle use the stone to float the water and suddenly asked:
"Have you ever been to Georgia?"
Thomas: "Yes. At that time, I ended my mission in Grand Duchy of Lithuania and returned to Chersonesus. I found that Vitus wanted to attack Circassia and Georgia, so I followed the army.
On the way, the most dangerous section was Gate of the Caucasus. We captured the fortress through an attack, and then entered Georgia in the south of the mountain range, forcing the old king to hand over the Ottoman envoys and the factions leaning towards Ottoman.
Later, we helped the old king put down the rebellion and received a reward. This happened in 1436. You were only three years old at the time and have no memory of it."
Leo Listening to Thomas's narration, he was shocked by the other party's rich resume. This usually indifferent uncle seemed to have been everywhere and had his share in everything.
The uncle and nephew were chatting to pass the time. In the distance, Vitus and the king were still discussing the battle plan.
Before the war started, the Rome messenger had an agreement with Georgia. Vitus continued this condition: if this battle was won, Georgia could expand significantly to the east and acquire some land in the south.
What puzzled the other party was that Vitus deliberately designated a small area on the east coast, emphasizing that this area belonged to Rome, although it was not developed for the time being.
The king thought to himself, "What good things are there in this place? Gold mines? Not really. If there were any gold mines, they would have been dug up by the Persia people or the Mongols."
In his impression, there was nothing on that small stretch of coast. There was only a small town named Baku. The residents relied on fishing for a living and had never heard of the existence of mining industry.
After thinking for a while, the king turned his attention to the current war.
In the past ten years or so, the old king Alexander and the current king Vakhtang were defeated by Uzon Hassan.
From top to bottom, Georgia has a certain degree of psychological shadow on the White Sheep Dynasty. Even though he has the advantage this time, he is still worried that he will suddenly lose at some point.
Vitus noticed the other party's worries and suggested:
"How about this. Your main force feints to attack south along Lesser Caucasus Mountains and pretends to attack Tabriz to attract the enemy's attention. I will be in charge of the frontal battlefield. As long as you provide more food and horses, after the war is over, the border will be divided according to the previous plan."
Without having to face Uzon Hassan, the king's mood relaxed instantly.
He watched a group of waterfowl flying across the blue lake, feeling relieved and sighing in his heart:
"The outside world says that Vitus is cruel and tyrannical. In fact, in my opinion, he is quite a kind person.
In this attack on Tabriz, if the main force of the enemy is not there, then we will capture several weakly defended towns and plunder the surrounding villages. If the main force of the enemy is attracted, I will rely on the mountains to retreat. The combat effectiveness of nomadic cavalry in mountainous areas is very poor and is no match for firearms infantry."
After joining forces, Vitus continued to be stationed beside Lake Çıldır, waiting for the front line to capture Kars and Gyumri.
During this period, he sent cavalry and auxiliary troops to various places to occupy small and medium-sized towns with weak defenses and expel White Sheep's remaining forces in the region.
"Another tedious task like this."
Thomas observed the mission location marked on the map, and led nearly 10,000 auxiliary troops under his command to move eastward to attack towns or lords who were unwilling to surrender.
On the morning of May 24th, Thomas came to the west bank of Lake Sevan.
The mountains in the distance are covered with green, and a few peaks still have unmelted white snow. The lake is like a huge deep sapphire, embedded among the gray-green mountains, and the reeds on the lakeside are swinging back and forth in the wind, making a subtle rustling sound.
Boom! Boom!
The breeze blew, the long bells of the lakeside church came, and some Armenia soldiers began to whisper to each other.
Soon, the officers found Thomas and asked for a day off today to allow the soldiers to spend this meaningful Pentecost.
The cavalry had scouted the Lake Sevan area in advance, and there were no large-scale enemy forces around. Thomas agreed to the request of officer Armenia, requiring them to return to camp before dusk.
"I have been busy for so long, so I really deserve a day off."
Thomas led the guards for a stroll along the lakeside and saw many local farmers with their families heading to a monastery located on the lakeside peninsula. It is said that sacred objects are enshrined in it, which can protect them from plundering by nomads.
Thomas did not enter the monastery. He walked along the shore of the lake for more than half an hour, threw a pole and fished in a shady place, and spent the holiday leisurely.
In the afternoon, as the sun set in the west, the lake surface turned golden and red. The pilgrims dispersed one after another and returned to their respective villages along the way they came.
Thomas led the guards back to the lakeside town and asked the officers to count the number of troops. As the last afterglow disappeared behind the mountain, Lake Sevan returned to silence.
On May 26, Kars's defenders surrendered to the Eastern Roman Empire, while Gyumri's enemy troops were still holding on.
At the same time, Vitus received a report from Cappadocia:
A large number of White Sheep cavalry appeared in the southeastern section of the border, some forts were surrounded, and the enemy was penetrating inland.
Vitus records that in 626 AD, Heraclius fought with Khosrow II (Persia monarch).
The Persia people lost the frontal battlefield, so they contacted the nomads of Balkans and asked them to attack Constantinople from the land.
Not only that, the Persia people also sent the navy and Army to assist in the siege. However, the combat effectiveness of the Persia navy was not as good as Eastern Roman Navy and did not play a big role.
The war lasted for two months. The nomadic army ran out of supplies and the siege failed.
"Uzong Hassan will not copy this strategy. Cappadocia's action is destined to be a feint attack. This Province is sparsely populated and has many nomadic tribes. Even if White Sheep robs the entire area, what will it achieve? No matter, let them do whatever they want, I will continue the previous strategy."
