Cabal: According to Nennius, King Arthur's dog.
Caballero: Spanish for 'knight'.
Cadency: A mark of difference to show family relationships in the system of heraldry. Included in marks of Cadency are the label (1st son), crescent, mollet, martel, annulet, fleur-de-lis, rose, cross flory, octofoil.
Cadet: Younger son or brother in a family.
Cadbury: An iron-age hill fort beside the village of South Cadbury in Somerset, England, retains an ancient association with the legend of King Arthur. The fort was allegedly revived during the 6th century, the time when the historical Arthur might have lived, and has come to be associated with the more well known name Camelot, and has a host of interesting tales concerning it outside of the Arthurian association. Legends of Arthur have been popular here since at least the 15th century, when tales were told of hidden doors that opened into the hill twice per year, revealing Arthur's body. Since the 16th century, it has been said that on Midsummer's eve once every seven years, the ghosts of Arthur and his knights ride over the ruins. The castle was excavated from 1966-71 under the auspices of Leslie Alcock, where most of the information relating to the history of the castle was discovered.
Calais: An important port in Picardy, on the French side of the straight of Dover, an English possession from 1347 to 1558 after Edward III took the town in August 1347. At the end of an eleven month siege, the town capitulated, on the condition that six prominent men be presented to him barefoot, bearing the town's keys. According to Froissart, Queen Philippa intervened, pleading for their lives. Geoffrey de Charnay, a highly regarded French knight, attempted to release the town through bribery in 13__, but was met in person by Edward and the Black Prince. Geoffrey was then captured, returned to England were he served as a captive until ____. In 1362 Edward transferred the wool staple to Calais, making the town the English main port for English wool experts on the continent.
Caliburnus: An early Welsh name for Arthur's sword Excalibur.
Caliph: A Spiritual leader in an Islamic state, often the head of state or a powerful clergyman with secular powers.
Camelot: Arthur's residence and preferred castle,
not found in literature before Chrètien de Troyes (Lancelot), drawn
heavily from Geoffrey of Monmouth's description of Caerleon. It became
especially prominent in the Arthurian legends during the 13th century,
particularly in the Vulgate
Cycle, where it served as the point of departure for the Grail
questers.
Camlann: In the welsh legends, the place where Arthur meets Mordred in battle, and most of the combatants perished on both sides. There is some evidence that the battle was indeed historical, but not that Mordred and Arthur fought, and the site of the battle is unknown.
Cannon: A heavy metal tube used for firing ordnance. First in service around 1300, the very first cannons fired heavy arrows, but soon stones were used as well. Gunpowder, formed of saltpeter, sulphur, and charcoal were found in Europe, they were used on a large scale only after 1325. Edward III used them at the siege of Calais in 1346, but the new weapon did not achieve any military significance until the late 15th century.
Canon: A clergyman in a clerical house or within cathedral precincts, structuring their life around monastic life.
Canonical Hours: At each of these times, the church bells would ring eight times:
Canterbury Tales, The: The last work of Geoffrey Chaucer, written after 1387 but unfinished at his death in 1400. The tale, an important insight into the perspectives of the various men of the middle ages, is written with an introduction describing the procession of pilgrims to Beckett's shrine at Cantebury, followed by a collections if tales told by each member of the company.
Cantel: The raised section of the medieval war-saddle, high to keep the knight in the saddle.
Captal: Baron.
Capitula: A body of laws; Charlemagne, acting as most important "law giver" in Europe, created specialty bodies of law for dealing with the state, the arts, and and commerce.
Capitula de Villis: Law of the state, Charlemagne's loose system of laws, judgements and edicts that first gave a framework for what became the Holy Roman Empire and much of Western Europe.
Carnwennan: King Arthur's dagger in the Mabinogian story 'Culhwych & Owen'.
Carolingian: Pertaining to the realm of Charlmagne, Pepin or Louis.
Carrack: A large medieval ship, commonly more than 500 tons, used both for war and for transport.
Castellan: Governor or constable of a castle, generally in the lord's absence.
