The Rise of the European Emperor

However, not all Polish nobles gave face. Just when Marin and Sigismund I discussed the formation of the Polish winged cavalry, a Polish duke named Vaniewski expressed doubts:

"Grand Duke Marin, your cavalry performance is certainly wonderful. However, this does not prove that the combat effectiveness of these cavalry is really strong. Therefore, I think it is necessary to conduct an actual knight combat competition to truly see their combat ability!"

Wanevsky's proposal was approved by most of the Polish nobles. After all, no matter how good the performance is, it does not mean that the combat effectiveness is really strong. Moreover, these big nobles like to watch competitions very much...

Marlin was a little depressed, he never liked knights in actual combat. Because this is too dangerous. Infantry is better in combat, and knights are prone to casualties. For example, the famous French King Henry II accidentally died in a knightly contest.

Therefore, Marin never liked to participate in knight competitions, nor did he allow his subordinates to perform knight competitions. In knight competitions, knights are not only easy to be killed by opponents by mistake, but also have great danger after being knocked off their horses. For example, if the head is on the ground, there is a danger of breaking the neck easily.

However, at this moment, Marin is also a bit difficult to ride a tiger. Moreover, the 1,000 Lancers he recruited were all from the knight family, and they valued honor. When Marin hesitated, they fought. So, Marin finally agreed to a knightly contest. However, the scale was compressed by Marin to the 100-person scale.

In addition, Marin does not advocate high-speed riding competitions, but requires low-speed charging competitions. In this way, the probability of casualties is smaller. In addition, in the martial arts school, Marin asked people to put a thick layer of hay on the ground. In this way, even if the contestant is accidentally dismounted from the horse, there is a thick hay bedding, and the chance of injury is smaller.

After half a day of preparation, 100 Polish knights finally arrived at the school grounds in the afternoon to compete with 100 Lancers.

Polish knights use, naturally, hollow oak lances that are 2.8 meters to 3 meters long. The lancers of Marin, on the other hand, used spring lances. The length of the spring lance is four or five meters long, which is much longer than the hollow oak lance.

Because it is a vulgar charge battle, the buffering function of the spring is naturally useless. Therefore, when launching the charge, the lancers are all right back a little bit, holding the wooden pole. The left hand, on the other hand, holds the sleeve with the spring attached to the front. As for the control of horses, at the moment of engagement, there is no problem. Moreover, because they are not wearing horse armor, the lancers can easily clamp the horse's stomach through their riding boots and control the direction of the horse. Unlike when wearing horse armor, the horse does not feel the strength of the rider's boots or does not feel clearly, and it is not so easy to use.

Originally, Marin was full of confidence, but the final result surprised him...

Of course, it wasn't that the Lancers were defeated, but the result was somewhat unexpected by Marin...

Logically,

The Lancer's spring lance is much longer than the hollow oak lance and can hit the opponent first. Moreover, the plate armor knights wear full body plate armor, and if it is not easy to move on horseback, they will definitely be hit. In this case, it should be those plate armor knights who were dismounted...

That's right, those lancers hit those knights first. But the final result was that most Polish knights were dismounted, and a small number of knights were not dismounted because they were too stable on their horses, and the lancers who hit them were hit by a strong reaction force. Dismounted from the horse...

The final result - 100 Polish knights, 69 were shot down. And the other 31 Polish knights, although they were all hit by the lancers first, but it was the lancers who fell off their horses...

"Shouldn't be..." Marin was puzzled. You must know that these 1,000 lancers are all from the German knight family, and they are all masters of martial arts since childhood. They are no worse than these Polish knights, but why were they dismounted?

When arranging for his Mongolian doctor to treat the fallen Lancers for their injuries, Marin asked a dismounted but uninjured Lancer to understand the situation. The lancer faced Marin's question, and after thinking for a while, said:

"My lord, I think it's because the other party has a gun in his right hand, and his left hand is still firmly grasping the reins. However, we have a lance in both hands, and we are not as stable as each other. After the collision, I only had my feet on the stirrups, and The other party has an extra hand to grab the reins, which is more stable than me. So, in the end, I fell from the horse, and the other party barely fell..."

"So that's the case..." Marin suddenly realized. Indeed, in this collision, one side holds the reins with one hand, while the other holds the weapon with both hands. Fortunately, this is a low-speed confrontation. If it is a high-speed confrontation, the plate armored knights have greater kinetic energy than the lancers. Even if the lancers poke the opponent first, the opponent is protected by plate armor. As long as they are stable, it is easy to dismount the lancer.

"Then, should I let the lancers hold the gun with one hand? However, if the speed is not fast, the contraction of the spring reduces the impact force of the spring lance..." Marin was troubled...

Of course, when Marin was distressed, Sigismund I and the great nobles of Poland and Lithuania were shocked—Nima, as expected, one inch long and one inch strong. Although 31 opponents were knocked off their horses, 69 Polish knights were knocked off their horses... The most important thing is that knights in full-body plate armor are very inflexible on horseback, and can only watch the lancers put the spring on the horse. The gun hit them first. Fortunately, there are plate armor to protect the body. If the light cavalry does not wear plate armor, he will definitely be stabbed to death first...