In early June, Eastern Roman Empire took control of the Gyumri and Lake Sevan areas, formed the third Armenia, and the fourth Auxiliary Brigade, further increasing its military strength.
The newly recruited soldiers have a very poor impression of White Sheep and have high enthusiasm for combat.
Eastern Roman Empire There is no shortage of equipment. Each soldier can receive the most basic protective gear and weapons. After a short training, they will be assigned to various strongholds to serve as defenders.
If there is a large-scale enemy invasion, they will march along the main road and encounter these towns or castles along the way.
White Sheep Commander has two options: send some soldiers to attack the city, or let them stay outside the city and monitor the defenders inside the city at all times.
No matter what, the enemy needs to disperse some of their forces, and the value of the Armenia defenders lies in this.
Now, Vitus controls the northern part of Armenian Highlands, and his next target is Lake Van.
If Uzong Hassan still doesn't show up, he will continue to attack Diyarbakir and completely drive the White Sheep forces out of this plateau.
"The population of this plateau is about 3 million to 4 million, and more than half of the population are nomads from Central Asia. They are the foundation of regimes such as White Sheep and Black Sheep. Without this part of the population, Uzong Hassan can only rely on the Persia people, and his power will be greatly shaken."
Vitus feels that Uzong Hassan will fight at least once, and the location is likely to be near Lake Van.
In mid-June, Vitus gathered field troops from various places, regrouped into a large army of 65,000 people, and advanced towards Lake Van in the south.
During the march, Vitus felt that the intensity of the cavalry battle had increased significantly. He marked the location of the battle on the map. The closer to the east coast of Lake Van, the more frequent the fighting between the two sides.
The larger the army is, the fewer places are suitable for long-term garrisoning. The army assembled by Uzong Hassan is at least more than 50,000, which requires a large amount of food, fresh water and firewood every day.
"It seems that the main enemy force is stationed at Van. Only here can meet the supply needs."
June 20, Van Castle.
For some time in the past, Uzon Hassan lived in this hilltop castle with a wide view. Whenever he had free time, he liked to stand in the main building and overlook the surroundings. To the west was the endless blue lake, and at the foot of the mountain was a large area of flat and fertile farmland.
Further away, the horizon to the south and east stretches across the continuous mountains, and the snow from last winter still remains on the top of the mountain. The snow slowly melts under the sunshine, and converges into a winding stream in the mountains, and finally merges into Lake Van.
Suddenly, an attendant came and reported:
"Your Majesty, Vitus is advancing towards Lake Van. The army has approximately 50,000 to 70,000 soldiers."
Hearing this, Uzon Hassan knew that he could no longer give in.
White Sheep Army has many levies, the number of which has swelled to 80,000. They are poorly equipped and disorganized, and their overall combat effectiveness is inferior to that of their opponents.
From a military point of view, Uzon Hassan should have avoided a decisive battle and led his army to retreat further to the rear, continuing to weaken the enemy's morale until the autumn or even next year.
Standing armies and loyal troops can do this, but most levies cannot.
On the one hand, the soldiers at the bottom are away from home, worried that their families will be bullied by their neighbors, Ranch being eaten by their neighbors' livestock, and are anxious to go home to take care of their families.
These people have no patience to wait until autumn. Now there are sporadic soldiers fleeing at night. From now on, the scale of the fleeing will become larger and larger.
On the other hand, the nobles and leaders were loyal to Uzon Hassan because of the nomadic people's strong tradition. They believed that Uzon Hassan was a wise and powerful commander, and he could be called the most outstanding ruler after Timur.
Assuming that Uzun Hassan retreated from Erzurum to Tabriz despite having a superior force, his prestige would be damaged and his power would be shaken.
"Find a way to severely damage Vitus's army and force him to draw a border and seek peace. This is the best result I can achieve."
After making up his mind, Uzon Hassan gathered troops from all over the country as much as possible to face the battle that would determine the fate of the next few decades.
However, the composition of White Sheep's troops is extremely complex. He can only really control 30,000 troops. The remaining troops belong to different forces. Some tribes have deep-rooted feuds. They hate each other and sporadic conflicts often occur.
When commanding and dispatching, Uzon Hassan tried his best to disperse the hostile armies to prevent them from fighting first.
On the other hand, the cultural level in the military is very low.
Some tribal leaders were unable to read letters or handle accounts, and logistics were in a state of chaos. Some supplies disappeared inexplicably, and some supplies were sent to the wrong place. For example, a team of a thousand light cavalry received gunpowder and lead bullets, and a group of archers received crossbow bolts.
Regarding this problem, Uzon Hassan has thought of relevant solutions:
Imitating Ottoman Sultan, children are regularly recruited from the private sector, some are trained to become Janissaries, and others are trained to be civil servants.
The flaw of this system is that the training cycle is long. It will take another three to four years before the first batch of "Janissaries" from White Sheep can reach adulthood and serve as elite troops or grassroots commanders.
"The battle between Greece and Venice was fierce, and a lot of manpower and material resources were invested in building the navy. Why were they able to assemble a huge army to attack eastward after a year of armistice?"
Under normal circumstances, Vitus will rest for 3 to 5 years and accumulate money and food.
Using this precious time, White Sheep can innovate the system, accumulate firearms, weaken local power, and gradually transform from a nomadic empire to a Ottoman-style centralized empire.
"It's all my fault that Venice and Mamluk are useless and can't last a few more years."
Uzon Hassan was upset in his heart, and then he managed to concentrate on his official duties.
After two days of busy work, he met the material needs of various troops and took more than 70,000 people to Erciş on the north coast of Lake Van.