| [CHAP. I.] | |
| THE ORIGIN AND FIRST APPEARANCES OF CHIVALRY IN EUROPE. | |
| Page | |
| General nature of chivalry ... Military and moral chivalry ... Origin of chivalry ... Usages of the Germans ... Election of soldiers ...Fraternity ... Dignity of obedience ... Gallantry ... The age of Charlemagne ... Chivalry modified by religion ... Ceremonies of Anglo-Saxoninauguration ... Chivalry sanctioned by councils, and regarded as a form of Christianity ... Nature of chivalric nobility ... Its degrees ...Knight banneret ... His qualifications ... By whom created ... His privileges ... His relation to the baron ... And incidentally of the war-cryand the escutcheon ... The knight ... Qualifications for knighthood ... By whom created ... The squirehood ... General view of the otherchapters on the institutions of chivalry | [1] |
| [CHAP. II.] | |
| THE EDUCATION OF A KNIGHT. THE CEREMONIES OF INAUGURATION AND OF DEGRADATION. | |
| Description in romances of knightly education ... Hawking and hunting ... Education commenced at the age of seven ... Duties of the page ...Personal service ... Love and religion ... Martial exercises ... The squire ... His duties of personal service ... Curious story of a bold young squire... Various titles of squires ... Duties of the squire in battle ... Gallantry ... Martial exercises ... Horsemanship ... Importance of squires in thebattle-field ... Particularly at the battle of Bovines ... Preparations for knighthood ... The anxiety of the squire regarding the character of theknight from whom he was to receive the accolade ... Knights made in the battle-field ... Inconveniences of this ... Knights of Mines ... Generalceremonies of degradation ... Ceremonies in England | [26] |
| [CHAP. III.] | |
| THE EQUIPMENT. | |
| Beauty of the chivalric equipment ... The lance ... The pennon ... The axe, maule, and martel ... The sword ... Fondness of the knight for it... Swords in romances ... The shield ... Various sorts of mail ... Mail ... Mail and plate ... Plate harness ... The scarf ... Surcoats ... Armorialbearings ... Surcoats of the military orders ... The dagger of mercy ... Story of its use ... Value of enquiries into ancient armour ... A precise knowledgeunattainable ... Its general features interesting ... The broad lines ofthe subject ... Excellence of Italian armour ... Armour of the squire, &c. ... Allegories made on armour ... The horse of the knight | [65] |
| [CHAP. IV.] | |
| THE CHIVALRIC CHARACTER. | |
| General array of knights ... Companions in arms ... The nature of a cavalier’s valiancy ... Singular bravery of Sir Robert Knowles ...Bravery incited by vows ... Fantastic circumstances ... The humanities of chivalric war ... Ransoming ... Reason of courtesies in battles ... Curiouspride of knighthood ... Prisoners ... Instance of knightly honour ... Independence of knights, and knight-errantry ... Knights fought the battles ofother countries ... English knights dislike wars in Spain ... Their disgust at Spanish wines ... Principles of their active conduct ... Knightlyindependence consistent with discipline ... Religion of the knight ... His devotion ... His intolerance ... General nature of his virtue ... Fidelityto obligations ... Generousness ... Singular instance of it ... Romantic excess of it ... Liberality ... Humility ... Courtesy ... EVERY-DAYLIFE OF THE KNIGHT ... Falconry ... Chess playing ... Story of a knight’s love of chess ... Minstrelsy ... Romances ... Conversation ...Nature and form of chivalric entertainments ... Festival and vow of the pheasant | [117] |
| [CHAP. V.] | |
| DAMES AND DAMSELS, AND LADY-LOVE. | |
| Courtesy ... Education ... Music ... Graver sciences ... Dress ...Knowledge of medicine ... Every-day life of the maiden ... Chivalric love ... The idolatry of the knight’s passion ... Bravery inspired by love ...Character of woman in the eyes of a knight ... Peculiar nature of his love ... Qualities of knights admired by women ... A tale of chivalric love ...Constancy ... Absence of jealousy ... Knights asserted by arms their mistress’s beauty ... Penitents of love ... Other peculiarities of chivalriclove ... The passion universal ... Story of Aristotle ... Chivalric love the foe to feudal distinctions ... But preserved religion ... When attachmentswere formed ... Societies of knights for the defence of ladies ... Knights of the lady in the green field ... Customs in England ... Unchivalric to takewomen prisoners ... Morals of chivalric times ... Heroines of chivalry ... Queen Philippa ... The Countess of March ... Tales of Jane of Mountfort andof Marzia degl’ Ubaldini ... Nobleness of the chivalric female character | [181] |
| [CHAP. VI.] | |
| TOURNAMENTS AND JOUSTS. | |
