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THE MEDIEVAL KNIGHT
http://library.thinkquest.org/10949/fief/medknight.html

INTRODUCTION
The knight was one of three types of fighting men during the middle ages: Knights, Foot Soldiers, and Archers. The medieval knight was the equivalent of the modern tank. He was covered in multiple layers of armor, and could plow through foot soldiers standing in his way. No single foot soldier or archer could stand up to any one knight. Knights were also generally the wealthiest of the three types of soldiers. This was for a good reason. It was terribly expensive to be a knight. The war horse alone could cost the equivalent of a small airplane. Armor, shields, and weapons were also very expensive. Becoming a knight was part of the feudal agreement. In return for military service, the knight received a fief. In the late middle ages, many prospective knights began to pay "shield money" to their lord so that they wouldn't have to serve in the king's army. The money was then used to create a professional army that was paid and supported by the king. These knights often fought more for pillaging than for army wages. When they captured a city, they were allowed to ransack it, stealing goods and valuables.

BECOMING A KNIGHT
There were only a few ways in which a person could become a knight.
The first way was the normal course of action for the son of a noble.
When a boy was eight years old, he was sent to the neighboring castle where he was trained as a page. The boy was usually the son of a knight or of a member of the aristocracy. He spent most of his time strengthening his body, wrestling and riding horses. He also learned how to fight with a spear and a sword. He practiced against a wooden dummy called a quintain. It was essentially a heavy sack or dummy in the form of a human. It was hung on a wooden pole along with a shield. The young page had to hit the shield in its center. When hit, the whole structure would spin around and around. The page had to maneuver away quickly without getting hit. The young man was also taught more civilized topics. He would be taught to read and write by a schoolmaster. He could also be taught some Latin and French. The lady of the castle taught the page to sing and dance and how to behave in the king's court.

At the age of fifteen or sixteen, a boy became a squire in service to a knight. His duties included dressing the knight in the morning, serving all of the knight's meals, caring for the knight's horse, and cleaning the knight's armor and weapons. He followed the knight to tournaments and assisted his lord on the battlefield. A squire also prepared himself by learning how to handle a sword and lance while wearing forty pounds of armor and riding a horse. When he was about twenty, a squire could become a knight after proving himself worthy. A lord would agree to knight him in a dubbing ceremony. The night before the ceremony, the squire would dress in a white tunic and red robes. He would then fast and pray all night for the purification of his soul. The chaplain would bless the future knight's sword and then lay it on the chapel or church's altar. Before dawn, he took a bath to show that he was pure, and he dressed in his best clothes. When dawn came, the priest would hear the young man's confession, a Catholic contrition rite. The squire would then eat breakfast. Soon the dubbing ceremony began. The outdoor ceremony took place in front of family, friends, and nobility. The squire knelt in front of the lord, who tapped the squire lightly on each shoulder with his sword and proclaimed him a knight. This was symbolic of what occurred in earlier times. In the earlier middle ages, the person doing the dubbing would actually hit the squire forcefully, knocking him over. After the dubbing, a great feast followed with music and dancing.
A young man could also become a knight for valor in combat after a battle or sometimes before a battle to help him gain courage.

CHIVALRY
Knights believed in the code of chivalry. They promised to defend the weak, be courteous to all women, be loyal to their king, and serve God at all times. Knights were expected to be humble before others, especially their superiors. They were also expected to not "talk too much". In other words, they shouldn't boast. The code of chivalry demanded that a knight give mercy to a vanquished enemy. However, the very fact that knights were trained as men of war belied this code. Even though they came from rich families, many knights were not their families' firstborn. They did not receive an inheritance. Thus they were little more than mercenaries. They plundered villages or cities that they captured, often defiling and destroying churches and other property. Also the code of chivalry did not extend to the peasants. The "weak" was widely interpreted as "noble women and children". They were often brutal to common folk. They could sometimes even rape young peasant women without fear of reprisal, all because they were part of the upper class.
These are two examples of medieval shields made of either wood or metal. Normally these would have the knight's emblem or family seal on them.

