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Knight of the week

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Sir John of Felsenbau:
My new topic is "The Making of a Knight":

The Five Steps to Knighthood
Step 1 The right connections
Step 2 Upbringing
Step 3 The Page
Step 4 The Squire
Step 5 The Knight

Step 1 The right connections

A Knight was recognized by Middle Ages society as a man who possessed great combat skills and who adhered to the Code of Chivalry. During the Middle Ages, it was technically possible for any free man to become a knight. However, the process of training and equipping a knight with a horse and appropriate weapons was very expensive. Knights would therefore generally come from a noble, or wealthy, family - a would-be knight had to have the right connections. The origin of the term ' Knight' derives from Anglo-Saxon word "Cniht" meaning "boy" or "page boy". The steps to knighthood started as a boy. The honor of being a knight eventually passed from a knight to his sons.


Step 2 Upbringing

His future role as a Knight would be recognized at the birth of a son. His early upbringing would therefore be governed by this ambition. Up to the age of 7 years old a young boy would be brought up in the home of his parents. During this time he would be expected to learn basic good manners and basic literacy from their mothers and to understand the role of the knight, chivalry and loyalty to his liege lord. Games would be played mimicking the role of a knight. Toys would include a wooden sword and shield. A boy's aspirations to becoming a knight would be fuelled by attending tournaments and hearing stories of brave knightly deeds and combats.


(To be continued)

Sir John of Felsenbau:
Step 3 The Page

There was no definitive age for pages, but boys commonly began the process of learning to be a page at about 7 years of age. At the tender age of just seven years a young boy would be sent to commence his education at the home or castle of a noble. His role would be as a page, the third step towards becoming a knight. A page was also referred to as a 'varlet' meaning 'little vassal'. A page or page boy is traditionally a young male servant, but may also have been used for a messenger at the service of a nobleman or an apprentice knight.

A young boy served as a page for about seven years, running messages, serving, cleaning clothing and weapons, and learning the basics of combat. He might be required to arm or dress the lord to whom he had been sent by his own family. Personal service of this nature was not considered as demeaning, in the context of shared noble status by page and lord. It was seen rather as a form of education in return for labour. While a page did not receive reimbursement other than clothing, accommodation and food, he could be rewarded for an exceptional act of service. In return for his work, the page would receive training in horse-riding, hunting, hawking and combat - the essential skills required of adult members of his rank in medieval society.

Less physical training included schooling in the playing of musical instruments, the composition and singing of songs, and the learning of board games such as chess. The initial education received as a child in reading and writing, would be continued to a level of modest competence under the tuition of a chaplain or other cleric. He learned manners from the nobleman's wife.

It was the duty of a Page to wait at table, care for the Lord's clothes and assist them in dressing. The page was also expected to acts as servants to the ladies of the court or castle her served in. The Page was provided with a uniform of the colors and livery of the Lord. There were many pages, the number depending on the wealth of the noble. There was a 'pecking order' amongst the pages which was dependent on age. The ages of the pages would range from seven years old up to fourteen years old when they would take the next step to becoming a knight by serving in the position of a Squire.


The young page would receive an education being taught religion, manners, riding, hunting, hawking and strategic games such as backgammon and chess. A Page would soon start to acquire the skills required of a Knight by practicing the skills of tilting a lance and watching the prowess and training of their seniors. The use of the lance would be practiced together with the skills of horsemanship. A target was erected and the Page would mount a wooden 'horse' on wheels holding a lance. The wooden horse would be pulled along by two other pages towards the target and the page would aim the lance. Sword play was practiced using wooden swords and shields. Fighting on piggyback introduced the young knights to the balance and skills required in mounted combat. Obviously dangerous weapons were not used by these young boys! Great emphasis was placed on physical fitness and strength. The page would attend their superiors at Tournaments which were always seen as great occasions in the life of pages from the Middle Ages. As a page, a boy learned how to fight, how to use weapons, and how to ride a horse into battle. Training in other physical skills included climbing, swimming, throwing stones, javelins, archery and wrestling.


(To be continued)

Sir Martyn:
Thank you, Sir John - good compilation, nice to have this info in one place. 

My youngest daughter (now age eight) has been my faithful page in all our exploits over the past few years - my older daughter has served as my squire.  I'll share this with them.

We're actually getting ready to attend Drachenfest in Diemelstadt, Germany next week.  We went for the first time last year and had a lot of fun.