Castle: A defensive residence of a lord, distinguished from other fortifications in the dual role as residence and fort. Because castles were symbols of lordship over a region, they were the frequent targets in warfare, since they were easily defended by a relatively few men, tying down a much larger force often for months at a time. Early castles, the 'motte' or 'bailey' styles, were build generally on a hill, a 'keep' designed to enhance the tactical value of the hill. Over the centuries, these simple defenses were augmented with various ingenious architectural enhancements that improved both their defensive capabilities and their aesthetic qualities.
Cath Palug: The Cat of Lausanne, fought by King Arthur in the 1300 Castillian romance Zifar.
Cathedral: The church of a diocese, a grand building that lent great advances in Romanesque and Gothic architecture.
Cavalry: A mounted man, a 'chevalier', a horseman. The chevalier is the root of the word 'chivalry'. During the Middle Ages it was a commonly belief military theorem that no force on the battlefield could stand up to a charge by heavy cavalry. This belief was reinforced by various defeats of infantry by cavalry, such as at Hastings. During the 14th century a more balanced approach to warfare was experimented with by the Scots and English, especially by Edward III and Robert the Bruce. Edward made excellent use of artillery in the form of archers, infantry in the form of dismounted knights supported by a flanking unit of cavalry.
Cave Legend: In many of the Arthurian legends, Arthur's body is said to be hidden, timeless, in a cave endowed with magical qualities, generally opening only during certain times.
Chain (of fealty): The chains worn by knights within the SCA to mark their fealty to the Crown. In medieval England, there is some evidence that great officers and knights wore such chains as tokens of their loyalty.
Challenge: Calling another combatant out to combat, a challenge can be à plaisance, friendly, or à la guerre, as in war. The challenge was a frequent device for knights who would call out opponents known to them in war, tournament, or to settle questions of honor. During the 15th century, the challenge became a common feature of the feat of arms, both of the emprise, where such encounters were held with weapons of war, and similar encounters using arms of peace called the pas d'armes.
Chamberlain: The office, from the 10th century, the denoted the king's servant responsible for keeping the kings chamber and his signet, growing through the centuries to account for matters of domestic affairs and etiquette of the palace.
Champion for Ordeals: In trials by combat or judicial duels, frequently held in England and on the continent prior to the 14th century, these champions were professional fighters hired on the sly to champion a tenant unable to defend himself. Technically such championing was illegal, but difficult to prove. The deterrence came from the Continental penalty that the losing champion lost his hand, since in order to take to the lists they had to swear to the charge, and in losing they were forsworn.
Chancellor of England: Originally a clerk and chaplain, the chancellor gradually evolved into one of the most powerful offices in England, keeper of the king's secretariat. The chancellor, well schooled, was to keep the king's seal and authenticate important state documents. The chancellor was the 'king's conscience' and the appeal of last resort in legal cases not covered by common or statute law.
Chancery: From the late 10th century, the English office responsible for writing the king's charters, writs and letters. In the late 12th century, under Hubert Walter, archbishop of Canterbury and Chancellor of England, the office began recording letters in long rolls; these rolls have proven a valuable historical record for the study of English history. The chancery issued three main types of documents-charters (making permanent grants of land or privileges); letters patent (making temporary privedges); and letters close (bearing secret instructions for royal officials).
Chantry: Endowment in a will for priests to sing masses to honor the deceased-the word was also applied to the priests who were thus employed.
Chansons de geste: Old French epic poetry, averaging about 3900 lines, in ten-syllable verse. They glorified the Franks, the Christian religion, and a few of the famous Carolingian knights. Thought much of the subject matter was legendary, they were extraordinarily popular; many believed them to be historical. They remained powerful testaments to the ingenuity and sincerity.
Chanson d'Antioche: The work is a 'history' of the first crusade surrounding the career of Godfrey de Bouillon, begun c. 1180 and added to during the 13th and 14th centuries.
Chanson d'Aspremont: Epic from the last decade of the 12th century, the poem details an incident at Charlemagne's court where a messenger from king Agolant so infuriates Charlemagne that he sets out with his army and a young, untried knight named Roland. The work details Roland's early career, how he won his mystical sword Durendal and his horse.
Chanson de Roland: See the Song of Roland.