This result also strengthened Sigismund I's determination to form a lancer army. As for the goose feather wings, naturally they should be preserved. After all, that one is very cool, a bit like the wings of an angel, and it also has sound effects when it rushes, which is very emotional...

But Marin ignored him for a while, and thought about it all night...

When it was dawn the next morning, with bloodshot eyes, Marin finally thought of a solution...

The solution is very simple, which is to insert a small cork wedge between the iron sleeve and the barrel of the spring lance. This wooden wedge has an inverted triangular shape for easy insertion and extraction.

After inserting this wooden wedge, the retraction of the spring lance is blocked by the wooden wedge. In order for the iron sleeve to compress the spring, it must first break the cork wedge. Then, the buffer can be compressed.

This principle is somewhat similar to the principle of tying a rope behind a naval gun. After the guns fired, they retreated and broke the rope. And the rope broke, absorbing a lot of recoil from the naval guns...

In the same way, after the head of the spring lance hits the enemy, the reaction force is transmitted back. It was passed between the gun barrel and the iron sleeve, but there was a wooden wedge blocking it, and the spring could not be compressed.

However, when the reaction force reaches a certain level, the wooden wedge that originally stuck the iron sleeve will be broken. Then, absorb a lot of reaction force. Then, the spring begins to work.

Marin chose to insert a softwood wedge out of fear that inserting a hardwood wedge would prevent the wooden wedge from breaking. If the wooden wedge could not be broken, the lancer holding the iron sleeve had to bear the huge reaction force from the tip of the spring lance. Then, the function of the spring is useless, and there is no difference between the spring lance and the ordinary spear.

The use of cork wedges to block the iron sleeve connected to the spring is more likely to be broken by the iron sleeve. The moment the cork wedge is broken, it absorbs a lot of reaction force. At the same time, the spring also begins to contract, absorbing the reaction force... As a result, the breakage of the cork wedge and the contraction of the spring will greatly improve the ability of the spring lance to absorb the reaction force...

What's more, the cork wedge prevents the spring from contracting up front. Then, after the tip of the gun hits the target, it will not shrink as soon as it comes up. Before the cork wedge breaks, the point of the gun stabs the enemy forward. Even if the charge speed is slower, there is no disadvantage of insufficient lethality. At least, before the cork wedge breaks, the point of the spring lance will not stop until it pierces the opponent.

In this way, the lancer does not have to use his right hand to hold the wooden barrel in a low-speed charge, and then use his left hand to hold the iron sleeve. The left hand is free to continue to hold the reins for its own stability. Even if they collide with the plate armor knights, they are not afraid of being easily dismounted from the shock.

Also, before the cork wedge breaks, the tip will give the enemy enough initial damage without worrying that the spring will start to contract as soon as the tip hits the opponent, causing the tip to be less powerful.

The breaking of the cork wedge can help the spring to distribute a lot of the reaction force (somewhat similar to the breaking effect of the hollow oak lance), giving the lancer's arms more protection. As for why the inverted triangle cork wedge is used? Wedges made of cork are easy to break, and the inverted triangle shape makes it easier to install and pull out the broken part.

When fighting, Lancers can carry a pack of inverted triangle cork wedges. After a round of charging, the Lancers can easily open the iron sleeve, pour out the broken part of the inverted triangle cork wedge (after all, it is an inverted triangle), and then quickly replace it with a new inverted triangle cork wedge, you can continue Fight with a spring lance and launch a new round of charge. Replacing a cork wedge with an inverted triangle is pretty quick if you're proficient...

The only trouble is, how big is this inverted triangle cork wedge. Because, the larger and thicker the cork wedges are made, the greater the recoil force required to break. Although it can cause stronger starting damage, if the force required to break is too high, it is easy to injure the Lancer. So it takes trial and error to go back and forth to get an accurate value in the end. The cork wedges are then produced to the exacting specifications for the Lancers. Each round of the Lancer's charge consumes a cork wedge. However, it seems that cork needs to be imported from Portugal...

Marin, who had come up with a solution, was very happy, and Sigismund I was greatly admired when he learned of Marin's solution. Then, Sigismund proposed - let Marin help him train 5,000 winged cavalry, uniformly equipped with spring lances...

Marin was naturally full of promises. After all, Marin monopolized the technology of spring steel in addition to the support of the Polish winged cavalry in the future. The Polish winged cavalry did not have the ability to produce springs for guns, and could only rely on their own supply of spring lances. In this way, his influence on the Polish winged cavalry will be greater...

So Marin left 50 instructors to help Sigismund I train the Lancers. And Sigismund I, before the big and small nobles who attended the wedding had left, recruited winged cavalry warriors from among them...

These noble families have many non-eldest sons who cannot inherit the title. Instead of letting them become wandering knights, it is better to join the king's winged cavalry, and they can also get some merit. Especially the non-eldest sons of those knight families, it is almost the best choice to mix with the king. Therefore, the recruitment of 5,000 Lancers went very smoothly. In this way, the first Polish winged cavalry team, with the financial support of the Jagiellonian family and the technical support of Marin, was successfully formed. However, unlike the Polish winged cavalry in the original history, their weapons have changed - from ordinary spears to "high-tech" spring lances... .

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