Interesting facts about medieval knights for children. Unique facts about knights

The time of medieval chivalry still excites people's minds. How noble warriors lived is known only from historical chronicles or romantic literature of that time. But over the past few centuries, the facts have become distorted, and the concept of chivalry has become overgrown with many myths. This review presents the 5 most popular misconceptions about medieval knights.

Speaking about the Middle Ages, people got used to thinking that knights, clad in armor, could not even move on their own, and if they fell, it was not possible to get up without outside help. There is a small bit of truth in this statement. Knights wore heavy armor only during tournaments to avoid injury. But at any other time, and even more so in battles on the battlefield, the armor of knights did not exceed 20 kg. If he walked along the streets of cities in peacetime, then the helmet, mittens and shins were removed, fortunately everything was on convenient fastenings.

2. Knights in armor are invulnerable

The myth of the invulnerability of knights in armor is more inspired by romantic literature. At the dawn of chivalry, it was really difficult to kill a warrior; more often than not, he was stunned. But with the advent of crossbows, more powerful bows with armor-piercing arrows, no armor could save the knights.

3. Knights neglected hygiene

Many people think that the knights stank terribly because they often walked under themselves because of their armor. In the Middle Ages, the issue of maintaining hygiene was generally acute, so noble warriors behaved the same as everyone else. But this did not mean at all that they did not care about going to the toilet. The armor was made in such a way as to simplify the natural physiological procedure as much as possible.
There were no pants in the modern sense then. The knights wore shossa - high stockings that were attached to the belt. Later, in the 15th century, a braget appeared - a folding flap at the front. And the unpleasant smell from warriors is easy to explain: if you put on all the knight’s uniform and pick up a sword and wave it for at least half an hour, then the smell of sweat mixed with dirt will not take long to appear.

4. Thousands of armies of knights

Another misconception about knights is their large number. In the 13th century, England and France accounted for just under 3,000 knights. Despite such a small number, the knightly cavalry, clad in armor, was a serious type of army. The infantry consisted of commoners, the archers provided cover, and the knights, lined up in a wedge, were the main striking force.
Another important factor in the relative small number of knights was the limited number of fighting hardy horses capable of carrying metal armor and a rider in armor. Closer to the 13th century, knights acquired a high social status, so they were in no hurry to admit just anyone into the circle of the chosen ones.

5. Knights “went on to exploits” alone

In knightly novels, the plot of a knight traveling alone to achieve feats is very popular. But this misconception did not correspond to reality. Every noble warrior had with him a so-called “spear” - a small group consisting of squires, pages, archers, and swordsmen. And since all this “retinue” was of ignoble blood, they could not be considered people. So it turns out that the knight allegedly traveled alone.

From the legend of the Knights of the Round Table to the film Game of Thrones, our culture has no shortage of tales about the exploits of knights. The more surprising is the fact how little we actually know about them. They were known to wear armor and fight in wars and tournaments. . . but what else did they do? How did they live?

10. Crossbow.

Knights have been the most powerful warriors on the battlefield for centuries and it is generally accepted that no one can ever defeat them. Oddly enough, a very simple invention like a crossbow threatened their unshakable power.

The crossbow, invented in the 12th century, was a kind of super bow. It was made of steel, and could withstand more tension than regular bows and produce a stronger blow. The crossbow was exactly 300 meters long and could be reloaded and manipulated relatively quickly. Arrows fired from this crossbow could pierce metal armor. Thus, a mighty knight who possessed only fighting skills and fancy armor became an easy target for a warrior with a crossbow. And you can learn to shoot with this bow in just a few weeks. An experienced archer can take down two knights in a minute while remaining safe.

Although the knights did not accept crossbows, it was clear that their time as invincible warriors was up, especially when gunpowder weapons were soon invented.

9. Spiral staircase.

Many medieval castles have spiral staircases between floors. They, as a rule, adjoined the wall of the fortress (in the tower, the staircase, as a rule, ran along the outer wall and the rooms were built in the middle).

At first glance, this construction plan may have been explained by a desire to save space, but in fact, spiral staircases were invented for defensive purposes. If an enemy army invaded the castle, it would be quite difficult for their knights to climb up the narrow curved stairs and fight at the same time .