Charge: A tactical maneuver where a unit moves forward at great speed, using speed and mass to attempt to break up an opponent's forces or movement. The charge was the favored maneuver of the medieval knight, who used the mass of his horse, armour and heavy lance, combined with close-order movement by other knights, to focus a crushing movement. Few could stand against such a charge, but the tactic was worn by improvements in missile technology, new tactics for pikes and spears, and the selection of more defensive positions where cavalry are less effective, such as in marshes, rough ground or in fortifications. As a tactic the charge hinges on the seizure of initiative, where both surprise and mass are used to place an enemy off balance.
Charge, heraldic: The main element on a knight's device or arms, such as a dragon, lion, star, etc.
Charlemagne
(Charles the Great, 724-814): Perhaps the greatest medieval king, one
of the Nine
Worthies. It was he who unified Europe, was crowned as the Roman Emperor,
and who became a favorite hero-figure for both historical and romantic
tales.
Chastity: The idea of chastity as a chivalric virtue was added chiefly by the religious orders of knighthood, the Templars and Hospitallers, who took a vow of chastity as a part of their monastic role. Chastity per se was not a part of secular chivalry, rather it was taken to be that knights should refrain from yielding to certain sinful draws of the flesh-i.e. Lusting after another man's wife. In the realm of courtly love, marriage was not necessarily a requirement for love. Ramon Lull counseled knights to forgo the sins of lust, but said nothing about complete abstention.
Cheques: Books of account where the results of jousts were kept, generally from the late 15th century onwards. Often these books were accompanied by color depictions of the knight's devices, making them a colorful record of late tournaments.
Chevalier: French for knight-literally 'horseman'.
Chevauchée: A common war-tactic of the 14th century, a sort of slash-and-burn attack centering on the economic production of a region, designed to force the opponent to engage. The English used such tactics during the Hundred Years War against France and Spain, often with devastating effects on the citizenry, but with questionable strategic gains.
Children's Crusade: 1212. A twelve-year old peasant boy by the name of Stephen of Cloyes, claiming visions, led an army of children to fight in the Holy Land. Embarking at Marseille, they never reached their destination, but were probably sold into slavery in Egypt.
Chief Almoner: {}
Chivalric chronicler: Primarily Froissart and Monstrelet, the 'family' of historians discusses the political history of the realms of England and France during the troubled times of the Hundred Years War, told from the perspective of the knightly classes. As such, their accounts are often not completely factual, but are highly descriptive and probably representative of the perceptions of the knights of the day, or at the very least are sympathetic to their points view.
Chivalric combat: See Judicial Duel.
Chivalry, the: Another term for a group of knights, as in "discuss it with the chivalry." It was a general term stemming from the French term for knights, chevalier. It became, during the 12th - 15th centuries, a term used also to describe the virtues and ideals associated with the knight as well, generalized by the use of the word in a broad sense. "An act of chivalry."
Chivalry: The collection of virtues belonging to a knight or the description of a virtuous action expected of a knight. Because it describes a set of virtues that changed over the whole medieval period, the meaning of the word evolved and changed over time, eventually merging with the concept of the gentleman. Modern tournament societies strive to embody chivalric character in their memberships, attempting to create different levels of authenticity and ethical standards. See also The Book of the Tournament.
Chronicles of Froissart (Froissart's Chroniques): The historical memoirs of Froissart detailing the diplomatic, military and chivalric affairs of England, France and Spain during the Hundred Years War, chiefly from 1320 - 1400. Froissart was widely traveled, but the Chroniques are of dubious historical value, though since Froissart himself was popular at the English court, it can be expected that they reflect the perceptions of the chivalric classes. Written in French, the Chroniques have been reprinted many times and are easily available to students of medieval culture. The most available edition is by Penguin Books, while the most complete editions were released in the 19th century by Kervyn de Lettenhove, huge volumes containing more than 4,000 pages of very small print.
Chronicles of Engeurrand de Monstrelet (Monstrelet's Chroniques): Similar in many respects to Froissart's chronicles, Monstrelet's work, clearly in the same tradition and bearing the same pitfalls, he chronicles the struggle between the Dukes of Orleans and the Dukes of Burgundy from 1400 - 1485, in the process becoming a valuable recorder of pas d'armes and emprises in France during the 15th century. Monstrelet is generally hard to find, the only English translation I have found being produced by EETS.
