Knight: Professional Soldiers. Knight Essay

Submitted By gfegley
Words: 667
Pages: 3

Characterization Chaucer characterized our pilgrim, the knight in very noble terms. Chaucer describes the Knight as being brave, chivalrous, and honorable. The Knight represents the ideal man­at­arms in the medieval times. The knights were also known to belong to a higher social class in their society. Knight’s back in the 1300’s were known to be professional soldiers. Knight’s were always known for their chivalry, and that is where that word comes from today. Chivalry was the code of conduct for the knights. Chivalry was always about honor and nobility.
And a Knight was expected to follow it closely. They replaced the old “citizens’ armies” of Antiquity with a cavalry that turned into one the most important elements of medieval armies. They wore chain mail coats that were also known as hauberks. The mails were made from interlinked iron rings. These usually went to about the knees, but some were shorter than that. This chain mail also went up the neck to secure safety up to the chin.
A typical chain mail weighed about 30 pounds, but it all depended on the length and size of it. There were a lot of varieties of helmets that could be worn, but all of them were made by either iron or steel. The German translation of the word “Knight” actually means “rider”. Back in that time people would hold land from someone else in exchange for work or any type of goods. Men who payed in knight’s fee owed the lord of the land his services.

Cited sites: Velde, François. "Knighthood and Chivalry." Knighthood and Chivalry. N.p., 01 June 2002.
Web. 05 Dec. 2014. "English Medieval Knight 1200­1300." Osprey Knight. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Dec. 2014.

Summary In the beginning of the book a great conqueror and duke named Theseus ruled the city of Athens. He discovers two enemy soldiers lying on the battlefield. Instead of killing them he saves their lives but sentences them to prison for the rest of their lives in an Athenian tower. The prisoners names were Arcite and Palamon, who were cousins.
They both lived in the tower for several years. One day Palamon looked out the window and saw Theseus’ daughter in law Emily. He and Arcite both end up falling in love with her. A duke named Perotheus, and a friend of both Arcite and Palamon, petition for
Arcite to get out of prison. They agree but on the condition that Arcite is permanently banned from Athens. Later on in a dream Arcite saw Mercury (messenger of the gods). In the dream
Mercury urges Arcite to return to Athens. Arcite goes back to Athens disguised as a
Page. The same