The tales of Arthur's knights provided a pattern of action that appears in most romances. It includes such familiar characters as Lancelot, Guinevere, Percival, and Sir Gawain. This legend developed from the writings of the French author Chrétien de Troyes. However, the most influential chivalric romance was the story of the Welsh king Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. The first-and greatest-of the French romances was The Song of Roland (1098), which tells the story of Roland, a brave warrior who died protecting the French army. Chivalry was the code of behavior that the knights in these medieval romances followed. Most were French translations and adaptations of ancient Latin works. Early romances were not love stories but tales of war. The literary concept of chivalry dates back to the romances of the Middle Ages. Men who had never spent a day in battle sought the title of knight and created their own coats of arms*.Įarly Chivalric Literature.
One way to straighten a crooked limb on an otherwise noble family tree was to adopt the symbols and manners of chivalry.
Chivalry code of knights templar manual#
For a would-be noble, an ancestor who had worked in a trade or done manual labor was an embarrassment. By 1469 such orders had formed in almost every major court in Europe.ĭuring the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance, the definition of nobility came to depend on family history, rather than military might. However, unlike knights of the Middle Ages, who often acted on their own, they tended to form knightly orders and brotherhoods supported by the ruling government. Wealthy Renaissance nobles continued to promote military traditions and to show off their strength in tournaments and in war. The culture of chivalry remained popular in the late Middle Ages and well into the Renaissance. Because knights were part of the culture of feudal courts, their behavior inspired terms such as courtly, courtship, and courtesy. Handbooks from the 1200s laid out the rules of behavior for knights, and pageants and tournaments celebrated chivalric honor. Knights drew on books to develop standards for etiquette, style, and even the proper way to conduct a love affair. They portrayed knights as both courageous warriors and refined men. Literary works also contributed to ideas about "knightly" behavior. This relationship became part of the code of chivalry. In the feudal* system of the Middle Ages, knights pledged their loyalty and service to their lords. Although chivalry began as a code of conduct for medieval warriors, it adapted to the changing social conditions of the Renaissance. Its basis was a blend of military, social, and Christian ethics*. Chivalry included the values of honor, valor, courtesy, and purity, as well as loyalty to a lord, a cause, or a noblewoman. It takes its name from chevalier, the French word for knight. Chivalry refers to the lifestyle and moral code followed by medieval* knights.
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