Knights during the medieval period were skilled swordsmen on horseback that fought in battles around Western Europe. Knights were very important warriors in the Middle Ages starting from around the 8th century when the feudalism period arose. These medieval knights were …show more content…
The Code of Chivalry was based on the honor, bravery, and courtesy of knights. There were many rules that knights had to follow in this code which included protecting the poor and defenseless, honoring fellow knights, respecting the honor of women, and obeying their feudal lord. This code also stated that a knight should never kill a defenseless opponent with a broken sword, and a knight could spare their opponent’s life by offering the choice of surrender. Many of these ideals were put into songs, poems, ballads, and other literary works by knight authors. Troubadours would memorize and recite these poems, and sing songs and ballads for people all over Western Europe. The duties that a knight carried on from this code made them very civil and …show more content…
The ceremony to become a knight was a long process that lasted several days. This ceremony was also very symbolic. For example, a knight took a “sunrise bath” in the morning, which symbolized him washing way his youth so he is prepared to be a man in battle. The final stage of the ceremony was very important. A knight would go to the great hall in the castle, put on his armor, and the squire’s mentor would give him his sword. Then the squire would say a brief oath kneeling before the lord, and the lord would then draw his sword, call the squire’s name, and place the flat side of his sword on each of the squire’s shoulders. A young boy, who had trained for most of his life, was now a