The Household Knights of King John (Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: Fourth Series)
Cambridge University Press, 7/22/1999
EAN 9780521553193, ISBN10: 0521553199
Hardcover, 202 pages, 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.6 cm
Language: English
If the medieval king was the helmsman of the ship of state, the royal household was the ship's engine. It comprised men from most ranks of society, from the great magnates of the realm to simple servants who looked after the day-to-day needs of the king and his court. English government, in both peace and war, was conducted through the royal household, amongst whom the most important men were the king's knights: socially elite, militarily pre-eminent, and indispensable for the workings of English medieval government. It is with these men during the reign of King John that this work is concerned.
Acknowledgements
List of abbreviations
1. Introduction
2. Recruitment into the royal military household
3. Monarchy in action
the functions of the king's household knights
4. The rewards of royal service
5. Loyalty, civil war, and the household knights
6. John's household knights during the minority of Henry III
7. Some case histories
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index.