Church Courts: Courts introduced into England after the Norman Conquest dealing with certain offenses: heresy, divorce, sexual immorality, disputes over wills, and other cases touching 'disputes over the human soul.' Generally these courts were held under the auspices of a bishop or archdeacon, sometimes under an archbishop or pope. Anyone who could prove the 'benefit of the clergy' came under their jurisdiction. While trying to limit the power of Church courts Henry II incurred the opposition of Thomas Beckett, leading to the events that caused Henry to have him killed.
Church and Knights: The influence of the church over the knights and the conception of chivalry is far more complicated than can be covered in a simple definition. Originally rough warriors, the milites were viewed as a danger to the local populace, who they frequently overran in their petty disputes and tourneys. The church preferred that the soldier's energy be put to holy use-soldiers of Christ defending the church with the sword even as the clergy defended the church with their minds and books. Although the church did affect the conception of ethical behavior for knights, adding the virtues of humility, defense of the weak and of women, piety, faith and chastity to the chivalric ethic. By preaching the Crusades at the Council of Claremont, the church did succeed in firing up the chivalry, many of whom were unemployed, with an energy and a common enemy, thus diverting their attention from factional disputes within Europe. Out of the Crusades came contact with the Eastern ways of life and organizations of religious knights organizing themselves along the lines of a sort of military monastaries, the Templars and Hospitallers.
Cligés: An Alexandrian romance by Chrètien de Troyes, in which many allusions to the Tristan & Iseult tales are included, in which the hero's son pursues a woman not yet free to love, so she takes a potion that makes her appear dead so that they can be free to love.
Clouges: "nail money" paid to heralds for nailing the knight's shield to the tree at a tournament.
Cniht: Anglo-Saxon word for servant that became the English word for 'knight'.
Cog: A naval vessel developed c. 1300 by the Hanseatic League, broadbeamed, high walled, the cog was stable and well suited to both trade and war. It was the favorite warship if the 14th century, playing a prominent role in the Hundred Years War, particularly at the Battle of Sluys.
Coin Clipping: Shaving down of pennies and other silver coins to reduce their value. This was a serious problem in a metals-based economy, resulting in heavy penalties, including hanging.
Colée: The actual dubbing of the new knight, eventually the flat of a sword, used in granting the accolade of knighthood.
Collar of S: Collars consisting of many "s" letters linked together, worn by various great officers in England. It was apparently worn as a sign of nobility, but the origin in unclear. Some have put forward that the "s" is for 'sovereign'. The collar of 's' was granted by Henry IV as a sign of nobility, as well as being the household badge for the house of Lancaster. There is some evidence that these chains were in use before this, however, so their origin remains obscure.
College of Arms: The office in England having authority of all matters heraldic, put into place after 1515, comprised of kings of arms, heralds, pursuivants of arms.
Color: In heraldic terms, as distinct from the metals.
Combats of Chivalry: Original judicial duels, fought à la guerre with weapons of war, until one of the combatants was too exhausted to continue. These combats were also referred to as emprises, where knights of opposing nationalities fought to prove their prowess and thus earn renown.
Combat of the Thirty: 1351. At Ploermel in Brittany, thirty French knights met the same number of English, with no restrictions to weapons, resulting in nine English and six French casualties. Several more died later of wounds received. All of this fighting took place on foot, there were mercenaries around, but the renown attached to the combatants in both kingdoms followed them for years to come, money and offices following the glory earned in combat. This is perhaps the most famous example of an emprise, fought as a challenge with weapons à la guerre, as opposed to a pas d'armes, where such a combat would be fought à plaisance, for pleasure.
Commençailles: The first encounters in a tournament when a few knights would be honored to display their prowess in single combats against equally valiant opponents.
Commendation: A contract for vassalage.
Commissions of Array: Royal orders for troop levies issued by the Crown upon Shires and Boroughs to augment the feudal obligations owed by the greater vassals. Contrast with indentures.
