March 7th, early morning.
There was a north wind blowing on the sea, and the crew walked barefoot on the deck, raised the sails, turned the winch to pull up the rudder, and steered the flagship to sail southeast, away from the offshore Cyprus.
After four days, the fleet arrived in the waters near Acre City.
Viewed from a distance, it is located on a promontory at the northern end of Bay of Haifa. The city wall is light yellow and has numerous square towers, with the yellow background and white moon flag of Mamluk flying above it.
During the Crusaders period, Acre City was an important port of Kingdom of Jerusalem. Many Western ships docked here to transport troops, pilgrims and supplies.
In 1191, Kingdom of Jerusalem moved its capital to this coastal city and resisted tenaciously for a century.
In 1291, Henry II led the remaining forces to retreat to Cyprus, and Kingdom of Jerusalem declared its demise.
Over the next century or so, Acre City gradually declined, Trade shrank, and the population continued to decrease. According to information provided by businessmen, the number of residents in this city was less than four thousand.
After repeated consideration, Vitus chose this as the landing site instead of Jaffa, which is closer to Jerusalem, or Beirut or Tripoli, which are located further north.
Dang! Dang! Dang!
Bells rang in the city, fishermen and merchants near the pier rushed to the city gate, and the city guards hurried to the city wall to guard.
It was difficult to erect artillery above the old city wall, so the enemy built two new forts on the pier and placed more than ten artillery pieces.
In the navy's preliminary investigation, not only Acre City, but also all large and medium-sized seaports have deployed shore defense artillery in varying numbers.
"Damn Italy businessman, how many artillery pieces did you sell to Mamluk?"
Vitus cursed softly and announced the implementation of the second plan.
The merchant's intelligence also included a piece of information: In the thirteenth century, the city wall on the land-facing side of Acre City was severely damaged, with many gaps appearing. At that time, Mamluk was only repaired hastily.
After hundreds of years of exposure to the sun and rain, North Wall and East Wall lacked sufficient funds for maintenance, and their condition became worse and worse. Last year, there was more rain, and the city wall collapsed in a small area, further reducing the defense.
Therefore, the second plan was to launch an attack from land and let a transport ship loaded with artillery run aground. Army would use these artillery pieces to blast through the gaps in the city wall, and then rush into the city to initiate street fighting.
At nine o'clock in the morning, the attack officially began.
Marine Battalion was still acting as the commando team, and two battalions of soldiers took small boats and rowed hard to the empty beach north of the city.
The sea breeze howled, the oars paddled rhythmically, and the cold sea water splashed up, soaking their hair and clothes.
Not long after, the commando's small boat rushed to the beach. The Musketeerss pried open the top cover of the wooden barrel and took out the musket, match rope, and paper shells from inside.
"Mamluk Cavalry!"
Suddenly, someone pointed to the back of the hills a few hundred steps away, and cavalrymen crossed the hills one after another and charged towards the empty, flat beach.
The next moment, there was a continuous roar from the sea, and hundreds of artillery shells passed over the beach and hit the area between the beach and the hills.
After receiving this round of shells, the morale of the Mamluk cavalry collapsed and they quickly retreated behind the hills, leaving more than 200 corpses behind.
On the flagship deck, Vitus was shocked by the scene in front of him, "Where did these cavalry come from?"
It stands to reason that the coast of Levant is more than 700 kilometers long. It is impossible for the enemy to fortify everywhere. Why would they put a heavy cavalry equipped with iron armor on Acre?
Marco Caboto (Admiral Aegean Fleet) thought thoughtfully, "It is possible that this cavalry is heading north for reinforcements and happened to pass by Acre City."
In any case, the appearance of Mamluk heavy cavalry disrupted the original attack plan.
Assuming that during the siege, this unit has been wandering around, it will tie up a large part of the Eastern Roman Empire infantry's energy.
The worst case scenario is that the Eastern Roman Empire infantry is blocked outside the gap by the Acre defenders. When the two sides are entangled, the enemy cavalry takes the opportunity to charge from the rear, which may overwhelm the Eastern Roman Empire infantry formation in one fell swoop.
At this time, Damien spoke urgently, "Your Majesty, you can no longer hesitate. I will immediately lead the second group of troops to land ashore. I will probably launch an attack at two o'clock in the afternoon and seize Acre before dark."
Caboto made another suggestion. "Let the fleet attack the harbor and create a gap, then Army enter the city from this direction, avoid the open countryside suitable for cavalry, and directly enter the street fighting stage.
If the enemy's coastal defense guns number between 10 and 20, use the Battleship to shoot at them. As long as you can capture the Acre City, you will be fine even if you lose two ships."
