Popular views of medieval chivalry—knights in shining armor, fair ladies, banners fluttering from battlements—were inherited from the nineteenth-century Rom

This book introduces the beginnings of the orders of knighthood in the early years of warriors on horses and the origins of chivalry, and then investigates in t

On the great influence of a valiant lord: "The companions, who see that good warriors are honored by the great lords for their prowess, become more determined t

How did medieval society deal with private justice, with grudges, and with violent emotions? This ground-breaking reader collects for the first time a number of

A magnificent account of medieval knights, their origins, status, training, code, military exploits and adventures.