A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Ancient Greek hippeis (ἱππεῖς) and Roman equites.
Sir Thomas Malory was an English writer, the author of Le Morte d'Arthur, the classic English-language chronicle of the Arthurian legend, compiled and in most cases translated from French sources. The most popular version of Le Morte d'Arthur was published by the famed London printer William Caxton in 1485. Much of Malory's life history is obscure, but he identified himself as a "knight prisoner", apparently reflecting that he was either a criminal, a prisoner-of-war, or suffering some other type of confinement. Malory's identity has never been confirmed. Since modern scholars began researching his identity the most widely accepted candidate has been Sir Thomas Malory of Newbold Revel in Warwickshire, who was imprisoned at various times for criminal acts and possibly also for political reasons during the Wars of the Roses. Recent work by Cecelia Lampp Linton, however, presents new evidence in support of Thomas Malory of Hutton Conyers, Yorkshire.
In the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories, personal bravery, achievement, or service are rewarded with honours. The honours system consists of three types of award:
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, KG, PC was an English nobleman and a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, and a committed general, he was placed under house arrest following a poor campaign in Ireland during the Nine Years' War in 1599. In 1601, he led an abortive coup d'état against the government of Elizabeth I and was executed for treason.
Chivalry, or the chivalric code, is an informal and varying code of conduct developed in Europe between 1170 and 1220. It is associated with the medieval Christian institution of knighthood, with knights being members of various chivalric orders; knights' and gentlemen's behaviours were governed by chivalrous social codes. The ideals of chivalry were popularized in medieval literature, particularly the literary cycles known as the Matter of France, relating to the legendary companions of Charlemagne and his men-at-arms, the paladins, and the Matter of Britain, informed by Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, written in the 1130s, which popularized the legend of King Arthur and his knights of the Round Table. All of these were taken as historically accurate until the beginnings of modern scholarship in the 19th century.
The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, the only decorations which outrank it in precedence are the Victoria Cross and the George Cross. The Order of the Garter is dedicated to the image and arms of Saint George, England's patron saint.
Clan Ross is a Highland Scottish clan. The original chiefs of the clan were the original Earls of Ross.
Jousting is a medieval and renaissance martial game or hastilude between two combatants either on horse or on foot. The joust became an iconic characteristic of the knight in Romantic medievalism.
Earl of Rothes is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1458 for George Leslie, 1st Lord Leslie. He had already been created Lord Leslie in 1445, also in the Peerage of Scotland. His grandson, the third Earl, having only succeeded his elder brother in March 1513, was killed at the Battle of Flodden on 9 September of the same year. His son, the fourth Earl, served as an Extraordinary Lord of Session. Lord Rothes was also tried for the murder of Cardinal Beaton but was acquitted.
In the Middle Ages, a squire was the shield- or armour-bearer of a knight.
Howard Pyle was an American illustrator, painter, and author, primarily of books for young people. He was a native of Wilmington, Delaware, and he spent the last year of his life in Florence, Italy.
A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's body armor that covers the foot.
In the Hand of the Goddess is a fantasy novel by Tamora Pierce, the second in a series of four books, The Song of the Lioness. It details the squire- and knighthood of Alanna of Trebond, who has hidden her real sex in order to become a knight.
The Black Shield of Falworth is a 1954 American Technicolor film from Universal-International, produced by Robert Arthur and Melville Tucker and directed by Rudolph Maté. It stars Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, David Farrar, Herbert Marshall, and Torin Thatcher. The screenplay, set in Medieval England, was adapted by Oscar Brodney and is based on Howard Pyle's 1891 novel Men of Iron. The original music score was composed by Hans J. Salter although his name does not appear in the screen credits. The only musical notation is given as: "Music Supervision by Joseph Gershenson". Made Universal's music department head in 1940, Gershenson's name appeared on nearly every film made by that studio from 1949-1969.
Thomas of Marle, Lord of Coucy and Boves, was a medieval French nobleman. He was born in 1073 to Enguerrand I of Boves, the Lord of Coucy, and his wife Adele of Marle. After the death of his father, Thomas became the Lord of Coucy and of his family's other holdings. As the best-known of the Lords of Coucy, Thomas of Marle became infamous for his aggressive and brutal tactics in war and his continued rebellion against the authority of King Louis VI.
Mackworth Castle was a 14th- or 15th-century structure located in Derbyshire, at the upper end of Mackworth village near Derby. The home for several centuries of the Mackworth family, it was at some point reduced to the ruins of a gatehouse suggestive of a grand castle. A survey from 1911 suggested that though the gatehouse resembled a castle, the rest of the structure may have been more modest. The remains are part of a designated Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Simon Michael Abney-Hastings, 15th Earl of Loudoun, styled as Lord Mauchline until 2012, is a British aristocrat living in Australia who is the current holder of the ancient Scottish noble title of Earl of Loudoun.
The Savage family is an English noble family founded by Thomas Le Sauvage (Savage), who came to England as part of William the Conqueror's Norman army in 1066 and settled in Derbyshire after the conquest, taking residence in Scarcliffe. Thomas Le Sauvage's name appears in a list of Normans who survived the Battle of Hastings. In the 14th century a branch of the family was established in Cheshire, and this was the place where they became most prominent, with several members ascending to the peerage and positions of power such as Archbishop of York. The Cheshire branch of the family built the primary family seat Rocksavage, the house was one of the great Elizabethan houses of the county and a leading example of the Elizabethan prodigy house. There were further branches of the family in Dorset, Gloucestershire and Kent, as well as one in Ireland, which was created following the arrival of Sir William Savage, Baron Savage in Ulster as a companion of Sir John de Courcy. Many of the family are buried in tombs in the family chapel at St Michael's Church, Macclesfield.
