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In this part 97, the Orders of Chivalry 1 of 2 Wikipedia
Worthy Knights…
An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is an order of knights typically founded during or inspired by the original Catholic military orders of the Crusades (circa 1099–1291), paired with medieval concepts of ideals of chivalry.
The word knight, from Old English cniht (boy or servant), is related to the German word Knecht (servant, bondsman, vassal).
An Equestrian (Latin, from eques “horseman”, from equus “horse”) was a member of the second highest social class in the Roman Republic and early Roman Empire (Ordo Equestris). This class is often translated as “knight”; the medieval knight, however, was called miles in Latin (which in classical Latin meant “soldier”, normally infantry).
In the later Roman Empire, the classical Latin word for horse, equus, was replaced in common parlance by the vulgar Latin caballus, sometimes thought to derive from Gaulish caballos.
From caballus arose terms in the various Romance languages related with the (French-derived) English cavalier: Italian cavaliere, Spanish caballero, French chevalier (whence chivalry), Portuguese cavaleiro, and Romanian cavaler. The Germanic languages have terms related to the English rider: German Ritter, and Dutch and Scandiinavian ridder. These words are derived from Germanic rīdan, “to ride”.
Evolution of medieval knighthood
Some portions of the armies of Germanic peoples who occupied Europe from the 3rd century onward had been mounted, and some armies, such as those of the Ostrogoths, were mainly cavalry. However, it was the Franks who generally fielded armies composed of large masses of infantry, with an infantry elite, the comitatus, which often rode to battle on horseback rather than marching on foot.
When the armies of the Frankish ruler Charles Martel defeated the Umayyad Arab invasion at the Battle of Tours in 732, the Frankish forces were still largely infantry armies, with elites riding to battle but dismounting to fight.
Multiple Crusades
Clerics and the Church often opposed the practices of the Knights because of their abuses against women and civilians, and many such as St Bernard, were convinced that the Knights served the devil and not God and needed reforming.
As the term “knight” became increasingly confined to denoting a social rank, the military role of fully armoured cavalryman gained a separate term, “man-at-arms“. Although any medieval knight going to war would automatically serve as a man-at-arms, not all men-at-arms were knights.
The first military orders of knighthood were the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre and the Knights Hospitaller, both founded shortly after the First Crusade of 1099, followed by the Order of Saint Lazarus (1100), Knights Templars (1118) and the Teutonic Knights (1190). At the time of their foundation, these were intended as monastic orders, whose members would act as simple soldiers protecting pilgrims. It was only over the following century, with the successful conquest of the Holy Land and the rise of the crusader states, that these orders became powerful and prestigious.
The great European legends of warriors popularized the notion of chivalry among the warrior class. The ideal of chivalry as the ethos of the Christian warrior, and the transmutation of the term “knight” from the meaning “servant, soldier”, and of chevalier “mounted soldier”, to refer to a member of this ideal class, is significantly influenced by the Crusades, on one hand inspired by the military orders of monastic warriors, and on the other hand also cross-influenced by Islamic (Saracen) ideals of furusiyya.
Furūsiyya is the historical Arabic term for equestrian martial exercise. Furūsiyya as a science is concerned with the martial arts and equestrianism of the Golden Age of Islam.
The miles Christianus allegory (mid-13th century), showed a knight armed with virtues and facing the vices in mortal combat.
The parts of his armour are identified with Christian virtues, thus correlating essential military equipment with the religious values of chivalry:
Helmet spes futuri gaudii Hope of future bliss
Shield fides Faith
Armour caritas Charity
Lance perseverantia Perseverance
Sword verbum Dei Word of God
Banner regni celestis desiderium Desire for the kingdom of heaven
Horse bona voluntas Good will
Saddle christiana religio Christian religion
Saddlecloth humilitas Humility
Reins discretio Discretion
Spurs disciplina Discipline
Stirrups propositum boni operis Proposition of good work
Hooves delectatio, Delight
consensus, Consent
bonum opus, Good work
consuetudo Exercise
