From a military point of view, war and athletics were the main functions of knights. In the Middle Ages, a heavily armed knight and his attendant wearing a helmet, armor, and a sword, with a shield and a horse in his left hand and a spear in his right hand, was a combat unit. It is unstoppable and unstoppable on the battlefield, some people describe it"A Frank on a horse could punch a hole in the walls of Babylon"Of course, this is certainly an exaggeration.
In the Middle Ages, knights galloped on the battlefield not only as a military feudal obligation that they had to fulfill, but also as a sacrosanct right. Therefore, the knights of the Middle Ages were not only the embodiment of military art, but also the planner of military strategy and tactics. On the one hand, knights had to serve the lord for 40 days a year of military service, or go to war with the lord; On the other hand, it was more often the knights who fought to protect or defend their rights and honors, religious disputes, injustices, and disputes.
Because in the political state of feudal secession in the Middle Ages, it seems that it has become a common method in society to resolve contradictions through feudal private law and private warfare. Therefore, holding a sword and fighting privately is not only a profession or a way of life for knights, but also a way to obtain honor and wealth. Thus, in Europe the Middle Ages, armed knights were not only the core of army battles, but also the main guardians of feudal castles.
The European Middle Ages were"Castle Age"Each castle was the feudal military, political, economic and social center of a region, the basis for the formation of the feudal lordship, and the defenders of the castle were knights. Some castles were even knights' strongholds.
Windsor Castle, for example, was used by King Edward III as the centre of the Order in the 14th century. The rise of the castle was epoch-making, as Thompson pointed out"The rise of castles and their spread across Europe produced a profound change in terms of lifestyle and the nature of civilization. They began a new era, an era of military superiority, the feudal era. In the section.
In the ninth, tenth and even eleventh centuries, before feudalism had become self-conscious and developed into a consolidated form of government, life was difficult and barbaric for all classes in society.
It was only when feudalism had become an orderly system—at least as reasonable as man's ability in any age—that life in the castle became elegant and comfortable. By that time, military architecture had advanced to the point where castles were no longer mere wooden fortifications but were spacious, even imposing stone buildings"。The early castles of Europe were fortified fortifications, more precisely manor-like facilities, and began to develop into residential castles after the 10th century. Castles were often fought in medieval wars, so from the 11th century onwards, castles were often built on hills to strengthen their defenses.
It is worth noting that the castles that have survived today are generally from the late Middle Ages, and most of them were remodeled in the 19th century, rather than the style of the knights' castles. Although there were many large and famous castles at the time, most of the knights' castles were less than 40 meters long. For example, in 1293 in the Burkegaard Castle in Swabian, Prussia, there were only 5 burghers, 8 guards, 2 gatekeepers, and one bell watchman.
Wars in the Middle Ages mostly revolved around the battle for castles, which were the main political and military objectives. on the castle"Siege wars continue to dominate military activity, while large-scale battles take place on the battlefield are relatively rare"。Defeated armies can take refuge within the castle walls, and their last positions can retreat to the main tower in the castle. The main fortifications of the castle consisted of moats, walls, towers, curtain walls, etc. The food stored in the castle generally lasts for a year, and a 60-man defender is enough to resist an enemy army 10 times its size, often trapped by supplies for the besiegers rather than the besieged. As a result, castles were often easy to defend and difficult to attack under the defenders of the knights.
Castles were often breached mainly by means of battering rams, movable assault towers and stone ballistae (catapults), as well as the burning of oil and the collapse of wooden structures on top after digging tunnels. For example, in 1215, King John of England defended a hundred rebel knights and guards in Manjust Castle by ordering Chief Judge Hubert to send 40 of the fattest pigs day and night, and burned them in the tunnels with lard and wood, causing a large part of the castle wall to collapse and break down.
In 1244, during the siege of the castle of Montsèg, the Albigensian bishops used a catapult to fire 40 kilograms of projectiles at the same point of the city wall day and night, and finally broke a gap. Castle battles are often brutal, as they are often the difference between victory and defeat in a regional battle. The Hundred Years' War between England and France (1337-1453) and the War of the Red and White Roses (1455-1485) in England are classic interpretations of the offensive and defensive battles between knights and castles.
Medieval European knights were the core of the army and the masters of the battlefield, so their equipment and moral code were often the main factors affecting warfare. The main ** used by knights in general are spears and swords, but there are also some knights who use battle axes, hammers, iron rods, maces of wolf teeth, and so on. The knight's spear can be thrown on the battlefield to assassinate enemies. In the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the French knights disrupted the wall-like shield lineup of the English ** team in this way.
But the bow and sword were often considered inferior infantry equipment and were disdained by the cavalry to use them. At the same time, there was a time when the Church also forbade the use of such in wars between believers.