Company of Saint George: The first of the Tournament Companies, founded in the SCA kingdom of Caid in 1990, the Company of Saint George strives to bring a more authentic approach to SCA tourneying, as well as emphasizing the character of tourney combatants. The Company now has two chapters, the larger one in the West kingdom, and a smaller but active one in Caid. The Company (CSG) actively assists others who wish to build their own companies, having lent assistance in the founding of the Company of Saint Michael and the Company of the Star.
Additionally, the CSG has been the first company to experiment and to bring the pas d'armes back into the SCA experience, experimenting to find the best balance for various kinds of SCA events.
Modeled chiefly on the English Order of the Garter and the German tournament societies of the 14th centuries, the Company is an association of nobles within the SCA who wish to see the tournament experience improved. (See also the Company of Saint George section of this website; Chronique: The Journal of Chivalry #4; and the monograph available through the Chivalry Bookshelf.)
Company of Saint Mark: The fourth tournament company, founded in the SCA kingdom of Atlantia in 1994.
Company of Saint Michael: The third tournament company, founded in the SCA East kingdom. The Company of Saint Michael requires SCA knighthood for membership, but maintains a cadet household to include non-knights in St. Michael activities. Saint Michael has been most active at Pennsic War, where they were the first to bring the pas d'armes to Pennsic. They have done much work with Galleron in the East kingdom working around the King René theme, striving to bring greater authenticity to the tournament experience.
Company of the Star: The modern Company of the Star, founded in the SCA kingdom of Trimaris, emphasizing the history of the period from 1350-1360. Their pas d'armes, held sporadically, are generally not SCA events, held for the pleasure of the companions, but the Star does participate in SCA events and works hard to improve the quality of equipment available to 14th century re-enactors. They are based upon the French Order of the Star, the 14th century company of knights assembled by Jon le Bon.
Compte: See Count.
Condotierri: Leaders of Italian free companies, some of which were large enough to be seen as small armies-hired out to carry on wars on the Italian peninsula during the 14th and 15th centuries.
Conflictus Gallicus: L. for tournaments. They were licensed in England in 1194 by Richard I using rules brought from France.
Conroi: A small group of knights who competed in tournaments together from the 12th and 13th centuries. See also Hastilude and Chronique: The Journal of Chivalry #9.
Constable: The chief military officer of the English crown, with the Marshal as lieutenant, known respectively as the 'lord high constable' and the 'earl marshal.' Their authority extended to all affairs relating to relations between soldiers and merchants, and in relations between soldiers. During the 16th century, the two presided over courts of chivalry.
Constantinople: Founded in 330 by the Emperor Constantine, it was built on the site of a Greek town called Byzantium, and this gave its name to Constantine's empire, which was to weather the fall of Rome intact until the late 15th century.
Coquillards: Large groups of bandits roaming the French countryside during the 1450s. They were largely rounded up in Burgundy from 1455-57, but their striking language was immortalized by the poet François Villard.
Coronation: The ceremony marking the crowning of a new monarch or king. These ceremonies became very involved, centering around the annointing, where the king ceases to become mortal and takes on a divine character.
Coronet: The circlets worn by the members of the Royal family other than the king, and by members of the nobility, especially after the middle of the 15th century.
Within the SCA, coronets have a particular meaning. Dukes can wear coronets that feature strawberry leaves. Counts, earls and the equivalents, each of whom has emerged victorious from Crown Tournament one time, have embattled coronets. Viscounts, who have attained the victory in a Coronet list, are entitled to a pointed coronet. Court barons have coronets with pearls. The standards for coronets vary from kingdom to kingdom in the SCA, as they did in Europe for the period.
Coronet List: Within the SCA, the lists fought to determine the who will rule the principality for the next six-month period. Winners of the lists reign for six months as Prince and Princess, at which point they are granted the title of Viscount in token of the service they have performed for the SCA.
Couch: A technique where the lance is held under the arm to steady it during a course, substantially reducing the amount of flex and increasing the accuracy of a lunge.
Council of Claremont: A meeting of the ninth canon in 1130 whereby the church attempted to cause the cessation of tournaments, repeated again in 1139 and in 1179. See also the Peace and Truce of God.