Certain architectural features provided additional advantages to defenders. Medieval spiral staircases were designed to run clockwise upward. This meant that enemy knights had to defend from the left side, which was a serious problem for them, since almost all knights wielded swords with their right hand.

8. Cash costs.

Being a knight was extremely expensive. Armor, weapons, horses, and servants all cost a lot of money compared to normal living expenses. As skilled warriors on horseback, knights were an important component of any army, so rulers were forced to provide them with a livelihood.

The solution to this problem was the system of serving the knights, in which the knight was allocated a piece of land, and in essence, the people living on this land, which was called the knight's fief. The knight was a tenant of land from the lord, with the right to rule over his fief as he saw fit. In exchange for this, the lord could call upon the aid of a knight and his men to fight in his army.

7. The virtues of a knight.

Nobility was the basis of knightly behavior. Its boundaries were poorly defined and often exceeded the established boundaries of everyday life. The codes of conduct and etiquette were very strict, but their essence can be boiled down to the basic vows of knighthood. A knight should never deal with traitors. He should never harm a woman (regardless of her marital status), he should always treat her with respect and protect her from any danger. Moreover, he must fast and abstain from worldly temptations, attend church services daily, and make donations to the church.

The last of these vows was apparently imposed by the clergy. When they decided to undertake the First Crusade in the 11th century, they came up with a cunning plan to recruit knights to carry out their mission. The Church introduced its own code of conduct for knights, and all knights were required to follow it. It is not surprising that this code, first of all, contained rules aimed at maintaining the church and Christianity.

Although chivalrous behavior was generally accepted at social events, many people forgot the basic aspects of knighthood on the battlefield. Instead, many of them mercilessly killed and plundered as much as they wanted. They were soldiers and, in the end, they preferred to avoid the risk of being killed rather than be honorable to their enemy.

6. The emergence of chivalry.

Knights are always associated with horses. The strong horses, in their armored armor, were specially trained for battle. Therefore, the concept of chivalry is believed to come from ancient troops on horseback. The ancient knights appeared during the heyday of the Roman Empire. The ancient Romans had an elite cavalry "Ordo Equestris".

Although the “Ordo Equestris” cannot be called the forefathers of knights, they had much in common with the knights of the Middle Ages - they were less noble, but they fought on horseback and enjoyed considerable respect from their compatriots. When Charlemagne, the Frankish Emperor, introduced the concept of feudalism to the nobility in the ninth century, knighthood was born.

5. Weapons.

Not a single knight appeared on the battlefield without his armor. The armor had to be custom made (armor was made of metal and other inflexible materials and it was important that they matched as best as possible). Over time, the vestments became stronger and stronger; initially the armor consisted of ordinary soft clothing and chain mail. Over time, armored elements were added, and finally fully armored armor (such as featured in most films). The armor was heavy, weighing about 50 pounds. But they protected the knight from blows from any weapon of the Middle Ages.

The quality and strength of the armor served not only for protective purposes, but it acted as a symbol of status. The better the armor, the more important the knight was.

4. Knight's duel.

Jousting was not just an activity that knights did between the wars. In fact, during the time when fighting became a sport and a popular social event, there were not many wars.

The fights became a kind of training and preparation for battle. However, when the Crusades ended and there were no more wars, dueling became a medieval sport. Popular events included pas d'Armes, in which a knight had to fight a group of opponents, and a type of competition where knights were divided into two teams who fought each other without horses.

It is surprising that jousting on horseback was not as popular as competitions between teams of knights.

3. Training.

The training of a knight began at the age of 7 and then lasted until the age of 14. The future knight first served as a page. At this moment, he was just a servant boy who was at his master's beck and call. Although most of his training took place in the form of various games and sports, it was very serious training. Instead of toys and figurines, the medieval page played with clubs and learned the art of horse riding.

At the age of 14 he became a squire. Each squire was usually subordinate to a knight, helping him dress and caring for his armor and weapons. The young squire was already ready to fight on the battlefield. His training became more and more dangerous. Injuries were common, and traditional knightly skills such as jousting and stick fighting were part of the training.

At 21, the squire was finally knighted. Knighting was initially very simple and quick - the nobleman, performing the ceremony, simply touched the back of the squire's head and said a few words. Subsequently, the clergy added more words to add solemnity to the dedication ceremony.