However, due to the development of feudalism in England, skilled archers were recruited to become professional soldiers, who often placed their iron-tipped stakes in front of the battle to stop the enemy's horses, and shot horses and enemies with large bows and arrows that could shoot 250 yards away from outside the stakes. During the Hundred Years' War, King Edward III defeated the heavily armored French knightly army with 20,000 mercenaries armed with a bow, and in 1360 King John of France was also defeated and taken prisoner.
In previous centuries, the art of war was mainly expressed in the heroic deeds of haughty knights, but the English longbowmen proved that the archers were not inferior to the cavalry, which had a destabilizing effect on the status of knights. Since then, the French ** team has also begun to hire professional archers from Genoa and other places. However, the important role of cavalry in military affairs remains undeniable"Without it, no 15th-century army, whether offensive or defensive, would have been able to achieve a decisive victory on the battlefield"。
Even during the Napoleonic Wars, cavalry was still the main force of military mobility and charging on the battlefield.
Medieval literature has discussed how to be a chivalric"I am a knight, traveling on horseback, looking for a man, armed like me, willing to fight with me. If he can defeat me, it will improve his reputation; If I can defeat him, I will be seen as a hero, and I will be respected like never before"。
However, despite the fierce and fierce battles of lord knights, knights often fought on the battlefield with the aim of killing each other. Describing the Battle of Bremule (1119), Vitelli reports:"Of the 900 samurai, only 3 were killed"。At the Battle of Tinchebrai (1106), King Henry I of England defeated all the Normans, 400 warriors**, but none of Henry's knights were killed.
The Battle of Bouvines was the bloodiest and most decisive battle of the Middle Ages, with only 170 of the 1,500 knights killed. This was not only because the armor and fortress were good for the lives of the knights, but also because the tacit agreement and the rules between the knights required the good treatment of the captives and the demand for a reasonable ransom.
Usually the captives were released after a ransom was paid on a certain date, and few knights broke such an oath. It is recorded that the French knights captured at Chrissy and Poité during the Anglo-French War lived freely and comfortably with the English captives, sharing feasts and sports with their masters until they were ransomed. This way of ransom the captured knightly nobles with money, even the king.
Richard the Lionheart of England was captured by the Austrians during the Crusades, and the British ransomed him with a lot of money, and he is still considered a brave and heroic knight king. King Louis IX of France had the same experience. Of course, the medieval knights were on the battlefield"Heroes cherish heroes"Another important reason why they rarely kill each other is that they consider that being too heavy will cause serious revenge. Therefore, the most casualties on the battlefield were low-status infantry.
Thompson had pointed to the Middle Ages"War enriches the feudal lords by acquiring land and serfs, and it enriches their knights and knights by obtaining booty and ransom money—it is this special interest of the nobility in continuing the war that has for centuries failed all attempts to abolish private wars.
This group of non-producers can only be used to fight wars"。In order for the knights to become an important factor in the stability of the feudal ruling order, the feudal rulers and the church must regulate and guide their spiritual value orientation and action energy orientation. There are three main aspects to this:
One of them is that knightly jousting tournaments are often held. Knightly tournaments were popular in Western Europe, and were often held to celebrate knightly ordination ceremonies, weddings between royal nobles, visits from a king or nobleman, and various festive and religious festivals.
A jousting tournament is sometimes held for a week, and the tournament is a city square or open space in the wilderness, surrounded by beautifully decorated grandstand boxes for gentlemen and citizens**, and bands playing. The knight first engaged in a horse shootout, the two horses charged each other with spears, and after one side was knocked to the ground, the two sides could continue to fight on the ground until one side begged for mercy or the host called a halt.
Sometimes the knights fought for the glory of their favorite young lady. The winner will receive a prize from the judge or a noblewoman. The climax of the conference is that the participating knights are divided into two teams and really fight, although blunt weapons are usually used, but ** is still a common thing. In 1240, for example, 60 knights died in a joust at Neuss. At the same time, the loser** was taken prisoner and was squeezed for ransom and booty.
At the end of the game, all the surviving knights and nobles took part in a feast of cabaret, where the victorious knight was given a kiss to a lovely woman and was praised by the poetry of the ceremony. So in this kind of jousting conference,"Pride, honor, love, and art all provide traditional motivations for the competition", the loyalty and heroism of the knights were celebrated.
Monuments have also been erected on the sites of some famous jousting tournaments. The spirit of knightly jousting has always been a source and model of medieval heroism in Europe, so much so that Richard II of England intended to fight with his uncles, the Duke of Lancaster, the Duke of York, and the Duke of Gross, against King Charles IV of France and his uncles, the Dukes of Anjou, the Dukes of Burgundy, and the Dukes of Berry. Louis of Orleans challenges King Henry IV of England. Henry V of England challenged the crown prince of France before marching on Agincourt. In 1425, the Duke of Burgundy challenged the Duke of Grosses over the Dutch question; Twenty years later, he wanted to fight a duel with the Duke of Saxony to settle the Luxembourg question. In 1526 and 1536 Charles V proposed to the King of France that a duel should be used to settle their differences.