The military situation is urgent, Vitus adopts the opinions of both parties at the same time:
In addition to the flagship, the remaining nine Battleship attacked the port, destroyed the coastal defense fortress and blasted through the city wall.
At the same time, the transport fleet put down Longboat, and the second echelon landed on the northern beach. At two o'clock in the afternoon, if Battleship failed to suppress the coastal defense artillery, Army would launch a strong attack from the northern suburbs.
"As you command!"
Caboto left the flagship and took a small boat to the nearby Battleship Tyro.
After receiving the semaphore of Tyro, the remaining eight Battleship followed her, forming a column and sailing towards the harbor.
Battleship was less than 600 steps away from the port. The coastal defense artillery fired one after another. Fourteen shells landed on the sea near Tyro from far away.
"Why are you panicking?" Caboto scolded some timid new crew members:
"At Battle of Antikythera, there were hundreds of ships from both sides. The flagship Nesos was attacked by enemy fire. The admiral (Fabius) and many crew members were killed. The remaining people did not retreat like you..."
At 9:40, Tyro was less than 300 steps away from the port. She suffered more than 30 shells during the charge, and the hull was not damaged for the time being.
Under the leadership of Tyro, the entire column slowly turned and aimed its broadside at the two shore defense fortresses.
During the voyage, the side guns had been loaded. The gunners opened the gun windows, quickly adjusted the elevation angle, and fired after receiving the order.
Bang! Bang!
Tyro The double-decker cannons fired one after another, and the diffuse smoke engulfed most of the ship. Two hundred shells fell towards the shore defense battery on the south side of the port, splashing large amounts of gray-brown dust.
The coastal defense artillery continued to fire back, and occasionally shells hit the hull of Tyro. The wooden hull was not as defensive as the coastal defense fortress. After a certain area was hit multiple times, small-scale damage finally occurred.
After receiving a report of water seepage in the bottom tank, the carpenter immediately rushed to the damaged area with two assistants.
Sunlight spilled into the dark bottom cabin from the gap, barely illuminating the direction of progress. The waves were undulating, and cold seawater intermittently poured into the gap with every rocking of the ship's hull. An ankle-deep puddle gradually accumulated in the bottom cabin.
"Is Mamluk's artillery so powerful? Why does it feel like we are back to fighting Venice again?"
The carpenter stumbled nearby, picked up the largest cone-shaped wooden plug to plug the gap, then swung the mallet and smashed it down hard.
"Bang!" The seawater splashed. He half-squinted his eyes and continued to hit the second and third times until the cork was completely embedded in the crack.
After a while of busy work, the carpenter sealed the remaining damage and cracks, and the assistant took out a bundle of lead sheets to cover the hull, and then nailed nails to the edges to secure it.
The work was not over yet. The gaps between the lead sheet and the hull were still leaking. The carpenter knelt in the cold shallow water and filled these gaps with flax wadding dipped in Tar.
"Our mission is completed, let's call it a day."
The carpenter stood up with support on his sore waist and informed Boatswain to arrange a water pump to drain the water in the bottom tank into the sea.
At 11 o'clock at noon, the firing frequency of the south turret became lower and lower, and Battleship's target turned to the north turret.
As the naval guns continued to fire, the granite on the outer layer of the fortress peeled off in pieces. Occasionally, shells passed over the stone wall, killing and injuring the logistics personnel who were transporting ammunition.
After a long time, the wall of the north fort began to collapse, black smoke ignited from inside, and soldiers fled back one after another.
Caboto told the crew, "Quick, notify Army to come over!"
Phew!
A streak of red fireworks shot into the sky, and Damien on a certain transport ship raised his head and immediately stopped the landing operation.
Damien left some transport ships to accommodate the troops on the beach, and led the remaining transport ships to the southern bay.
Looking around, we can see that the mizzen mast of Tyro is broken, the snow-white canvas is floating on the sea, and the hull structure is generally intact.
The Battleship located in the middle of the column withstood the most attacks. Two Battleships tilted slightly, and the crews were using water pumps to drain water. Another Battleship was seriously damaged and was trying to beach.
Seeing this situation, Damien was inexplicably touched:
"The navy is useful after all. I won't scold them anymore."
At one o'clock in the afternoon, the city wall was continuously bombarded by more than a hundred heavy cannons. A gap as wide as thirty steps appeared in the city wall, and the nearest square towers were also blown down.
Damien decided to launch a strong attack. The senior officials communicated briefly through flags. Battleship's artillery fire was transferred to the nearby city wall and began to suppress the defenders behind the crenellations.
Twenty minutes later, the transport ship carrying the commandos sailed to the pier and docked. Most of the defenders evacuated the city wall, and the landing troops were almost not attacked.
