Orders of Chivalry 2 of 2

Good day Worthy Knights,

In this part 98, the Orders of Chivalry 2 of 2                                                                      Wikipedia

Worthy Knights…

The accolade, also known as dubbing (or adoubement) was the central act in the rite of passage ceremonies conferring knighthood in the Middle Ages. It may take many forms, including the tapping of the flat side of a knighting sword on the shoulders of a candidate or an embrace about the neck.

In the first example, the “knight-elect” kneels in front of the monarch on a knighting-stool. First, the monarch lays the side of the sword’s blade onto the accolade’s right shoulder. The monarch then raises the sword just up over the apprentice’s head, and places it on his left shoulder. The new knight then stands up, and the king or queen presents him with the insignia of his new order.

Contrary to popular belief, the phrase “Arise, Sir …” is not used.

There is some disagreement among historians on the actual ceremony and in what time period certain methods could have been used. It could have been an embrace or a slight blow on the neck or cheek. Gregory of Tours wrote that the early kings of France, in conferring the gilt shoulder-belt, kissed the knights on the left cheek.

In knighting his son Henry with the ceremony of the accolade, history records that William the Conqueror used the blow.

The blow, or colée, when first utilized was given with a bare fist, a physical blow struck on or around the ear. This was later substituted for by a gentle stroke with the flat part of the sword against the side of the neck. This then developed into the custom of tapping on either the right or left shoulder, or both, which is still the tradition in the United Kingdom today.

An early Germanic coming-of-age ceremony, of presenting a youth with a weapon that was buckled on him, was elaborated in the 10th and 11th centuries as a sign that the minor had come of age.

Initially this was a simple rite often performed on the battlefield, where writers of Romance enjoyed placing it. A panel in the Bayeux Tapestry shows the knighting of Harold by William of Normandy, but the specific gesture is not clearly represented. Another military knight (commander of an army), sufficiently impressed by a warrior’s loyalty, would tap a fighting soldier on his back and shoulder with the flat of his sword and announce that he was now an official knight. Some words that might be spoken at that moment were:

“ Advances Chevalier au nom de Dieu.”

In medieval France, early ceremonies of the adoubement were purely secular and indicated a young noble coming of age. Around 1200, these ceremonies began to include elements of Christian ritual, such as a night spent in prayers, prior to the rite.

Chivalric code

Knights were expected, above all, to fight bravely and to display military professionalism and courtesy.

When knights were taken as prisoners of war, they were customarily held for ransom in somewhat comfortable surroundings. This same standard of conduct did not apply to non-knights (archers, peasants, foot-soldiers, etc.) who were often slaughtered after capture.

Early notions of chivalry entailed loyalty to one’s liege lord and bravery in battle, similar to the values of the Heroic Age. During the Middle Ages, this grew from simple military professionalism into a social code including the values of gentility, nobility and treating others reasonably.

In The Song of Roland (c. 1100), Roland is portrayed as the ideal knight, demonstrating unwavering loyalty, military prowess and social fellowship. Ramon Llull‘s Book of the Order of Chivalry (1275) demonstrates that by the end of the 13th century, chivalry entailed a litany of very specific duties, including riding warhorses, jousting, attending tournaments, holding Round Tables and hunting, as well as aspiring to the more æthereal virtues of “faith, hope, charity, justice, strength, moderation and loyalty”.

Knights of the late medieval era were expected by society to maintain all these skills and many more, Count Ludovico, states the “first and true profession” of the ideal knight “must be that of arms.” simultaneously denoted skilled horsemanship and military service, and these remained the primary occupations of knighthood throughout the Middle Ages.

Chivalry and religion were mutually influenced during the period of the Crusades. The early Crusades helped to clarify the moral code of chivalry as it related to religion. As a result, Christian armies began to devote their efforts to sacred purposes. As time passed, clergy instituted religious vows which required knights to use their weapons chiefly for the protection of the weak and defenceless, especially women and orphans, and of churches.

The Novice in Vigil prior to receive the honours of Knighthood (wrt RCC certificate)