ARMOR AND WEAPONS
A knight was armed and armored to the teeth. He had so much armor and weapons that he depended on his squire to keep his armor and weapons clean and in good working condition. At first the armor was made of small metal rings called chain mail. A knight wore a linen shirt and a pair of pants as well as heavy woolen pads underneath the metal-ringed tunic. A suit of chain mail could have more than 200,000 rings. However, chain mail was heavy, uncomfortable, and difficult to move in. As time passed, knights covered their bodies with plates of metal. Plates covered their chests, back, arms, and legs. A bucket like helmet protected the knight's head and had a hinged metal visor to cover his face. Suits of armor were hot, uncomfortable, and heavy to wear. A suit of armor weighed between forty and sixty pounds. Some knights even protected their horses in armor.
A knight also needed a shield to hold in front of himself during battle. Shields were made of either wood or metal. Knights decorated their shields with their family emblem or crest and the family motto.
A knight's weapon was his sword, which was about thirty-two pounds. It was worn on his left side in a case fastened around his waist. A knife was worn on the knight's right side. Knights used other weapons in combat as well. A lance was a long spear used in jousts. Metal axes, battle hammers, and maces were also used to defeat the enemy.

TOURNAMENTS
Tournaments provided a means for knights to practice warfare and build their strength in times of peace. Tournaments were essentially mock battles with audiences. The audience was usually made up of "fair damsels". This was another way in which a knight was expected to act chivalrous. The tournaments had different rules that had to be followed. They were judged by umpires that watched for dishonest play. Tournaments were usually fought between either two people or two teams. If two people fought a tournament, it was usually by jousting. The two knights would gallop across the playing field at each other. They carried long, blunt poles and shields. The objective was to knock the other person out of his saddle. Team play was conducted with fierce mock combat between two bands of fighters. They fought with wooden or blunted weapons so as to reduce the risk of getting hurt. However, this was often not the case. Many people did get hurt or die by accident.

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THE FASCINATING CEREMONY OF MEDIEVAL MKNIGHTHOOD
by Will Kalif
Becoming a knight was much more than a tap on the shoulder with the flat edge of a sword. It was often an involved process that spanned several days. Here is an overview of a typical knighting ceremony in the middle ages.
The ceremony of knighthood was the final stage in a process that a man followed since he was a boy. It was the symbolic culmination of his pursuit of proficiency on the battlefield and in the courts of nobility. It marked his transition from boy to man and from commoner to royalty. This ceremony was very important and had a lot of symbolic significance to him and to the people around him. It focused on three important aspects of knighthood: religion, allegiance to the King, and the code of chivalry. And it often lasted three days.
On the day before the actual ceremony there would be long meals and discussions with knights, clergy, and royalty about the roles and responsibilities of a knight. And in the evening before the ceremony the knight would retire alone to the chapel and spend the entire night in prayer and fasting to purify him and prepare him for knighthood. He would wear a white tunic, which symbolized his purity, and over it he would wear a red cloak which symbolized royalty. On the morning of the ceremony he would bathe as a symbol of his new purity.
During the actual ceremony the knight would receive gifts such as spurs, a shield, a sword, and sometimes armor. Each of these gifts had symbolic significance. His sponsor, who was often a knight or a lord, would give these gifts to him. He would say an oath and swear fealty to god and to his king and he would affirm his devotion to the code of chivalry. The ritual part of the ceremony would end with the sponsor tapping the knight on both shoulders with a sword then introducing him as "sir" to the nobility. This ceremony would often be followed by a large banquet.
On the day after the ceremony there would often be a tournament for the new knight and his peers to show off their combat skills and abilities with weapons.
The ceremony of knighthood was a highly ritualistic and stylized ceremony filled with symbolic meaning. And it was a very important part of the culture of the middle ages.

