The Chivalric Knight: The Romantic vs The Religious in Medieval Europe
By Elizabeth Weinberg
‘Chivalry’ evokes the images of heroic knights rescuing damsels in distress one might find in poetic literary sources. While it did have romantic elements, chivalry was widely influential in shaping the customs and norms of the elite knightly class in medieval western Europe. While ‘knight’ is a Germanic word, the term ‘chivalry’ comes from the French ‘chevalier’ which is derived from ‘cheval,’ the word for horse (Saul, 2011: 7). Therefore a chivalrous knight was a heavily armed warrior who was skilled in the art of horsemanship (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). Initially this label referred to any armed man and dealt with the behaviour and laws of the battlefield. However going into the 11th century, it became increasingly more expensive to afford the equipment needed for warfare, especially horses, which allowed the aristocracy to commandeer the increasingly elite title of ‘knight.’ With this shift, chivalry was then associated with the values of the nobility and gentry (Prestage, 2004: 13). At its hight of influence from 1250 to 1350, 'membership was limited to those who were of noble birth and without reproach in reputation’ (Prestage, 2004: 17 and Keen, 2000: 209). Nonetheless, the chivalric code of honour governed various areas of life for knights including religion, court life, social mobility, relationships, literature and the arts.
Matthew Strickland argues that the need for chivalric knights emerged from the collapse of the Frankish Carolingian Empire in the 9th century (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). Civil war between nobles led to a need for loyal knights whose service was bound by ‘grants of pensions, fees, household or military office, often accompanied by gifts of robes and livery collars or badges’ (Keen, 2000: 211). The west was in a constant state of warfare, and defeat in battle for the unfortunate knights meant slavery or death. However, these knights shared their Christian religion and a Frankish culture, resulting in the ‘elite warriors developing a brotherhood in arms’ (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). A widespread monetary economy additionally made the ransoming of prisoners especially profitable for successful knights, leading to a strategic change in warfare.
As codes of chivalry developed, the royalty and aristocracy began to formalise their ties to knights by creating societies in their service. The first of these was created in 1325 by King Charles-Robert of Hungary. His Society of St George, fitting as St George was martyred as a Roman-Christian solder, gathered fifty knights to be sworn to ‘observe a series of religious knightly obligations laid down in the founder’s statutes’ (Keen, 2000: 209). This scheme was soon adopted across Europe; the Order of the Band in Castile in 1331, the Order of the Garter in England in 1349, the Order of Star in France in 1350, the Order of the Collar in Savoy in 1364 and the Ermine in Brittany in 1380 (Keen, 2000: 209). Edward III’s Order of the Garter emerged from his knight’s success in the battles at Crécy and Calais during the Hundred years war, securing their future loyalty (Keen, 2000: 210). Following his enemy’s example, John II of France confirmed the allegiance of his own knights in creating the Order of the Star. England’s monarchy required knights to remain loyal to their one king, unlike the divided Francia, though this allowed knights to gain greater power by, for instance, acquiring positions in parliament (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). The kings favour, along with the numerous benefits which came with it, encouraged the loyalty and prowess of other courtiers wishing to gain such privileges. The Chronicle of Alfonso XI describes the Castilian Order of the Band, illustrating how the ceremony of knighthood was performed ’in such a way that each one of the others wanted to do well in chivalry to gain that honour and the good will of the King’ (Keen, 2000: 210). While I agree with Strickland’s argument that chivalric bands under lords emerged in Francia as a result of national division, warrior bands have existed since long before the medieval era. Therefore, other factors must be taken into account to understand how chivalry became so culturally influential.
Christianisation throughout Europe was especially prevalent by the middle ages, yet often clashed with the ambitions of the aristocracy. Laura Ashe points out the issues which emerged from the church ‘telling the entire ruling class of Europe that they won’t get the rewards of their own religion’ due to killing fellow Christians in their constant warfare (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). The slavery of christians was also condemned, which additionally promoted the shift to ransoming knights (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). It was not until the Crusades, along with other ‘holy wars’ against non-Christian people, that the church formally sanctioned violence. Monasteries also understood that the aristocratic knights were their future patrons, leading to their promotion of pious chivalry. The church believed that the ideal chivalric knight was ‘religious, chaste, virtuous, and humble’ yet ‘willing to shed blood’ for God (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). The Virgin Mary was even viewed as the patroness of chivalric knights. While some knights did live like monks, often later in life, Ashe argues that the chivalric piety is a different kind of piety than that of the church (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). Looking at religious works of art such as the Wilton Diptych, it is obvious that the royals and aristocracy used Christianity to legitimise their authority and gain support from their followers. Therefore, I would argue that the supposedly pious aspects of chivalry were used to justify the knights’ daily life away from the holy wars rather than directly influenced the popularity of chivalric culture.