2. Crusades.

The Crusades were aimed at liberating the Holy Land from Muslims. For centuries, campaigns were the main task of knights. It is known that there were only a few crusades, but in reality there were many more. The Crusades were a constant religious war that lasted for almost 200 years. There were eight major crusades and many smaller ones in between.

Unfortunately, the original goal of the Crusades was not achieved by the knights; ultimately, the Holy Land passed to the Saracens. However, this did not stop the church, over the next few centuries, from organizing campaigns against its political opponents in Europe.

1. Modern knights.

Crossbow

Knights have been a major force on the battlefield for centuries, and it seemed as if no one could ever replace them. Oddly enough, their end was a very simple invention called a crossbow.

The crossbow, invented in the 12th century, was a kind of super crossbow. It was made of steel, so it could withstand much more stress than regular bows and had much greater striking power. The crossbow had a firing range of up to 300 meters, reloaded relatively quickly and was easy to operate. His arrows could pierce armor. Suddenly the mighty knight with all his fighting skills, fancy armor and long training turned into an easy target for the guy who learned to shoot in a couple of weeks. A skilled crossbowman could kill two knights in a minute, while remaining out of reach.

Although knights called crossbows an ignoble weapon, it was clear that their time as alpha males on the battlefield was over, especially since gunpowder was invented shortly thereafter.

Spiral staircases

Many medieval castles had cleverly designed spiral staircases between floors. They were usually located next to the fortress wall (in the tower, the stairs usually ran along the outer walls, and the rooms were built in a space in the middle).

They may look like a clever way to save space, but spiral staircases were actually invented for warfare. If an enemy army invaded the castle, it would be extremely difficult for their knights to walk up the narrow, curved stairs, and even fight.

This design also gave defenders an additional advantage. Medieval spiral staircases were designed to climb upward in a clockwise direction. This meant that invading knights had to advance with their left side forward, which was a serious problem since almost all knights held their swords in their right hand.

The importance of money

Being a knight was very expensive. Armor, weapons, horses and servants all cost huge sums of money, and this was on top of normal living expenses. However, knights were an important part of any army, so the ruler had to provide them with funds for their maintenance.

The solution to this problem was the fief system, a system in which the ruler gave his knights a piece of land and, in fact, the people who lived on this land. Such a plot of land was called “flax”. The knight was a tenant of his master with the right to rule over his estate as he saw fit. In exchange for this, the lord could call the knight and his men into his army.

Virtues of Chivalry

Chivalry necessarily implied proper knightly behavior. Its boundaries were strictly defined and often extended beyond the battlefield, including everyday life. Codes of conduct and etiquette were very strict, but their essence can be summarized in the vows a knight made during his initiation ceremony. A knight should never deal with traitors. He should never give bad advice to a lady (regardless of her marital status), should always treat her with respect and protect her from any danger. Moreover, he must observe fasts and abstinence, attend daily mass and make offerings to the church.

The last of these vows was apparently included in the ceremony by the church itself. When did the First Crusade begin to be preached? in the 11th century, a cunning plan was developed to attract knights. The Church introduced its own code of chivalry, a code of conduct that all knights were expected to follow. Not surprisingly, much of it revolved around submission to the demands of the Church and the defense of Christianity.

Although chivalrous behavior was common at social gatherings, not many knights adhered to chivalric ideals when they went into battle. Instead, the majority massacred and plundered as much as they wanted. They were soldiers and practical people. They weren't going to risk their lives just because their opponent might be less of a knight than them.

Origin of chivalry

Knights have always been associated with horses - their armored war horses, strong and prepared for battle. Because of this, the concept of chivalry was believed to come from ancient cavalry troops. Knights are believed to have appeared during the heyday of the Roman Empire. The ancient Romans were part of an elite Order of horsemen known as the Ordo Equestris.

Although the Ordo Equestris cannot be definitively linked to knights, researchers note that they have much in common with the knights of the Middle Ages - they were less noble and fought on horseback and were held in considerable respect. When Charlemagne, Emperor of the Franks, mixed a similar class of equestrian nobles with the concept of feudalism in the 10th century, knighthood was born.

The concept of “knighthood” is already a thing of the past, as are the knights themselves. Many people don’t really know anything about them. Today we will fill this gap by publishing facts about knights! So, welcome to the interesting and fascinating world of people who wore armor and fought in wars and tournaments!

