Knights Code of Chivalry

Imagine training with a sword every day since you were seven years old, just so that by age 21 you might finally earn the title of knight. Medieval knights didn't just learn to fight — they promised to follow a strict set of rules called the code of chivalry, covering everything from how they treated enemies to how they treated the poor.

The stages a boy went through to become a knight The main virtues chivalry required, like courage and mercy How chivalry applied on the battlefield and in daily life Why historians debate how often knights actually followed the code

Training for knighthood usually began around age seven, when a boy became a page in a lord's castle, learning manners, horsemanship, and how to care for weapons and armor. Around age 14, he became a squire, serving a knight directly, practicing sword fighting, jousting, and following his knight into battle to carry equipment. If he proved brave and skilled, a lord could dub him a knight around age 21 by tapping a sword on each shoulder.

The code of chivalry wasn't one single written document — it developed over centuries from church teachings and knightly customs. Common chivalric virtues included courage in battle, loyalty to one's lord, honesty, protecting women and the weak, generosity toward the poor, and mercy toward defeated enemies. A knight who broke these rules, especially by fleeing battle or betraying his lord, could be publicly disgraced and stripped of his title.

Historians point out that chivalry mostly applied to fighting other knights and nobles — it rarely extended to peasants or enemies from different regions, who were often treated brutally in war. Many knights were also driven by ransom money: capturing a wealthy enemy knight alive and holding him for payment was far more profitable than killing him, which explains some 'mercy' as much as pure ideals did.