Editing Knight (section)

=== Chivalric code ===
[[File:Peraldus Knight.jpg|thumb|The ''[[miles Christianus]]'' allegory (mid-13th century), showing a knight armed with [[virtue]]s and facing the [[vice]]s in mortal combat.]]
{{Main|Chivalry}}
Knights were expected, above all, to fight bravely and to display military professionalism and courtesy. When knights were taken as prisoners of war, they were customarily held for ransom in somewhat comfortable surroundings. This same standard of conduct did not apply to non-knights ([[archer]]s, [[peasant]]s, [[foot-soldier]]s, etc.) who were often slaughtered after capture, and who were viewed during battle as mere impediments to knights' getting to other knights to fight them.<ref>See [[Marcia L. Colish]], ''The Mirror of Language: A Study in the Medieval Theory of Knowledge''; University of Nebraska Press, 1983. p. 105.</ref>

Chivalry developed as an early standard of [[professional ethics]] for knights, who were relatively affluent horse owners and were expected to provide military services in exchange for [[landed property]]. Early notions of chivalry entailed loyalty to one's [[Homage (feudal)|liege lord]] and bravery in battle, similar to the values of the [[Germanic Heroic Age|Heroic Age]]. During the Middle Ages, this grew from simple military professionalism into a social code including the values of gentility, nobility and treating others reasonably.<ref>Keen, Maurice Keen. Chivalry. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press (February 11, 2005). pp. 7–17. {{ISBN|978-0300107678}}</ref> In ''[[The Song of Roland]]'' (c. 1100), [[Roland]] is portrayed as the ideal knight, demonstrating unwavering loyalty, military prowess and social fellowship. In [[Wolfram von Eschenbach]]'s ''[[Parzival]]'' (c. 1205), chivalry had become a blend of religious duties, love and military service. [[Ramon Llull]]'s ''Book of the Order of Chivalry'' (1275) demonstrates that by the end of the 13th century, chivalry entailed a litany of very specific duties, including riding warhorses, [[jousting]], attending [[tournament (medieval)|tournament]]s, holding [[Round table (tournament)|Round Table]]s and hunting, as well as aspiring to the more æthereal virtues of "faith, hope, charity, justice, strength, moderation and loyalty."<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=INmdwCSkvIgC&pg=PA105 |editor-last1=Fritze |editor-first1=Ronald |editor-last2=Robison |editor-first2=William |year=2002 |title=Historical Dictionary of Late Medieval England: 1272–1485 |location=Westport, CT |publisher=Greenwood Press |page=105|isbn=9780313291241 }}</ref>

Knights of the late medieval era were expected by society to maintain all these skills and many more, as outlined in [[Baldassare Castiglione]]'s ''[[The Book of the Courtier]]'', though the book's protagonist, Count Ludovico, states the "first and true profession" of the ideal [[courtier]] "must be that of arms."<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Deats |first1=Sarah |last2=Logan |first2=Robert |year=2002 |title=Marlowe's Empery: Expanding His Critical Contexts |location=Cranbury, NJ |publisher=Rosemont Publishing & Printing–Associated University Presses |page=137}}</ref> ''Chivalry'', derived from the French word ''chevalier'' ('cavalier'), simultaneously denoted skilled horsemanship and military service, and these remained the primary occupations of knighthood throughout the Middle Ages.

Chivalry and religion were mutually influenced during the period of the [[Crusades]]. The early Crusades helped to clarify the moral code of chivalry as it related to religion. As a result, Christian armies began to devote their efforts to sacred purposes. As time passed, clergy instituted religious vows which required knights to use their weapons chiefly for the protection of the weak and defenseless, especially women and orphans, and of churches.<ref>Keen, p. 138.</ref>