INTRODUCTIONIH tories of knights and knighthood have been passed down for centuries Movies and television depictions have strengthened the legend of the most significant military figures of the Mid dle Ages One envisions knights as warriors mounted on horses and dressed in suits of armor That view is more or less accurate The word knight is derived from the Old English word cniht the equivalent of the Latin word caballarius meaning horse man And they did indeed wear suits of armor chain mail or hardened leather for protection They also carried weapons such as SWOrds and lances Les EE Knights arose as a distinct order around the year 1000 The first knights appeared in France They were typically young men from noble families or from non noble fame ilies that owned land and property called landed gentry Their roles as warriors and B MRSA as protectors of royalty often earned them as at titles of lordship and property The ideal knight of the Middle Ages was D gallant virtuous and brave and was sworn to protect those who could not protect
INTRODUCTION themselves This idealistic behavior became known as the chivalric code Images of chivalrous knights rescuing damsels in distress and protecting the downtrodden were popularized and cemented by the literature of that period and beyond In reality however many knights did not live up to these expectations The era of knighthood emerged and thrived before guns and gunpowder forever changed military strategy Knights first appeared Many people today are fascinated by knights and the Middle Ages Some of these people have created and joined groups dedicated to re creating medieval culture crafts and skills Here two such men participate in a late medieval style
KNIGHTS during a period of widespread violence and political upheaval when land equaled wealth and power With land and people to work the land an individual could grow food raise animals and extract resources like timber or metals Any excess resources could be sold for profit People fought each other to take and keep land In the early Middle Ages anyone who owned land needed a fighting force to protect the land Knights served as soldiers and protectors Medieval European society was organized in a feudal system a type of political system Within this system most people fell into three main categories lords vassals and serfs Lords owned land and property and often held a title of nobility such as duke or baron among others Even a king was a lord one who controlled all the land that he ruled over and granted titles of nobility to those who served him faithfully Vassals were individuals who pledged their loyalty and services to a lord In exchange the lord would promise his vassals protection a place to live or even land of their own Lower ranking lords often pledged their services to higher ranking lords and all lords were the vassals of their king Serfs were peasants who worked the land or were servants in the lord's house A knight served as a vassal He received land or other favors from his lord in exchange for his military service as a warrior Knights might eventually become landowners either in recompense for their service or by inheriting Many of the noble lords in medieval Europe were knights themselves or had been Knights in their youth As a result a single warrior class with clear social divi sions within it emerged to lead Euro pean
CHAPTER 1 A GooD KNIGHT n order to become a knight young men and boys trained for more than a decade beginning their education as young as seven years old Boys who were set to become knights were sent to the castle of a nobleman who was himself a skilled knight often their fathers lord For several years a prospective knight served as a page to the lord and his lady He waited on them at the dinner table and accompanied them to various formal functions He received Christian religious instruction from the chaplain and began to train in military matters with the squires He carried messages from the castle But his most important training at this age was learning how to ride a horse SQUIRES KNIGHTS IN TRAINING After a few years these young men graduated to the rank of squire Squires were truly knights in training They took lessons in han dling weaponry and wearing the heavy armor required for knights Squires also served as aids to knights preparing for battle They helped the knights put on their armor which by the late Middle Ages was made from heavy metal plate The squire also ensured that his knight's sword and other arms were sharp and polished At this stage a young knight in training also received his first taste of combat though generally not as a warrior A squire accompanied
