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See also order of chivalry Chivalry refers to the medieval institution of knighthood and, most especially, the ideals that were (or have become) associated with it. It is usually, for example, associated with ideals of knightly virtues, honour and courtly love. The word comes from the French word chevalier which means knight. The English word cavalier comes from the same root. Ultimately the word gained an aristocratic connotation, as it distinguished the wealthy knight on horseback from the peasant infantryman walking with his pike and the artilleryman dragging his vulgar machinery. Chivalry was in essence a warrior code that was later appropriated and propagated by the Church, which added a Christian aspect. The Church even allowed warrior monks to create orders of chivalry, which were organizations of Christian knights who would protect the church and society. Courtly love lay more emphasis on the courtesy and respect for ladies. Three tendencies in chivalry are distinguishable: In war, the chivalrous knight was idealized as brave in battle, loyal to his king and God and willing to sacrifice himself for the lord or king. Towards his fellow Christians and countrymen, the knight was to be merciful, humble and courteous. Towards noble ladies, above all, the knight was to be gracious and gentle. The idealized relationship between knight and lady was that of courtly love. Today, chivalry is interpreted as courteous behavior, especially by men, towards women. A quotation often associated with this idea comes from Edmund Burke: "The age of chivalry is gone." *, often misquoted as "The age of chivalry is dead." There was no single code that served as a definition of how a knight should act, but there were several lists written down during the Middle Ages. One example code can be found in the book Chivalry by 19th century French historian Leon Gautier.
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