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Fascinating-Ceremony-of-Medieval-Knighthood&id=435575

THE MEDIEVAL KNIGHT
http://library.thinkquest.org/10949/fief/medknight.html

INTRODUCTION
The knight was one of three types of fighting men during the middle ages: Knights, Foot Soldiers, and Archers. The medieval knight was the equivalent of the modern tank. He was covered in multiple layers of armor, and could plow through foot soldiers standing in his way. No single foot soldier or archer could stand up to any one knight. Knights were also generally the wealthiest of the three types of soldiers. This was for a good reason. It was terribly expensive to be a knight. The war horse alone could cost the equivalent of a small airplane. Armor, shields, and weapons were also very expensive. Becoming a knight was part of the feudal agreement. In return for military service, the knight received a fief. In the late middle ages, many prospective knights began to pay "shield money" to their lord so that they wouldn't have to serve in the king's army. The money was then used to create a professional army that was paid and supported by the king. These knights often fought more for pillaging than for army wages. When they captured a city, they were allowed to ransack it, stealing goods and valuables.

BECOMING A KNIGHT
There were only a few ways in which a person could become a knight.
The first way was the normal course of action for the son of a noble.
When a boy was eight years old, he was sent to the neighboring castle where he was trained as a page. The boy was usually the son of a knight or of a member of the aristocracy. He spent most of his time strengthening his body, wrestling and riding horses. He also learned how to fight with a spear and a sword. He practiced against a wooden dummy called a quintain. It was essentially a heavy sack or dummy in the form of a human. It was hung on a wooden pole along with a shield. The young page had to hit the shield in its center. When hit, the whole structure would spin around and around. The page had to maneuver away quickly without getting hit. The young man was also taught more civilized topics. He would be taught to read and write by a schoolmaster. He could also be taught some Latin and French. The lady of the castle taught the page to sing and dance and how to behave in the king's court.

At the age of fifteen or sixteen, a boy became a squire in service to a knight. His duties included dressing the knight in the morning, serving all of the knight's meals, caring for the knight's horse, and cleaning the knight's armor and weapons. He followed the knight to tournaments and assisted his lord on the battlefield. A squire also prepared himself by learning how to handle a sword and lance while wearing forty pounds of armor and riding a horse. When he was about twenty, a squire could become a knight after proving himself worthy. A lord would agree to knight him in a dubbing ceremony. The night before the ceremony, the squire would dress in a white tunic and red robes. He would then fast and pray all night for the purification of his soul. The chaplain would bless the future knight's sword and then lay it on the chapel or church's altar. Before dawn, he took a bath to show that he was pure, and he dressed in his best clothes. When dawn came, the priest would hear the young man's confession, a Catholic contrition rite. The squire would then eat breakfast. Soon the dubbing ceremony began. The outdoor ceremony took place in front of family, friends, and nobility. The squire knelt in front of the lord, who tapped the squire lightly on each shoulder with his sword and proclaimed him a knight. This was symbolic of what occurred in earlier times. In the earlier middle ages, the person doing the dubbing would actually hit the squire forcefully, knocking him over. After the dubbing, a great feast followed with music and dancing.
A young man could also become a knight for valor in combat after a battle or sometimes before a battle to help him gain courage.

CHIVALRY
Knights believed in the code of chivalry. They promised to defend the weak, be courteous to all women, be loyal to their king, and serve God at all times. Knights were expected to be humble before others, especially their superiors. They were also expected to not "talk too much". In other words, they shouldn't boast. The code of chivalry demanded that a knight give mercy to a vanquished enemy. However, the very fact that knights were trained as men of war belied this code. Even though they came from rich families, many knights were not their families' firstborn. They did not receive an inheritance. Thus they were little more than mercenaries. They plundered villages or cities that they captured, often defiling and destroying churches and other property. Also the code of chivalry did not extend to the peasants. The "weak" was widely interpreted as "noble women and children". They were often brutal to common folk. They could sometimes even rape young peasant women without fear of reprisal, all because they were part of the upper class.
These are two examples of medieval shields made of either wood or metal. Normally these would have the knight's emblem or family seal on them.

