The History of Chivalry or Knighthood and Its Times: Volume II

by Mills

• ISBN13: 9780710309273
• ISBN10: 0710309279
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-03-21
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

This work, which could be almost be said to be the definitive work on Chivalry brings to life and collects those many more and now obscure works which were written at the time when Chivalry was a living tradition which had spread across the whole of Europe. Nowhere else are the facts of Chivalry brought so conveniently together.

Table of Contents

State of Chivalry in England During the Reign of Edward The Third	1	(63)
Tournaments
The Round Table
Order of the Garter
Courtesy of Edward
Prevalence of chivalric taste among all classes
English archers
The Black Prince
Story of the king's chivalry
England regarded as the seat of honour
Instance of this
Chivalric heroes in this reign
The gestes and prowesses of Sir Walter Manny
Chivalric vow of Sir Walter
He fights for the love of his lady
His rescue of two brother knights
Instance of his joyous adventurousness
His gallantry before Auberoche
His filial piety
Story of chivalric manners
The gentle disposition of Manny
His importance at Edward's court
His remarkable sagacity
His liberality
His death in 1372
Buried in the Charter-House
Heroism of Sir James Audley
His generosity
Memoir of Sir John Chandos
His gallantry to ladies
Amusing instance of the pride of knighthood
The importance of his counsel at Poictiers
His exploits in Brittany
And in Spain
Is made a knight banneret
Quits the Black Prince
But returns
The remarkable generousness of his conduct to Lord Pembroke
The last circumstance of his life
General grief at his death
Progress of Chivalry in Great Britain, From The Reign of Richard II. To That of Henry VIII	64	(61)
Complaints of the unchivalric state of Richard's court
Influence of chivalry on the national character
Scottish chivalry
Chivalric kindness of Robert Bruce
Mutual chivalry between the Scotch and English courts
French knights' opinions of Scottish chivalry
Courtesies between English and Scottish knights
Chivalric battle of Otterbourn
Hotspur and the Douglas
A cavaleresque story
Reign of Henry IV
Chivalric parley between him and the Duke of Orleans
Henry's unchivalric conduct at Shrewsbury
Henry V
Knights of the Bath
Henry's love of chivalric books
His chivalric bearing
Commencement of the decline of chivalry
The civil wars injured chivalry
Caxton's lamentation
He exaggerates the evil
Many gallant English knights
Character of Henry VIII. with reference to chivalry
Tournaments in his reign
Field of the cloth of gold
Introduction of Italian literature favoured romance
Popularity of chivalric literature
English knights continued to break lances for ladies' love
State of Scottish chivalry at this period
James IV
Chivalric circumstances at Flodden Field
The Last Years of Chivalry in England	125	(43)
The chivalric feelings of the nation supported by Spenser
And by Sir Philip Sidney
Allusions to Sidney's life
particularly his kindly consideration
Chivalric politeness of the age of Elizabeth
The Earl of Oxford
Tilts in Greenwich Park
Sir Henry Lee
Chivalry reflected in the popular amusements
Change of manners
Reign of James the First
Tournaments ceased on Prince Henry's death
Life of Lord Herbert of Cherbury
Chivalric fame of his family
His character
His inferiority to the knights of yore
Decline of chivalric education
Important change in knighthood by the parliament of Charles the First
Application of chivalric honours to men of civil station
Knights made in the field
Carpet knights
Knights of the Bath
Full account of the ancient ceremonies of creating knights of the Bath
Progress of Chivalry in France	168	(62)
Chivalry in baronial castles
Chivalry injured by religious wars
Beneficial influence of poetry and romance
Chivalric brilliancy of the fourteenth century
Brittany
Du Guesclin
Romantic character of his early years
His knightly conduct at Rennes
Gallantry at Cochetel
Political consequences of his chivalry
He leads an army into Spain
And changes the fortunes of that kingdom
Battle of Navaret
Du Guesclin prisoner
Treatment of him by the Black Prince
Ransomed
Is made Constable of France
Recovers the power of the French monarchy
Companionship in arms between Du Guesclin and Olivier De Clisson
Du Guesclin's death before Randon
His character
Decline of chivalry
Proof of it
Little chivalry in the second series of French and English wars
Combats of pages
Further Decay of chivalry
Abuses in conferring knighthood
Burgundy
Its chivalry
The romantic nature of the Burgundian tournaments
Last gleams of chivalry in France
Life of Bayard
Francis I
Extinction of chivalry
Progress of Chivalry in Spain	230	(73)
General nature of Spanish chivalry
Religion and heroism
Gallantry
Blending of Spanish and Oriental manners
Its beneficial tendencies
Peculiarities of Spanish chivalry
Forms of knighthood
Various ranks of knights
Spanish poetry
Heroes of chivalry
Pelayo
Bernardo del Carpio
And incidentally of Charlemagne's expedition into Spain
The life of the Cid
His early ferocious heroism
Singular marriage
Enters the service of King Ferdinand
The Cid's chivalric gallantry
He is knighted
Death of King Ferdinand
The Cid becomes the knight of Sancho, king of Castile
Mixture of evil and good in the Cid's character
Supports the king in his injustice
The Cid's romantic heroism
Sancho's further injustice opposed by him
Death of Sancho
Instance of the Cid's virtuous boldness
Character of Alfonso, successor of Sancho
Story of his chivalric bearing
The Cid's second marriage
Is banished from Alfonso's court
Becomes the ally of the Moors
But recalled
Is banished again
Singular story of the Cid's unknightly meanness
Fortunes of the Cid during his exile
The Cid's chivalric nobleness and generosity
Is recalled by Alfonso
The Cid captures Toledo
And Valentia
Story of Spanish manners
The Cid's unjust conduct to the Moors
The unchivalric character of the Cid's wife and daughters
The Cid recalled by Alfonso
The marriages of his daughters
Basely treated by their husbands
Cortez at Toledo to decide the cause
Picture of ancient manners
Death of the Cid
His character
Fate of his good horse
Spanish chivalry after his death
Gallantry of a knight
The merits of missals decided by battle
Passage of arms at Orbigo
Knights travel and joust for ladies' love
Extinction of Spanish chivalry
Progress of Chivalry in Germany and Italy	303	(38)
Chivalry did not affect the public history of Germany
Its influence on Imperial manners
Intolerance and cruelty of German knights
Their harshness to their squires
Avarice of the Germans
Little influence of German chivalry
A remarkable exception to this
A female tournament
Maximilian, the only chivalric emperor of Germany
Joust between him and a French knight
Edict of Frederic III. destroyed chivalry
Chivalry in Italy
Lombards carried chivalry thither
Stories of chivalric gallantry
But little martial chivalry in Italy
Condottieri
Chivalry in the north
Italians excellent armourers but bad knights
Chivalry in the south
Curious circumstances attending knighthood at Naples
Mode of creating knights in Italy generally
Political use of knighthood
Chivalric literature
Chivalric sports
On the Merits and Effects of Chivalry	341