It can be seen that the spirit of knightly competition has an impact on society.
The second is that the church has stepped in to limit private warfare. From 989 to 1050, the Church held several councils in France to establish the Pax dei (Peace of God), excommunicated those who killed innocents in war, and organized peace councils in the centers to persuade the nobility to stop private wars. Beginning in 1027, the Church of France proclaimed"God's ordained truce"。
At first this truce was limited to harvest seasons and holidays and certain days of the week, but eventually it became so that only 80 days of the year could be used for private or feudal warfare. 12th century,"God's ordained truce"It became part of the canon and civil law of Western Europe. Church Advocacy"God's ordained truce"It was an attempt to use religion to adjust and integrate the chaotic feudal order, and to alleviate or dissolve the knights"Pride and prejudice"The social destructiveness that brings about private wars.
The third is through the Crusades"Holy war"。In 1096, Pope Urban II called for the First Crusade"Let those who used to fight with those of faith over private matters now go and fight against those who do not believe in God! ""Those who used to be robbers, now go and be the best warriors! Those who once fought with their brothers and relatives and friends, now go and wage a just war against the barbarians! "The Crusades were the culmination of medieval history.
During this 200-year war, all the developments of the Middle Ages: the piety and fanaticism of religious beliefs, the bravery and barbarism of the samurai spirit, the feudal power, the expansion of religion and commerce, etc., reached their peak. On the one hand, the Crusades as"A European-wide event, it becomes a national event in every country"Almost all the classes in Europe are mad at this same action; On the other hand, under the instigation of the pope's desire to gain more secular power, the knights and nobles, who had taken the courage and militarity as the value of their lives, immediately responded enthusiastically, and they sold their family property in advance, and King Richard even mortgaged the entire territory and country; Some kings participated in the crusade and lost their lives, such as Kaiser Friedrich I and King Louis IX of France.
As the main body and main force of the Crusader expedition, the knights occupied Jerusalem in 1097 and established four Latin states ruled by the knights: the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Principality of Antioch, the Count of Tripoli, and the Kingdom of Edria. In order to consolidate these knightly states, the Pope supported or organized several military orders.
For example, in 1119 it was founded in Jerusalem, consisting mainly of French knights"Knights Templar", the members wore red cross white coats; Founded in 1120 with the participation of mainly Italian knights"Knights Hospitaller"Or called"Knights of St. John", the members are dressed in white crosses and black robes; In 1190 at Acre in Palestine was founded by German knights"Teutonic Knights"；In addition, there are the Spanish Knights. These orders were religious military organizations, with their heads directly subordinate to the Pope, and their members were required to strictly observe the three commandments of poverty, chastity, and obedience, and their main task was to protect the Crusader knights' territories.
In the 13th century, the Knights Templar and Knights Hospitaller owned vast lands in Europe, including monasteries, villages, and cities. The activities of these Knights of God directly influenced the course of the development of European history. Ten.
In the fourth and fifth centuries, a large number of knightly orders were established in Europe, and their oaths were used to emphasize and maintain that noble moral pursuit, and the achievements and methods of fulfilling the oaths are recorded in detail. The rules of knighthood were often some of the prevailing rules in society and even between countries at that time.
As Western scholars have pointed out"The rise and fall of the vast Knights, especially the Templars, became indicators of the development and decline of a unified trend in the medieval Christian world" 。
The Crusades provided a historical stage for European knights, especially those who were unable to inherit property due to the hereditary system of primogeniture, to exercise their power and role to the fullest.
During the Carolingian wars against the Spanish Muslims and the Normans' war to retake Sicily from the Muslims, secular chivalry and sacred religious beliefs gradually merged to form a distinctively feudal European patriotism. "This patriotic sentiment is of a religious rather than political nature, for it has nothing to do with any existing state, but with the wider religious society as a whole, and it thus injects a new spiritual element into the barbaric fashion of samurai culture. The belligerent behavior of the leaders is not an end in itself, but its real purpose is to serve the world"
This spirit was in the Crusader era for the reconquest of the Holy Land"Jihad"It is very powerful. The Crusades of the Middle Ages in Europe ended in failure, but it is well known that it had a great influence on the course of world history. However, from the ideological and spiritual level of the historical era, although the knights had their barbaric and brutal side in medieval society, especially during the Crusades, it was in the Middle Ages"Dark Ages"People's thoughts and feelings need a spiritual guidance, and social order needs a spirit to unify.
Therefore, in this state of thought, the chivalry that is harnessed and integrated by the ideals of the Church and pious religious beliefs is precisely the spiritual transformation of Europe by the Church"Unification"Up a cornerstone. Therefore, Heine once called chivalry a kind"Brute force that is spiritualized by **"Christopher Dawson, a historian of religious culture, pointed out in his famous book "Religion and the Rise of Western Culture"."The ideal of clerical chivalry has maintained its appeal to Western thought and its influence on Western ethical standards" 。