The ceremony of knighthood has been previously mentioned in regards to its allure for those hoping to gain a king’s good favour. Similar chivalric ceremonies and pageantries such as feasts and jousting were the height of entertainment in the medieval court (Keen, 2000: 214). Knighthoods were extremely formal and reminiscent of religious rituals; bathed and dressed in white robes for purification ‘and a scarlet doublet, the emblem of nobility’ before being absolved and blessed by the priest, and making vows to their patron knight (Prestage, 2004:17). Tournaments, on the other hand, appear as more social events. These events allowed knights to parade their gallantry and skills for possible patrons and the ladies of the court. Economically, tournaments could be extremely beneficial for successful knights, as the winner of a duel could ransom the loser for money, with the addition that he was ‘entitled to claim the armour and horse of his captive as legitimate spoils battle’ (Saul, 2011: 17). For that reason, tournaments were essential for young knights, often the younger sons of nobles without inheritance, to make their own fortunes and gain glory, helping them move up the social ladder (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). It appears more likely that social events such as these, with their economic benefits and the chance for upward mobility, is what lured the aristocratic knights to adopt chivalric customs.
The romance of the chivalric literature is likely the most distinguishing and memorable hallmark of medieval knighthood. The imagery found in medieval art and sculpture would not evoke the same impression without the legendary Arthurian romances. Geoffrey of Monmouth’s 'The History of the Kings of Britain’ written in 1130s not only ‘explained and legitimated national origins’ historically, but presented a parallel between the contemporary court and the romantic chivalric court of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table (Saul, 2011: 43). Maurice Keen suggests that the Order of the Garter was King Edward III’s attempt to create his own Arthurian Round Table (Keen, 2000: 212). Nigel Saul supports this claim, drawing parallels between the conquest of Arthur and that of England during the Hundred Years War (Saul, 2011: 42). The trope of the courtly lady whose love ‘ennobles’ the knight, as if love aids or inspires him in his quests, is an especially captivating notion, and may have inspired romantic gestures at social gatherings such as tournaments (Saul, 2011: 268). As the popular literature at the time, the king and his court would undoubtedly be familiar with these romances and identify with the characters, making it very probable that both Keen and Saul’s arguments bear some truth. The themes around the ‘performing of brave deeds, the knightly quest for honour and the love of a knight for his lady’ all add to the romantic drama and entertainment of the stories, additionally aligning with the values of the chivalric court (Saul, 2011: 37).
Though ‘religion, military duty, and love’ were meant to be the defining characteristics of the chivalric knights, the reality of the aristocratic court was likely less romantic (Prestage, 2004: 13). Contrary to traditional chivalric values of piety and moral codes, warfare continued and knights killed their countrymen and Christians, including the celebrated King Henry V who killed French prisoners at Agincourt (In Our Time, 2014, BBC). From this fact, we can assume that it was not truly religion or loyalty which drove the chivalric culture, but likely economic and social gain attained from chivalric traditions. Regardless, modern weaponry changed systems of warfare, as men on horseback could not dominate cannons. The medieval chivalric knights became the contemporary officer class which were not assigned the same pious and romantic attributes as the skilled and courageous knights.
Bibliography
Prestage, E (2004) Chivalry. London : Routledge.
In Our Time. (2014) “Chivalry.” BBC, speakers Miri Rubin, Matthew Strickland, & Laura Ashe, Podcast, BBC Radio 4, Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03tt7kn. (Accessed: 10 March 2022).
Keen, M (2000) ‘Chivaly and the Aristocracy’ in ‘The new Cambridge medieval history VI: Volume VI c. 1300-1415’ ed Michael Jones, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Saul, N (2011) For Honour and Fame. United Kingdom, Random House.
The National Gallery (2022) ’The Wilton Diptych’ The National Gallery. Available at: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/english-or-french-the-wilton-diptych (Accessed: 10 March 2022).