"We firmly prohibit those detestable markets or faires at which knights are accustomed to meet to show off their strength and their boldness and at which the deaths of men and dangers to the soul often occur. But if anyone is killed there, even if he demands and is not denied penance and the viaticum, ecclesiastical burial shall be withheld from him." --Histoire des Conciles, Paris, 1912
Count: Administrative in Merovingian and Carolingian France, inheritors of what became, during the middle ages, as the Counties. The title of count merged with the Anglo-Saxon conception of Earl, a title carrying more governing and military responsibilities. The two together merged, becoming synonymous, Earl being correct in England and Count or Compte in France. Graf was the German equivalent, Jarl the Welsh. Counts rank above barons and viscounts, but below dukes, and are known by the title 'excellency'.
Within the SCA, the rank of Count or Earl is applied to gentles who have reigned once, proving victorious in Crown Tournament and thus reigning over an SCA kingdom for four to seven months.
Count of Flanders technique: A soured technique, known during both the 13th and 14th centuries, whereby a group of knights would hold themselves out of the action until late in the mêlée, when they would descend upon the now-tired tourneyers and scoop up easy pickings for the ransoms and equipment.
Counted Blows: There are many period references to combats of x number of courses, where the combat might have entailed a number of blows received, or perhaps of a number thrown.
In the modern tournament companies, both traditions have prospered. In the 'Saint George' method, the number of blows thrown is regulated. The fighting tends to be more poised and precise, but some say less intense. It gives an advantage to combatants who are precise in their blows. In the 'Saint Michael' method, the number of blows received is counted, yielding a different kind of fight-one with more blows thrown, generally with less precision, but with more action. It tends to favor those who throw many blows. See Chronique: The Journal of Chivalry #4.
County: Divisions of land in France formed in the 9th century and in England after the conquest in 1066. The feudal lord of a county, the English Count or French Compte, were powerful nobles who ranked below a Duke and above viscounts and barons.
Coup de Grace: The death-blow a knight gave to his mortally wounded opponent, often using the misiacorde.
Courage: One of the original warrior virtues, one that is shared by all warrior cultures, along with loyalty and prowess. To be courageous, it has been said, is doing the right thing regardless of cost; it is a condition of a strong soul rather than of a strong body. Ramon Lull had a few words on the subject:
"If chivalry were stronger of body than is strength of courage, the order of chivalry would be more in accord with the body than with the soul. If it were such then the body would be more noble than the soul, and that is openly false. So nobility of courage may not be vanquished of men, nor surmounted, nor all of these men who have been what she is in her right strength. And when a body is lightly taken and vanquished of another, it is obvious that the courage of man is more strong and noble than the body. A knight who accompanies his lord into battle, who for lack of courage flees the battle when he should give aid, because he more redoubts or fears the torment or peril more than of his courage uses not the office of chivalry. Neither is he the servant nor obedient to other honors, but is against the honor of chivalry, which was bygone by nobility and courage. If the lesser nobility of courage should accord better to the order of chivalry than to the greater one of the soul, unto chivalry should accord sloth of heart and cowardice against hardiness and strength of courage. And if it were thus, sloth and courage should be the office of a knight, and hardness and strength of courage should disordain the order of chivalry."
Course: In a joust, to run a single pass with lances or swords was a course. Barber and Barker suggest in their tournaments book that a course might also have been a 'bout'; a single fight determined in a variety of manners-counted blows struck or received; until an opponent was knocked to their knees; or perhaps until a particularly fine blow was struck. See also counted blows.
Courser: The best examples of a knight's warhorse, the crème de la crème, often valued from £20 to £100, prices something like that of a modern Mercedes or Cadillac. The more common warhorses were like modern hunters, known then as destriers.
Court: The administrative, judicial, and political body of authority for a feudal body. Adopted from the Roman conception of the curia, the concept was modified by the Germanic tribes, who attached both military and political elements to the leader's responsibilities. This is, in part, how feudal lords came to have such great powers over their vassals. Gradually, the concept of the court came to encompass not only the noble in charge of a body, but the chief officers and vassals who served him, since they would in many cases play some role in the dispensing of justice. The four principal officers of the court, the constable (military officer), chamberlain (treasurer), seneschal (administrator of justice in the absence of the lord), and steward (who administered to the estates).
