Editing Order of the Garter (section)

==Military Knights of Windsor==
{{Main|Military Knights of Windsor}}
[[File:Military Knights of Windsor.JPG|thumb|right|upright|[[Military Knights of Windsor]] in the procession to the Garter Service]]

At the founding of the Order of the Garter, 26 "poor knights" were appointed and attached to the Order and its chapel. This number was not always maintained, and by the 17th century, there were only thirteen such knights. King [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] increased the number to 18 (in large part because of funds allocated from Sir Francis Crane's will) after his coronation in 1660. After the knights objected to being termed "poor", King [[William IV]] redesignated them in the 19th century as the Military Knights of Windsor.<ref name="SGC3">{{cite web |url=http://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/about-st-georges/whos-who/military-knights.html |title=College of St George – Windsor Castle – Military Knights |publisher=College of St George – Windsor Castle |access-date=4 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100510013842/http://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/about-st-georges/whos-who/military-knights.html |archive-date=10 May 2010 }}</ref>

The poor knights were impoverished military veterans, required to pray daily for the Knights Companion. In return, they received a salary and lodging in Windsor Castle. The knights are no longer necessarily poor, but are still military pensioners. They participate in the Order's processions, escorting the members, and in the chapel services. However, they are not considered members of the Order.<ref name="SGC3" />

The poor knights originally wore red [[mantle (clothing)|mantles]], each of which bore St George's Cross, but did not depict the Garter. Queen [[Elizabeth I]] replaced the mantles in the 16th and 17th centuries with blue and purple gowns, but the red mantles returned in the 17th century under King [[Charles I of England|Charles I]]. When the knights were renamed, the mantles were abandoned. The military knights now wear the old military uniform of an "army officer on the unattached list": black trousers with red stripe, a red [[double-breasted]] swallow-tailed coat, gold [[epaulet]]s and brushes, a [[cocked hat]] with a [[hackle|plume]], and a sword on a white baldric.<ref name="HN" />