Bellatores

Those Who Fight

The bellatores were the knights of the Middle Ages. Most people have an image of knights that comes from the very end of the Middle Ages: the knight in shining armor (that is, in plate mail), who fights bravely for his lady fair, who is chivalrous and courteous and noble. That is a stereotype, of course, useful mainly to Hollywood producers and the writers of romance novels. The reality was more complex and not nearly as attractive.

Knighthood is a somewhat slippery concept, and one that developed over the centuries. A knight was first and foremost a mounted warrior -- that was his origin and that was his primary role in society. In the early Middle Ages, just about anyone who fought on horseback might be called a knight, even if he were but a lowly commoner.

By Charlemagne's day, a specialized type of mounted warrior had emerged -- one who wore armor, who wielded a lance in addition to the usual sword or mace, and whose specialty was the massed cavalry charge. The Franks were the real originators of this sort of fighter, but the institution spread elsewhere. Increasingly, over the tenth and eleventh centuries, the aristocracy of Europe and the mounted warriors of Europe merged into a single group.

By the twelfth century, the process was pretty much complete. No one could be a knight who was not also a nobleman, and all noblemen were expected to be knights (unless they entered the Church). The other elements were in place, as well: the fief, the stone castle, sophisticated armor and high-quality steel weapons.

What sort of world did the knight live in? What sort of fellow was he? The images that spring to mind most readily are the castles, tournaments, and the swords and armor of a knight. Other aspects of knighthood, however, are equally interesting and important. Their beliefs and values, for example, differed markedly from our own. The pattern of their daily life was likewise notably different.

The knight began to lose his military superiority with the development of trained infantry in the 14th century. Once field artillery and hand guns came into use, the armored knight was merely a relic (16th century). The institution was so deeply ingrained , however, that it persisted for many centuries. The aristocrats continued to fight on horseback, and in many countries laws were passed that forbid anyone but a gentleman to carry a sword. And nobles still wore suits of armor, highly-decorated works of art they were, for parades and fine occasions. But not to the battlefield.