The elites of Marine Battalion and Attica Legion were stranded on the northern beach, and it was Hermes Brigade who carried out the southern assault mission. When the soldiers were organizing their formation, Mortar on the transport ship deck opened fire into the city, bombarding the Mamluk defenders who were gathering.
Di~
When the whistle sounded, the first battalion launched an assault and quickly overwhelmed the defenders behind the gap.
The remaining Mountain Battalion followed up one after another and began to seize the city walls and city gates. Orlando was assigned the task of attacking along the street. After walking for a distance, they suddenly noticed a small vibration on the ground.
Cavalry?
Orlando ordered the spearmen to form a formation, and Three-Pounder was placed in front of the formation. He climbed onto the roof of the house on the right, and there was indeed a group of cavalry coming along the main road.
"The general sent the cavalry from the suburbs into the city to fight in the streets. It seems they have very few troops."
The streets of Acre City were narrow and were not suitable for the cavalry to form their formation. Soon, the cavalry at the front was shot dead by Three-Pounder. The dead bodies of the horses lay in front of them. The comrades behind were forced to rein in their horses and quickly evacuated the area.
Orlando continued to advance, and when they arrived at the center of the city, they suddenly saw some light artillery launched from the opposite side.
Next, both sides Artillery fired at each other on the main road. Orlando ordered the soldiers to go into the house to take shelter temporarily. Some musketeers opened fire on the second floor or rooftop to suppress the enemy.
After a while, shouts of killing came from the alleys on the left and right sides. He walked over to observe and saw some dismounted heavy cavalry fighting with his own soldiers in the alleys.
"These cavalry are so good at fighting? Why did Sultan put them in Acre City?"
Orlando asked the messenger to report back, claiming that the headquarters was blocked and could not advance in a short time.
Ten minutes later, Brigade Headquarters sent a reply order, asking him to entangle the enemy in front of him and wait for friendly forces to make a detour.
Perhaps because they had witnessed the bravery and fearlessness of the navy, the Army senior officials did not want to delay for too long to avoid embarrassing themselves in front of the navy. At two o'clock in the afternoon, the offensive suddenly became fierce. Artillery transported Mortar to the front line and tried to use direct fire to suppress the enemies behind the houses.
As time passed, both sides became furious. Some soldiers lit the fuses of explosive bombs and then threw the explosive bombs into the houses where the enemy troops were located.
Even if the explosive bomb fails to cause casualties, the loud noise and air waves generated by the explosion are enough to temporarily render a person incapable of combat. Soldiers can take the opportunity to rush into the house and kill the enemy who has not yet reacted.
Thanks to this tactic, Orlando's advancement speed gradually accelerated. He ordered a platoon leader under his command:
"Get some more Iron Bomb from behind. The more the better. If you have more than a thousand shells, I will give you credit."
At five o'clock in the afternoon, Orlando used Mortar's tactics of bombardment and soldiers dropping bombs to eliminate hundreds of defenders of the town's official residence at a relatively small cost, at the cost of destroying this luxurious and expensive mansion.
At dusk, Eastern Roman Empire Army controlled the city walls and gates of Acre.
However, the resistance of the defenders continued, and it was difficult to clear them all at once.
In desperation, Vitus stayed at the flagship for the night. Throughout the night, the city was sporadically reverberated with the sound of gunfire and shouts of death, and large fires were ignited in some areas.
On March 12, it started to rain lightly. Eastern Roman Empire's twelve thousand Army all entered the city and eliminated the remaining enemies at noon.
Vitus climbed up to a relatively intact tower and overlooked the city. Most of the buildings were abandoned. The city was divided into multiple areas and the streets were intricate.
According to historical records, the largest area belongs to Knights Templar, and their castle is adjacent to the seaside.
Knights Hospitaller's base is also large in scale, and Venice, Genoa, and Pisa also have their own exclusive store.
Yesterday's Siege Warfare was difficult. The primary reason was that the enemy had a cavalry of 3,000 men who happened to pass by Acre. The secondary reason was the intricate city layout. The enemy was hiding in this huge ancient ruin, which greatly increased the difficulty of the attack.
"After surviving this dangerous landing battle, the rest will be easy."
In the next few days, the fleet unloaded supplies at Acre City port.
The flaw of Acre City is that the water depth of the port is insufficient, and it can only berth medium-sized ships under 200 tons. Heavy warships and heavy cargo ships must be parked in a slightly farther area, and materials are transferred through small boats, which affects the unloading efficiency.
On March 16, most of the ships left Acre City and returned to Lycia to meet the second batch of troops.
In the absence of cavalry, Vitus did not rush to attack the surrounding areas, but regularly sent soldiers out of the city to cut trees, and at other times they stayed in the city to clean up ruins and repair port facilities.