By far the greater part of England [in the 13th century] is held of the king by knight's service. . . . In order to understand this tenure we must form the conception of a unit of military service. That unit seems to be the service of one knight or fully armed horseman (servitium unius militis) to be done to the king in his army for forty days in the year, if it be called for. . . . The limit of forty days seems to have existed rather in theory than practice. Pollock & Mait.
2. Service such as a knight can or should render; hence, good or valuable service.
KNIGHT'S FEE
Knight's fee. (Feudal Law)
Defn: The fee of a knight; specif., the amount of land the holding of which imposed the obligation of knight service, being sometimes a hide or less, sometimes six or more hides.
KNIGHT TEMPLAR
Knight" Tem"plar; pl. Knights Templars (.
Defn: See Commandery, n., 3, and also Templar, n., 1 and 3.
KNIT
Knit, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Knit or Knitted; p. pr. & vb. n. Knitting.]
Etym: [OE. knitten, knutten, As. cnyttan, fr. cnotta knot; akin to
Icel. kn, Sw. knyta, Dan. knytte. See Knot.]
1. To form into a knot, or into knots; to tie together, as cord; to
fasten by tying.
A great sheet knit at the four corners. Acts x. 11.
When your head did but ache, I knit my handkercher about your brows.
Shak.
2. To form, as a textile fabric, by the interlacing of yarn or thread in a series of connected loops, by means of needles, either by hand or by machinery; as, to knit stockings.
3. To join; to cause to grow together. Nature can not knit the bones while the parts are under a discharge. Wiseman.