Court Baron: A court of free tenants who determined the fate of other free tenants prior to the 14th century. Also a handbook by the same name, for use by seigniorial lords, containing precedence and guides so that justice might be more evenly administered.
Within the SCA, a court baron is one who is recognized by the Crown for service, it carries with it a patent of arms and admits the honored gentle into the ranks of the nobility without carrying a peerage of knight, laurel or pelican.
Court of Chivalry: Strictly speaking, a court
of military affairs concerned with the conduct of soldiers under the constable
and Criminally, the court could hear cases of treason and murder, and it
is in cases where there is no direct evidence, where it is the word of
one against the other, that trial by combat could be used. Such trials
were complicated affairs, growing from such cases to also include disputes
over heraldic rights and over matters of honor.
Courtain: The shorter sword
of Ogier the Dane, mentioned in the chanson
de geste of the same name. His other weapon was Sauvaign.
Courtesy: Not one of the original chivalric
virtues, the idea that a knight
should be courteous came from the influence of the court,
the ladies, and the romances.
A knight was expected to be courteous to men of all stations, although
the concept of what was 'courteous' changed over time. What was considered
'courteous' in the days of William the Marshal would be considered barbaric
to the Dukes
of Burgundy in the 15th century. The addition of courtesy to the marshal
suite of virtues is one of the things that distinguishes chivalry from
other warrior codes, for example from Bushido, the Japanese warrior code.
Courtesy title: The courtesy title, one step below that of the
actual rank of an heir. For example, a duke's
first son could style himself 'earl',
unless the family actually possessed other titles, in which case he would
'use' the lesser titles as his own.
Courtoisie: Fr. for courtesy.
Courtly Love: A term first used by Gaston Paris in 1883 article
to describe the 'culture' of love and system of love and adoration developed
in Northern France during the late 12th century. Under this system, the
lover, who pursued his illicit and passionate love relentlessly, was ennobled
by the experience. Some writers claimed that the search itself was enough
to improve the character of the lover, while others maintained that he
would be a fool to pursue such a venture without recompense, be it a smile
or a look or perhaps more intimate conclusion. In general courtly love
took place outside the boundaries of marriage, which is one of the reasons
that the medieval church took such strong objections to it.
Andreas Cappallanus, Chrètien de Troyes and Marie de Champagne
are three names inextricably twined with the movement, but the effect of
the movement was to draw the attention of the knights
away from the battlefield and crusade or religious
duties and add conceptions of courtesy, generosity,
defense and respect for women to the extant religious and military virtues.
In this manner the courtly love movement strongly impacted with accepted
way that women were treated and defended in our own culture even to the
present day.
Courtrai, Battle of: July, 1302. The French chivalry
under the Count of Flanders engaged a large force
of lowland footsoldiers armed with a kind of halberd called a godendang,
having prepared their defensive position in advance by digging pits in
front of the expected French charge. The French sent their own footsoldiers
ahead, but soon grew impatient as the battle proved indecisive, riding
down their own men only to be themselves cut down in the confusion.
Craven: The word applied to the losing champion in a trial
by combat or judicial
duel, since the loss of the duel proved him to be perjured. As an 'infamous'
person, he lost is right to law and could never again appear as a witness.
On the continent sometimes such a loss carried with it the severe penalty
of losing a hand, since the perjury was knowingly issued under oath.
Crècy, Battle of: (26 August 1346) The monumental destruction
of the flower of French chivalry by a much
smaller English force under Edward III and the Black Prince, one of the
first times the new English tactics of deploying archers in force against
a tightly packed enemy was used against the French. It had been first tried
with great success nine years earlier at Halidon Hill, but the lesson was
ignored by the French and they paid dearly for it.
Crenellations: The embattled upper portion of a medieval castle
wall, designed to protect the defenders.
Crockard: A forged English penny
of reduced weight created in the Low Countries in the very last years of
the 13th century. They were 'minted' in large numbers, undermining the
English economy and causing Edward I to ban them in 1299.