Sir John of Felsenbau:
Step 4 The Squire

If the page showed promise, at age fourteen, the young noble could graduate to become a squire. The Medieval Squire of the Middle Ages was aged between fourteen and twenty-one. Each squire was assigned to a knight. A knight could have several squires. The squire assisted the knight to whom he was assigned. A squire was the shield bearer or armor bearer of a knight, and at times squires included a knight's errand runner or servant. The Medieval Squire was a servant to a knight during the Middle Ages. The role to a squire was one of the most important steps to Knighthood and started when a page reached the age of fourteen years old.

The typical jobs of a squire included:•   Carrying the knight's armour, shield, sword,
•   Holding any prisoners the knight takes,
•   Rescuing the knight should the knight be taken prisoner,
•   Ensuring an honorable burial of the knight in the event of his death,
•   Replacing the knight's sword if it were broken or dropped,
•   Replacing the knight's horse or his own horse, if either be injured or killed,
•   Dressing the knight in his armor,
•   Carrying the knight's flag,
•   Protecting the knight if needed,
•   Taking care of the knight's horses,
•   Accompanying the Knight to tournaments and during the time of war to the battlefield,
•   Ensuring the armor and weapons of the knight were in good order


Other duties of a Squire were to learn about Chivalry, the rules of Heraldry, horsemanship and practice the use of weapons and the skills required of a Knight. It was also their duty to enter into the social life of the castle and learn courtly etiquette, jousting, music and dancing. The Squire served in this role for seven years and became a Knight at the age of twenty-one. Sometimes knighthood was conferred on a squire at an earlier age as the reward for bravery on the battlefield. In time of war Squires accompanied Knights on the battlefield, leading and tending the horses and dressing them in the Medieval Knights Armor. They came under fire from arrows and many squires were killed doing their duty.

As Squires they were seen as men capable of fighting in battles. Their Knighthood training became far more dangerous. Injuries were a common occurrence during their knighthood training. Their skills with the lance had to be perfected. The tool used in the practice of the lance was called called the quintain. The quintain consisted of a shield and dummy which was suspended from a swinging pole. When the shield was hit by a charging squire, the whole apparatus would rotate. The squire's task was to avoid the rotating arms and not get knocked from his saddle. A variation of the quintain added heavy swinging sandbags which also had to be avoided. Accuracy was also an important factor and squires practiced "Running at the Rings" where the lance was aimed at a target in the shape of a ring - these rings were obviously much smaller to lance than a man and this skill was therefore difficult to master. Fighting with quarterstaffs could also result in injuries. Fighting with swords and other weapons were strictly supervised and only wooden, blunt or covered weapons were used. General fitness levels had to be high and the strength of an apprentice knight was expected, regardless of size.

(To be continued - More on the Squire next time)

Sir John of Felsenbau:
(The Squire - Continued)
Siege warfare was a common occurrence during the Middle Ages. An important requirement to capture the enemies power base - their castles. Knighthood Training included learning about the strategy, process and weapons used in siege warfare. Siege Warfare during the Middle Ages was conducted according to Chivalric Rules and a truce or settlement would always be attempted, according to the Chivalric Code before Siege Warfare commenced. Knighthood training included all of these aspects of siege warfare. The Squires would be expected to understand the options available when defending a castle - the layout and traps included in the castle design. A young squire, or even a page, would be expected to defend a castle according to their skills and strength. A crossbow might be issued to a squire or page as it required minimum strength and few skills to operate. Attacking a castle would also be studied. This would include learning about Siege Weapons - the Trebuchet, Ballista, Mangonel, Battering Ram and Siege Towers. Skills in climbing were important - scaling castle walls. Knighthood training would also include the process of undermining a castle.

The knighthood training of both the Pages and the Squires of the Middle Ages continued with acquiring excellent equestrian skills. A horse played an extremely important part in the life of a knight. A knight would own several horses which were built for different duties. These ranged in various sizes starting with a palfrey, or an ambler for general travelling purposes. Bigger and stronger horses were required as warhorses. The Courser was the most sought after and expensive warhorse, owned by the most wealthy knights. The more common warhorses were like modern hunters, known then as Destriers. The apprentice knights would learn how to ride and control their horses and the art of this type of warfare. Starting with small ponies they would hone their equestrian skills in their Knighthood training. The pages and squires were also expected to play their part of caring for the horses in the stables.

While he was a squire, he was allowed to carry a sword and a shield, which showed what rank he had achieved. The squire was taught not to kill many knights. Most knights held other knights for ransom. The squire would sometimes carry the knight's flag to battle with his master. But a squire did not stay a squire forever. A knight would take his squires (a knight could have multiple squires but a squire could only have one knight) into battle with him and that was a squire's chance to prove himself. If he proved his loyalty and skill in battle, he would have a dubbing, an official ceremony to become a knight.

(To be continued)

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