10. Crossbow.

Although the knights did not accept crossbows, it was clear that their time as invincible warriors was up, especially when gunpowder weapons were soon invented.

9. Spiral staircase.

8. Cash costs.

7. The virtues of a knight.

6. The emergence of chivalry.

5. Weapons.

The quality and strength of the armor served not only for protective purposes, but it acted as a symbol of status. The better the armor, the more important the knight was.

4. Knight's duel.

Jousting was not just an activity that knights did between the wars. In fact, during the time when fighting became a sport and a popular social event, there were not many wars.

It is surprising that jousting on horseback was not as popular as competitions between teams of knights.

3. Training.

At 21, the squire was finally knighted. Knighting was initially very simple and quick - the nobleman, performing the ceremony, simply touched the back of the squire’s head and said a few words. Subsequently, the clergy added more words to add solemnity to the dedication ceremony.

2. Crusades.

1. Modern knights.

Since 1560, chivalry essentially ceased to exist as a military concept. There are still a few hereditary knights, but most of them were given this status for the merits of their forefathers. Although there are still many orders of knighthood, most of which were created after the Middle Ages, and the main purpose of which was to emphasize certain human virtues. For example, in our time such famous people as Sir Elton John, Judi Dench, and Sir Paul McCartney have become knights. It’s true that everything in our world has already changed! Agree, now you won’t see a person dressed in metal armor on the street! Much more often you can meet people in fashionable clothes, for example a girl in a tank top and shorts, a guy in... Times change, concepts change, fashion changes too! One can only imagine what will happen in another couple of centuries!

There were no toilets in the castle (at least not as we know them now). This is probably one of the most unpleasant features of the castle. There were no toilets, but there were small latrine structures, or wardrobes, holes through which residents relieved themselves, then the waste ended up in the nearest ditch through chutes. Add to the wretchedness of these latrines the cold and dampness. And, one more thing: these restrooms were called wardrobes because residents often left their clothes here, since the smell repelled insects (and any person with a normal sense of smell, by the way, too).

The first castles were built from wood When the Normans came to England almost a thousand years ago, they built wooden castles on the tops of mountains to protect the castle. But such walls, it should be noted, still burned very well

Windsor Castle is the oldest. With a history of almost 900 years, Windsor still serves as the residence of Queen Elizabeth II. It was originally a wooden castle built by William I. It was later rebuilt using stone and adding outer walls and a round tower.

Castles were built for protection. Just by looking at all the fixtures and appearance of the castles, you can immediately understand for what purpose they were built: ditches, bastions, loopholes, death holes. Each of these elements was designed to protect against enemies. Boiling liquid was poured onto enemies through holes, and bullets and arrows were sent through loopholes. It was better not to approach such castles without an invitation.

Staircases have always been built in a clockwise direction. Castles have always had stairs built in a clockwise direction. This was necessary for one purpose: enemies could climb such a ladder, but most of the warriors were right-handed and there was no room for maneuver. The inhabitants of the castle, on the contrary, would have an advantage when descending.

There are more than 1,500 castle sites in England. The key word is location, since most castles have already turned to dust, 800 are in ruins, but 300 are still standing.

The locks were not comfortable at all. It doesn't matter how big the barn is if it still smells like dirt and horses. So are castles. Plus, they had poor lighting (sunlight penetrated through narrow windows), dampness and poor air circulation. After all, all castles were built for defense. Conveniences faded into the background. Later, the fortresses were equipped with beautiful carpets and glazed windows. Now not only the appearance, but also the interior spoke of the wealth of the owner.

Meals were the main entertainment. The castle was a very boring place. Hunting and training battles took place outside. Inside, everything was more dull. Some played chess, but the main entertainment was food. Entire feasts were held with jesters and minstrels.

Personal servants received part of the luxury Personal servants in the Middle Ages were treated like the family dog, and this was not a bad thing. They slept in the same places as their owners, in the warmth of the fireplaces. Although the servants slept on the floor, they were given warm blankets. Other servants slept in the towers and relied only on the warmth of their bodies and a light blanket.

Achilles' heel? Well! You could pour boiling tar on your enemies as much as you wanted, and the strength of the walls could withstand more than one onslaught, but if the wells were poorly protected or dried up, everything else became useless. Enemies could easily poison the water in the well and win the battle.