Croft: Piece of enclosed ground attached to a peasant's cottage
used for tillage and pasturage.
Crown: The diadem or circlet worn by the king
or monarch to signify their status, the Crown came to be imbued with a
great deal of symbolic power, though the object itself was apparently worn
seldom, mostly in court or for state occasions. Various
monarchs during the high middle ages were from time to time forced to pawn
their crowns to raise money, some of which were never recovered. Edward
III's crown suffered such a fate as he was forced to borrow extensively
to support his campaigns in France.
The term can also be used to refer to the person of the king, with an
allusion to their power-'the crown'. Within the SCA,
the term 'crown' does indeed refer to the person and to the office of the
king, both.
Crown Prince: Their heir to the throne, ranking in precedence
above all other princes
in a kingdom. In England, the Prince of Wales was the Crown Prince for
most of the high middle ages. This usage continues today both in reference
to the Royal house of Britain and within the SCA,
where it applies to the victor of Crown Tournament,
the 'heir apparent', who will step up and be crowned king during the 'coronation'
ceremony.
Crown Tournament: Within the SCA,
the tournaments
held two or three times per year in each kingdom
to determine who will reign for the next period. Such tournaments are generally,
but not always, double-elimination
lists, where each combatant may lose two combats before being eliminated.
Generally conducted with a great deal of ceremony, because there is a prize
accorded to the victor, the right to reign, these lists are the greatest
tests of virtue in the spectrum of SCA tourneys, they are either affairs
where great honor
and renown
are won or lost. They are the pinnacle of prize
tourneys in the SCA.
Crusade: The series of holy wars launched by the Christian states
against the Saracens
starting in 1095 when Pope Claremont preached the First Crusade at the
Council of Claremont. The object of
the crusades was at first to release the Holy
Land, in particular Jerusalem, from the Saracens, but in time was extended
to seizing Spain from the Moors, the Slavs and Pagans from eastern Europe,
and the islands of the Mediterranean. The first crusade, which lasted from
1095-1099, established the latin Kingdom
of Jerusalem, providing more lands for the crusading knights,
who often traveled across Europe to try their fortunes and to visit the
Holy Sepulcher. The kingdom was gradually lost until the last Christian
city, Acre,
fell in 1291. The dream of returning to the Holy Land nonetheless proved
popular; the Kings
of France and England frequently made such plans, though in nearly every
case the crusades were redirected or derailed by regional tensions.
The crusades also gave rise to the important knightly
orders, the Templars
and the Hospitallers,
orders of religious knights, working from monastic rule to defend the holy
land and pilgrims en route to the same lands.
Crusader: A knight
on crusade. By going on crusade and undertaking
a pilgrimage to the Holy
Lands, a knight could gain great credit towards his eventual redemption.
Knights who had been on crusade were entitled to be depicted in the funerary
effigies, or gisants, with their feet crossed, while those who had not
been on crusade were not so entitled. A crusader earned great honor
by his efforts; many great knights went on crusade to earn renown, such
as William the Marshal or Godfrey de Bouillon.
'Cry the Tournament': The 'bans'
crying for a tournament-the
announcement sent with heralds
to notify nobles
that a tourney was to be held 'at a certain time and certain place-'tel
temps, tel place...'). This is now called the 'tournament
declaration', a posting of the tournament or rules
of a pas
d'armes, generally published in advance of the tourney.
Culhwych & Owen: An important 11th century Welsh text
preserved in the 14th century Red Book of Hergest (c. 1400) and the White
Book of Rhydderch, c. 1325.
Currency: See Money.
Curtana: On of the royal swords
of England, used in the Coronation ceremony.
'Cognizance of contracts touching deeds of war out of the
realm, and also to things that touch arms of war within the realm, which
cannot be determined nor discussed by common law, with other usages or
customs to the same matters pertaining, which other constables heretofore
have duly and reasonably used in their time.'
So this declaration of 1389 merely formalized a process which was already
been in place. During the 15th century, when the feudal terms of service
had been replaced by a knight's tenure of service, such courts heard disputes
in the contracts of such service, the cases argued by lawyers rather than
the knights themselves.