ARMOR AND WEAPONS
A knight was armed and armored to the teeth. He had so much armor and weapons that he depended on his squire to keep his armor and weapons clean and in good working condition. At first the armor was made of small metal rings called chain mail. A knight wore a linen shirt and a pair of pants as well as heavy woolen pads underneath the metal-ringed tunic. A suit of chain mail could have more than 200,000 rings. However, chain mail was heavy, uncomfortable, and difficult to move in. As time passed, knights covered their bodies with plates of metal. Plates covered their chests, back, arms, and legs. A bucket like helmet protected the knight's head and had a hinged metal visor to cover his face. Suits of armor were hot, uncomfortable, and heavy to wear. A suit of armor weighed between forty and sixty pounds. Some knights even protected their horses in armor.
A knight also needed a shield to hold in front of himself during battle. Shields were made of either wood or metal. Knights decorated their shields with their family emblem or crest and the family motto.
A knight's weapon was his sword, which was about thirty-two pounds. It was worn on his left side in a case fastened around his waist. A knife was worn on the knight's right side. Knights used other weapons in combat as well. A lance was a long spear used in jousts. Metal axes, battle hammers, and maces were also used to defeat the enemy.

TOURNAMENTS
Tournaments provided a means for knights to practice warfare and build their strength in times of peace. Tournaments were essentially mock battles with audiences. The audience was usually made up of "fair damsels". This was another way in which a knight was expected to act chivalrous. The tournaments had different rules that had to be followed. They were judged by umpires that watched for dishonest play. Tournaments were usually fought between either two people or two teams. If two people fought a tournament, it was usually by jousting. The two knights would gallop across the playing field at each other. They carried long, blunt poles and shields. The objective was to knock the other person out of his saddle. Team play was conducted with fierce mock combat between two bands of fighters. They fought with wooden or blunted weapons so as to reduce the risk of getting hurt. However, this was often not the case. Many people did get hurt or die by accident.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

THE FASCINATING CEREMONY OF MEDIEVAL MKNIGHTHOOD
by Will Kalif
Becoming a knight was much more than a tap on the shoulder with the flat edge of a sword. It was often an involved process that spanned several days. Here is an overview of a typical knighting ceremony in the middle ages.
The ceremony of knighthood was the final stage in a process that a man followed since he was a boy. It was the symbolic culmination of his pursuit of proficiency on the battlefield and in the courts of nobility. It marked his transition from boy to man and from commoner to royalty. This ceremony was very important and had a lot of symbolic significance to him and to the people around him. It focused on three important aspects of knighthood: religion, allegiance to the King, and the code of chivalry. And it often lasted three days.
On the day before the actual ceremony there would be long meals and discussions with knights, clergy, and royalty about the roles and responsibilities of a knight. And in the evening before the ceremony the knight would retire alone to the chapel and spend the entire night in prayer and fasting to purify him and prepare him for knighthood. He would wear a white tunic, which symbolized his purity, and over it he would wear a red cloak which symbolized royalty. On the morning of the ceremony he would bathe as a symbol of his new purity.
During the actual ceremony the knight would receive gifts such as spurs, a shield, a sword, and sometimes armor. Each of these gifts had symbolic significance. His sponsor, who was often a knight or a lord, would give these gifts to him. He would say an oath and swear fealty to god and to his king and he would affirm his devotion to the code of chivalry. The ritual part of the ceremony would end with the sponsor tapping the knight on both shoulders with a sword then introducing him as "sir" to the nobility. This ceremony would often be followed by a large banquet.
On the day after the ceremony there would often be a tournament for the new knight and his peers to show off their combat skills and abilities with weapons.
The ceremony of knighthood was a highly ritualistic and stylized ceremony filled with symbolic meaning. And it was a very important part of the culture of the middle ages.

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Fascinating-Ceremony-of-Medieval-Knighthood&id=435575