The Medieval Knight and Chivalry

The Medieval Knight and Chivalry

Thesis

Warfare was not an option during the medieval period, it was a common way of life and the knight was the most crucial part of the battles that raged on.

I. The History of Knights

The medieval period was dominated by the feudal system and the role of medieval knights was outstanding, so that when we think of medieval times often the first thought that comes to us is that of medieval knights and their ladies. The duty of a knight was to learn to fight, use weapons, and to serve his lord in accordance with the Code of Chivalry. Mean age was a very violent in European history.

When the Normans (Vikings), directed by William the Conqueror invaded England (900), it took many men ready to protect the land. Initially, young men were oaths of fidelity to provide military service to protect a lord or noble. Over time these service men warrior began to accumulate wealth and acquired their own land, allowing them to pay for supplies needed to carry out military campaigns and maintain their own army's men. Soon, the Knights were a kind of nobility to all themselves.

In the practice of weapons includes skills in handling the sword with hands, ax, mace, dagger ylanza. A gentleman was expected to be a guard at the castle and in support of their feudal wars. The medieval knight was one of three types of men of war during the Middle Ages, knights, soldiers, and archers. The medieval knight was the equivalent of the modern tank. He was covered with several layers of shielding, and it was hard face, let alone to walk or stand. Usually a family was well off; it was extremely expensive to get the armor and the ideal horse for battle. The workhorse could cost the equivalent today of a car.

Becoming a knight was part of the feudal agreement. In return for their military service, the knight received a fief. In the late Middle Ages, many prospective knights began to pay "protection money" for his master would not have to serve in the army of the king. The money was used to create a professional army that was paid and supported by the king. These knights often fought more for the sacking of army salaries.

When they captured a city, they were allowed to loot, steal goods and valuables. Medieval chivalry arose in the aftermath of the collapse of royal power in the ninth century and is best seen as an ideological and cultural response to political, military, and social necessities. Its roots were varied, but the Teutonic warrior ethos, Christian teachings on licit and illicit violence, and the gradual social ascendancy of the armored horseman, whose service to his lord was supported by land, family, and patronage, were all important elements.

Historians see these elements converging somewhere between the early Carolingian empire (c. 800 CE) and the preaching of the First Crusade in 1095. Georges Duby connected the emergence of ...