Turn 00A

Prologue - Swords of the Blood The gathering forces

October, 18th, 1096
It is one week before the army of the Lord departs for the Holy Land. The objective of this pilgrimage is to recapture the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. The armies of the kingdoms of Normandy, Flanders and Blois have been gathering since the end of winter earlier this year. There have already been delays in the mustering of forces. Poor harvests in Blois and Flanders delayed the movement of the armies by two months. And already the armies of Godfrey of Bouillon, numbering over thirty one thousand has already departed from Cologne some two months earlier, there route taking them into the Holy Roman Empire. The armies of Robert Courteheuse, the Duke of Normandy, have gathered outside the city of Lyon. Lyon borders the kingdoms of the Franks and the Holy Roman Empire. Robert is the eldest son of William 1, the Conqueror and was recognized by his father to succeed him in Normandy. However, in 1077 with the support of Philip 1 of France he rebelled against his father. In 1082 he rebelled a second time and was forced into exile in Italy until the death of his father in 1087. Robert then returned as Duke of Normandy. In 1091 Roberts younger brother, King William II of England invaded Normandy and captured two counties. William attacked again in 1094 and when peace was reached between the two opposing leaders, Robert of Normandy gave King William control of his lands in return for a sum of 15,000 marks. This money has been used by the Duke of Normandy to fund his army to recapture the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. With him is Robert of Flanders (Count of Flanders) and Stephen of Blois, Count of Mortain and Boulogne and son in law of William the Conqueror. They are accompanied by a large entourage of nobles the most influential being: Archambauld de St-Armand, related to Robert of Flanders Geoffroi de Chartres, vassal of Robert of Normandy Guillaume de Anjou,, vassal of Robert of Normandy Fulke de Champere, vassal of Robert of Normandy Gerard de Anjou (Count of Montpellier) Payen de Montdidier, cousin of Robert of Flanders Guibert de Fontevrault, vassal of Gerard de Anjou Hugh of Champagne (Count of Troyes) Geoffroy Bisol, cousin of Stephen of Blois Andre de Montbard, a vassal of Hugh of Champagne Hugues de Payen a vassal of Hugh of Champagne Bertrand Avernes, Bishop of Chartres Gerard of Vezelay, son of Raymond, Count of Vezelay Peter Montbard, Duke of Wessex (representative of King William II of England) Charles Previen, Bishop of York Guimard Folkmar, Bishop of Lyon

With them have journeyed bishops and lay members of the clergy and a swelling and growing army of approximately twenty six thousand souls. And gathered among the army are knights, men-at-arms, merchants, scholars, peasants, and those who seek penance from their sins, all of whom have responded to the call of Pope Urban II. They have come in small groups over the past two months, led by the nobility and the bishops of Rome. Many small encampments were founded outside the cities of Tours, Chartres, Reims, Blois and Armiens. After the winter of 1095 the armies moved along the roads through Normandy, Bloise and into Nevers where they were welcomed by Raymond of Vezelay on September 14th. The army had now been swelled to thirty three thousand by the joining of many enthusiastic pilgrims. At Nevers they were joined by Gerard, the son of the Count of Vezelay with an army of two thousand and they entered Burgundy on September 18th and encamped at Cluny on the border between the Norman kingdoms and the Holy Roman Empire the following evening. A blessing was conferred upon the crusaders by Fulk Le Puen, who had journeyed from the Church of St Magdalene at Rocamadour, a major centre of pilgrimage. At this blessing, Fulk Le Puen fortold: The statue of the blessed virgin Mary in the holy city shall bleed two tears of the blood of the divine son for each day this holy pilgrimage takes to reach the city. Seek those among you, worthy in the eyes our Lord, this sacred artefact and you shall be blessed by the Lord for all eternity. For the tears confer powers of the Lord that will enrich the spirit and the soul. The crusaders left Cluny on September 22nd and arrived in Lyon five days later. It is from this city that the army will depart for the Holy Land. The intended route is still under discussion by the leaders, but the popular route will take the army to Rome itself where it is hoped that Pope Urban II will bless the army before their departure to either the Holy Land or the city of Constantinople. Lyon is a city of eight thousand and lies before the Alps, that separate the Holy Roman Empire from the Duchy of Milan and the Lands of St Peter (the Papal States). Lyon is full of pilgrims who have come to see the Venerated Cross, a shard of the true cross on which Jesus was crucified. This treasured artefact is found within the halls of St Peters Monastery, which overlooks the city. The arrival of the crusaders has come as a great surprise to the people of Lyon. Though Anthony Calabrasus, the Baron of Lyon was expecting the arrival of the army, the people of the city are treating the arrival of the crusaders with some trepidation. The crusaders are spread among 20 encampments gathered around those who have accompanied the nobility. Some of the encampments are still been established with the help of peasants from the local villages that surround the city. The approximate breakdown of these encampments are: a. b. Encampments 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5: Robert, Duke of Normandy, Geoffroi de Chartres, Guillaume de Anjou and Fulke de Champere with an army of 14,300. These encampments are located 3 miles north of Lyon. Encampments 6, 7 and 8: Robert of Flanders, Archambauld de St-Armand and Payen de Montididier with an army of 4,600. These encampments are located 5 miles west of Lyon, near the village of Brousse. Encampments 9, 10 and 11: Hugh of Champagne, Andre de Montbard and Hugues de Payen with an army of 4,600. These encampments are located 6 miles south west of Lyon. Encampments 12, 13, 14 and 15: Stephen of Blois and Geoffroy Bisol with an army of 2,700. These encampments are located 8 miles east of Lyon. Encampments 16, 17 and 18: Peter Montbard, Duke of Wessex; Charles Previen, Bishop of York with and army of 800 from King William II of England. Count Gerard De Anjou; Guibert De Fontevrault and Bertrand Avernes with an army of 3,600. These encampments are located five miles west of the village of Volloure (8 miles west of Lyon). Encampment 19 and 20: Gerard, son of the Count of Vezelay with an army of 2,100. These encampments are located 10 miles east of Lyon, near the village of En-Chleoix.

c. d. e.

f.