Michael Prestwich - Knight

Every man who does well in this military vocation should be prized and honoured.

GEOFFROI DE CHARNY, THE BOOK OF CHIVALRY, 1350

Imagine yourself on a splendid charger, encased by gleaming armour, brandishing sword, lance and shield. Or picture yourself at court, renowned for your bravery and surrounded by beautiful damsels. Of course you want to be a knight. But this is not easy in the early 15th century. It is not just a simple matter of buying a horse and a suit of armour; there is much you must learn. Some books will teach you about the ideals of chivalry, but they do not provide the practical advice you need if you are determined to live and quite possibly die for glory on the battlefield. That is what this manual will give you.

Since the start of the 14th century we have been living in an age of war throughout Europe, and the mounted knight is the most magnificent figure on the battlefield. Much more than just a soldier; he should be the epitome of chivalry, a paragon of virtue. Prowess, loyalty, generosity and mercy are among his guiding principles.

Yet there is a difficult balance to be struck between the ideals and the practicalities of warfare. The knight is challenged and often defeated on the battlefield by common soldiers armed with bow and pike; he fights on foot more often than on horseback, and the guiding principles of chivalry often seem in reality to become those of guile, deceit, profit and cruelty.

The advice in this manual is derived from the practical experience of knights and men-at-arms. It is not based on romantic chivalric literature; tales of King Arthur and other mythical heroes may help to keep you amused during a siege or a lull between battles, and may even mirror knightly behaviour on occasion, but they are hardly a realistic guide.

The knights of today take their inspiration from a heroic past. This image shows the knightly followers of the renowned hero Godfrey de Bouillon, one of the leaders of the 11th-century First Crusade, riding off to battle. (From Godefroy de Bouillon, Crusades. Bibliothque Nationale, Paris. Photo Getty Images, London)

This is not a book of instruction for the sort of knight who may go on one or two campaigns, but who spends most of his time managing his estates, playing his part in local politics and attending law courts. This is a manual for the knight at war.

War

War is complex; it is not a simple matter of gaily adorned knights charging into battle. For a start, it involves a great deal of organization. States need to have systems of taxation to raise the money for armies up to 30,000 men strong. Sophisticated credit systems operated by international merchant banking houses are required to enable rulers and cities to meet the short-term needs of expensive campaigns. Armies need supply systems to provide the hundreds of tons of food and thousands of gallons of drink that they require. Siege warfare involves the deployment of up-to-date military hardware. Internationally recognized conventions, amounting to a law of war, regulate conflict and its aftermath. Within all this, there is a great deal of scope for ambitious individuals to develop knightly careers. The opportunities are there for you to grasp.

Where can you fight?

War is deeply ingrained in Europe, and as a knight, you will have no difficulty finding employment. Conflict is endemic between states, but is most deeply entrenched between France and England, with the war that began in 1337 and seems likely to last for 100 years. That is a tricky situation; from one point of view the kings of England are rebellious vassals of the French rulers, and from another, they are justified by descent in calling themselves kings of France. At times local rivalries and internal disputes make it seem more of a French civil war than a war between nations. Great battles have punctuated this war, above all the three great English victories of Crcy in 1346, Poitiers ten years later, and most recently Agincourt in 1415.

French ambitions in the Low Countries have also led to much fighting, from the battle of Courtrai in 1302 when Flemish urban forces defeated the French host, to that of Roosebeke in 1382, when the French were triumphant. Similarly, English designs upon Scotland have resulted in many campaigns. English successes under Edward I were overturned under his successor Edward II at Bannockburn in 1314; but during the following reign the king of Scots, David II, was captured at Nevilles Cross in 1346. Another struggle for independence has been that of the Swiss, whose infantry troops were more than a match for Habsburg forces at Morgarten in 1315, and Sempach in 1386.

At Crcy in 1346 the English triumphed over the French. (From Les Chroniques de France or Les Chroniques de Saint Denis, 14th century. British Library, London)

At Courtrai in 1302 Flemish townspeople also defeated a great French army. (From Les Chroniques de France, 14th century. British Library, London)

In Italy, there is constant rivalry between cities, with Milan, Florence and Venice the most powerful in a world of shifting allegiances and frequent campaigning. The wealth of the cities, and the opportunities for fighting, are a magnet drawing in soldiers from Germany and elsewhere. Further south, the Papacy is not only a spiritual power, but also a player in the complex politics of the peninsula. The kingdom of Naples, whose dynasty hailed from Anjou in France, is in conflict with Sicily, ruled by the Aragonese king.

The Iberian peninsula has recently offered further potential for an ambitious knight, particularly with dynastic complications in Castile in the 1360s, and the Portuguese struggle for independence in the 1380s.

At the other end of Europe, the Baltic has seen German eastward expansion taking place for many years; the fiercest opponents of which are the Lithuanians. There are ample opportunities to join in the struggle against them, under the leadership of the Teutonic Knights. This is a religious crusade; there are other crusading opportunities available in the Mediterranean world, but success there is hard to come by.

Individual careers

The potential for a military knight is best demonstrated by outlining the careers of three of the key individuals who will feature in this book.

Geoffroi de Charny

De Charny was the most notable French knight of his generation, who wrote the standard work on knighthood, the Book of Chivalry. His military career began in 1337, the year when the current war between England and France began. He was captured by the English at Morlaix in 1342, and soon ransomed. He was knighted by 1343, and went on a futile crusade in 1345. De Charny did not fight at Crcy in 1346, but he played an increasingly important role in war after that. In 1349 he planned to regain Calais through bribery, but failed. Once again, the English took him prisoner, and he was again ransomed. He was one of the first members of the Order of the Star, and was chosen to carry the celebrated French war banner, the Oriflamme. In 1356 he was killed, banner in hand, fighting heroically at the battle of Poitiers. His Book of Chivalry was an attempt to renew and reform French knighthood, and sets out the ideals that a knight should follow.