| Beauty of chivalric sports ... Their superiority to those of Greece and Rome ... Origin of tournaments ... Reasons for holding them ... Practicein arms ... Courtesy ... By whom they were held ... Qualifications for tourneying ... Ceremonies of the tournament ... Arrival of the knights ...Publication of their names ... Reasons for it ... Disguised knights ... The lists ... Ladies the judges of the tournament ... Delicate courtesy attournaments ... Morning of the sports ... Knights led by ladies, who imitated the dress of knights ... Nature of tourneying weapons ... Knights woreladies’ favours ... The preparation ... The encounter ... What lance-strokes won the prize ... Conclusionof the sports ... The festival ... Delivery of the prize ... Knights thankedby ladies ... The ball ... Liberality ... Tournaments opposed by the popes ... The opposition unjust ... The joust ... Description of the joust to theutterance ... Joust between a Scotch and an English knight ... Jousting for love of the ladies ... A singular instance of it ... Joust between a Frenchand an English squire ... Admirable skill of jousters ... Singular questions regarding jousts ... An Earl of Warwick ... Celebrated joust at St. Inglebertes... Joust between Lord Scales and the Bastard of Burgundy ... The romance of jousts ... The passage of arms ... Use of tournaments and jousts | [258] |
| [CHAP. VII.] | |
| THE RELIGIOUS AND MILITARY ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD. | |
| General principles of the religious orders ... Qualifications for them ... Use of these orders to Palestine ... Modern history of the Knights Templars... Their present existence and state ... Religious orders in Spain ... That of St. James ... Its objects ... Change of its objects ... Order of Calatrava ...Fine chivalry of a monk ... Fame of this order ... Order of Alcantara ... Knights of the Lady of Mercy ... Knights of St. Michael ... Military orders ...Imitations of the religious orders ... Instanced in the order of the Garter ... Few of the present orders are of chivalric origin ... Order of the Bath ...Dormant orders ... Order of the Band ... Its singular rules ... Its noble enforcement of chivalric duties towards woman ... Order of Bourbon ... Strange titlesof orders ... Fabulous orders ... The Round Table ... Sir Launcelot ... Sir Gawain ... Order of the Stocking ... Origin of the phrase Blue Stocking | [332] |
| [CHAP. VIII.] | |
| PROGRESS OF CHIVALRY IN ENGLAND, FROM THE NORMAN CONQUEST TO THE CLOSE OF THE REIGN OF EDWARD II. | |
| Chivalry connected with feudalism ... Stipendiary knights ... Knighthood a compulsory honour ... Fine instance of chivalry in the reign of Edward I. ...Effect of chivalry in Stephen’s reign ... Troubadours and romance writers in the reign of Henry II. ... Chivalric manners of the time ... Cœur de Lionthe first chivalric king ... His knightly bearing ... John and Henry III. ... Edward I. ... His gallantry at a tournament ... His unchivalric cruelties ... Hepossessed no knightly courtesy ... Picture of ancient manners ... Edward II. ... Chivalric circumstance in the battle of Bannockburn ... Singular effect ofchivalry in the reign of Edward II. | [382] |
THE HISTORY OF CHIVALRY.
CHAP. I.
THE ORIGIN AND FIRST APPEARANCES OF CHIVALRY IN EUROPE.
General Nature of Chivalry ... Military and Moral Chivalry ... Origin of Chivalry ... Usages of the Germans ... Election of Soldiers ... Fraternity ... Dignity of Obedience ... Gallantry ... The Age of Charlemagne ... Chivalry modified by Religion ... Ceremonies of Anglo-Saxon Inauguration ... Chivalry sanctioned by Councils, and regarded as a Form of Christianity ... Nature of Chivalric Nobility ... Its Degrees ... Knight Banneret ... His Qualifications ... By whom created ... His Privileges ... His relation to the Baron ... And incidentally of the War-Cry and the Escutcheon ... The Knight ... Qualifications for Knighthood ... By whom created ... The Squirehood ... General View of the other Chapters on the Institutions of Chivalry.
There is little to charm the imagination in the first ages of Chivalry. No plumed steeds, no warrior bearing on his crested helm the favour of his lady bright, graced those early times. All was rudeness and gloom. But the subject is not altogether without interest, as it must ever be curious to mark the causes and the first appearances in conduct of any widely spread system of opinions.
Nature of Chivalry.
The martial force of the people who occupied northern and central Europe in the time of the Romans, was chiefly composed of infantry[8]; but afterwards a great though imperceptible change took place, and, during all the long period which forms, in historic phrase, the middle ages, cavalry was the strongest arm of military power. Terms, expressive of this martial array, were sought for in its distinguishing circumstances. Among the ruins of the Latin language, caballus signified a horse, caballarius a horseman, and caballicare, to ride; and from these words all the languages that were formed on a Latin basis, derived their phrases descriptive of military duties on horseback. In all languages of Teutonic origin, the same circumstance was expressed by words literally signifying service. The German knight, the Saxon cnight, are synonymous to the French cavalier, the Italian cavaliere, and the Spanish caballero. The word rider also designated the same person, preceded by, or standing without, the word knight.