Medieval Knight | History, Orders, & Facts

What was a knight?

Knights, foot soldiers, and archers were the three main categories of military in the Middle Ages. The knights were mounted, heavily armed, and armoured soldiers. The richest nobility could only afford to support a knight. They need very expensive weaponry, armour, and a capable war horse.

The First Knights

In the early eighth century, the first knights of the Middle Ages battled for Charlemagne, the King of the Franks. In order to wage war across his vast realm, Charlemagne started to employ warriors mounted on horses. These men developed as a crucial component of his army.

Land grants known as “benefices” were first given to Charlemagne’s finest knights. The knights agreed to defend the monarch anytime he called in exchange for the territory. For the following 700 years, many rulers adopted this practise as regular procedure as it spread throughout most of Europe. You typically became a knight if you were a son born into a family of a knight.

Orders of Knights

Some knights made the decision to swear allegiance to defending Christianity. They organised groups that participated in the Crusades. These directives were known as military directives. Here are the top three military directives:

The Templar Knights
In the 1100s, the Knights Templar were founded. They were renowned warriors during the Crusades and donned white mantles with red crosses. Their main office was located at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount. In battle, the knights wouldn’t back down and frequently charged first. 500 Knights of the Templar led a small force of only a few thousand men to victory over 26,000 Muslim soldiers at the Battle of Montgisard.

The Hospitaller Knights
In 1023, the Knights Hospitaller were established. They were established to look out for sick and underprivileged pilgrims travelling to the Holy Land. They protected the Holy Land from Muslims during the Crusades. These knights had white crosses on their black armour. They relocated to Malta and the island of Rhodes following the destruction of Jerusalem.

The Teutonic Knights –
German knights who formerly belonged to the Hospitallers were known as Teutonic Knights. They had a white cross on the shoulder of their black attire. The Teutonic Knights started a conquest of Prussia after engaging in combat in the Crusades. They rose to great strength before falling to the Polish at the Battle of Tannenberg in 1410.

There were chivalric orders as well. These orders, which were created following the Crusades, were intended to mimic military orders. The Order of the Garter is one of the most well-known of these orders. One of the highest orders of knighthood in the United Kingdom, it was established by King Edward III of England in 1348.

End of the Knight

The knight had lost much of his significance by the end of the Middle Ages. There were two key causes for this. One factor was the development of standing militaries in numerous nations. Soldiers were paid to train and battle. Lords were no longer required to send knights to battle. The evolution of warfare was the other factor. The thick armour that the knights wore became burdensome and useless due to battle strategies and new weaponry like longbows and rifles. This made arming a soldier and funding a permanent army considerably simpler.

Interesting information about mediaeval knights

Knights frequently engaged in combat over the right to plunder. With the loot they looted from a city or town, they may become pretty wealthy.

Many knights chose to pay the monarch money at the end of the Middle Ages rather than engage in combat. The king would then employ that cash to pay warriors to engage in combat. Shield money was the name of this payout.

An Old English term that meant “servant” is where the word “knight” originates.

Religious order knights frequently make a vow of virginity and poverty to God.

Kings and queens nowadays bestow knighthoods on individuals in recognition of their accomplishments. It is seen as a privilege. In recent years, notable individuals such as Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Beatles singer Paul McCartney, and film director Alfred Hitchcock have received knighthoods.