The Knight in History

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Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 929.71 EAN: 9780060914134 ISBN: 0060914130 Label: Harper Perennial Manufacturer: Harper Perennial Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 272 Publication Date: 1987-05-13 Publisher: Harper Perennial Release Date: 1987-05-20 Studio: Harper Perennial
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Editorial Reviews: "A carefully researched, concise, readable, and entertaining account of an institution that remains a part of the Western imagination."--Los Angeles Times
Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: The concept, the ideal, and reality of Knighthood. Comment: Another gem of Medieval studies by Professor Gies! Within you will find an account of Western European Knighthood from the perspective of the Anglo-French tradition. The Knight is described and defined in terms of the mounted warrior-elite he was, his training, his role in society, in the Chivalric ideal presented by Troubadors,...and the grim reality in warfare. Professor Gies uses three notable knights in history as a sample of how they varied in character, in deed, and in living up to the Code of Chivalry: William Marshall and John Fastolf of England, and Bertrand du Guesclin of France. Customer Rating: Summary: Highly readable, thoroughly researched Comment: It would be pretty hard to find a better concise history of European knighthood than this book by Frances Gies. Her research is very thorough and she understands the Medieval world well. At the same time, she brings her subjects alive and never lets her erudition intrude to interrupt the flow of the story. In little more than 200 pages of well-written text she traces the whole arc of the knight's history, from Charlemagne to the end of the Hundred Years War -- and beyond into the long twilight of knighthood down to the Victorian era. After tracing the origins of knighthood she gives a vivid description of the First Crusade. Then she turns to the troubadours and the development of the literature of knighthood, as well as its impact on the knights themselves. Next she takes up the career of a very notable knight of the second half of the 12th century, William Marshal in an account filled with details that reveal his character and that of knighthood in his time. The story of the remaining Crusades is organized around an account of the crusading orders, particularly the Knights Templar. Next comes a vivid mini-bio of one of the most remarkable characters of history, the mid-14th century French knight and commander Bertrand Du Guesclin. Then the story of Sir John Fastolf, a major English commander of the 15th century (only very tenuously related to Shakespeare's Falstaff) nicely illustrates the transition between the world of knightly warfare and that of armies on the modern pattern. A final chapter traces the lingering influence of knighthood in early modern Europe. There are many well-chosen black-and-white illustrations, extensive source notes, and a good bibliography. The book addresses the knight's armor and fighting techniques, but only briefly. Combats and battles, too, are treated largely in schematic fashion. The focus is on the knight's character, his views of himself and his world, and his place in his society. There is also a clear summary of the overall development of the patterns of Medieval warfare. Although there is some mention of knighthood elsewhere, the book concentrates very strongly on England and France; treatments of Southern and Central Europe of comparable quality would be very welcome. Gies does not have an ideological slant or a theory to defend -- she neither "debunks" nor extolls. Since the book's writing, two decades ago, further evidence has been discovered which naturally alters some details, but on the whole the book holds up very well. Customer Rating: Summary: The Knight in History Comment: Puts the development of the mounted knight in its correct historical perspective. It is particularly important to realize that the our image of the knight (fully clothed in plate armor) never fought a battle. However, the book is no competition for Barbara Tuckman's A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous Fourteenth Century. Ever ready to jump on my horse and ride into the melee: Gies points out that the long bow could fire much faster than the crossbow, but fails to draw any conclusions. The big lessons of Agincourt and Cr‚cy were that mobility is very important. Tuckman's opinion is that from Cr‚cy onward (1346), the mounted knight was in decline. "...the campaign of the knights was a model of efficiency. Its [the First Crusade's] five armies...arrived in Asia Minor intact and in fighting trim..." She doesn't mention that they also arrived richer and morally uplifted, having looted and hacked their way across Europe. She describes the battle of Verneuil (p.175) as a "second Agincourt", then fails to elaborate. The first one didn't get much press, either. Several of the original members of the Order of the Garter (p.177) are described as "Du Guesclin's foes". What does that add? She whines about Shakespeare apparently parodying the name of the redoubtable English knight, one John Fastlof, described elsewhere as "cruel and vengeful", and whose "scorched earth" exploits she recounts in some detail, by naming his "corpulent and cowardly buffoon" Sir John Falstaff. I don't even know where to begin on this one! Fastlof should be so lucky as to be redeemed by playing with his name. Falstaff is one of the greatest imaginary creations of all time; Fastlof slogged around western France for thirty years or so bent on pillage, terror and murder. How about some diagrams of these various pieces of armor? A remarkably cool assessment of barbaric behavior, this. Only five lines from the end of the book does she lose it and say "Knights fought for profit and killed without mercy, robbed those whom they should have defended, and violated those whom they should have respected." Customer Rating: Summary: A fantastic analysis of the everyday life of a Knight Comment: Since I have an interest in the Middle Ages (900AD-1500AD) I was recommended this book by a history professor, and I wasn't dissapointed. This is an interesting analysis of the Knights in Medieval Society not only of England and France, but Europe in general. Easy to read, analytical and comprehensive this explains the initiation, rituals, valor and hardship that the Knight had to endour everyday. The author(s) have written many outstanding books of the middle ages and this is a welcome addition to the series they have written. A MUST have book for anyone studying the middle ages or the casual reader who picks it up in a store or library. More Reviews