A Knight's Own Book of Chivalry (The Middle Ages Series)

This book was written by one of the most influential knights of the Middle Ages, Geoffroi de Charny. It's well-written and will help you get into the mindset of the medieval knight better than almost any other source.

This book by Geoffry de Charny has left its mark on history. Indeed, shortly after writing it, de Charny showed his own chivalry, sacrificing himself for country and king in the Battle of Poitiers, when he fell slain while fighting with his king's standard in his hands. This book, written by the French knight during the Hundred Years' War, covers what it was to be chivalrous at the time, and elaborates on the beliefs of a knight of the era.The reality is that the Hundred Years' War was not a time of knights in shining armor doing great deeds. It was a time of pillaging the countryside, English archers killing en masse and being tortured when they were caught, French raiders defiling the English coasts, and the survivors being raped, robbed, and ruined. In such a time as this, the idea of a code of goodness seems nigh impossible to grasp, and in the words of Geoffry's own king, Jean the Good, "The Christian faith has withered and commerce has perished and so many other wickednesses and horrid things have followed from these wars that they cannot be spoken, numbered, or written down."Yet, de Charny speaks of a form of goodness all its own, the pursuit of greatness. As he explains, the pursuit of greatness is the pursuit of goodness, and so the pursuit of men-at-arms is the pursuit goodness, because one is attempting great feats in battle. Simply put, but trying to do great things in combat, one proves their greatness in the eyes of God.de Charny then goes on to try and categorize these different forms of greatness which a knight might pursue, in the ascending scale. Eventually, things become broken into different types and it ceases to notably rise, but in the words of this knight who gave his life for his country, one gathers that he speaks with earnesty and passion, and I at least felt compelled to believe in this greatness and goodness of knights, even though as a scholar I remember the fighting of men in the Hundred Years War as a bloody and wicked mess where women were dishonored and men left to cry like babes.And de Charny does not shy away from these realities, mentioning plunder, or murder, or hostage-taking. Yet, he also has a way of making everything seem good on some level, save death, which clearly is un-chivalrous as one has no chance to ever gain honor again if they're killed. He also has some statements which might pass for tongue-in-cheek humor, such as when he says how men who are wounded in battle perform a great act of chivalry by sacrificing for their country and cause, whether they mean to do this or not.Yet, knights serving their ladies, valorous crusades, local feuding, tournament jousts, and even the different ways to die or survive in defeat are accounted for. This text is excellent for anyone interested in chivalry of the ideals (if not reality) of kngiths during the Hundred Years War.

The consummate Knight of the 14th century speaks to us: Of Honor,of Courage, of Loyalty, of Faith... neglected values vitally needed in our own time. I would think that it would be hard for a modern - sold on all that is fashioned modern - to understand this most important work. de Charny sets the standard for his time and perhaps all time - yet his standard was achievable since there were men in his own time who reflected those values. If one would like to understand true Chivalry in its solid historical context - and not an interpretation made centuries later by our modern era - then this is the book for you. It is no irrelevant fact this this man was the first recorded owner of the Shroud of Turin. If you are like me, after reading this little book, you will feel both challenged and sad that there are not more like Geoffroi in our times.

Sir Geoffroi De Charny's book, A Knights Own Book of Chivalry, translated by Elspeth Kennedy, is an outstanding primary source document from one of the most honored and famed knights of the Medieval period. This work gives us deep insight into the ideals of chivalry as it was lived by Sir Geoffroi during Medieval France, rather than the common misconceptions that exist today as passed down from Victorians. Contained in the pages of Sir Geoffroi De Charny's book is real chivalry as documented by a real Medieval knight. This book is highly recommended for the reader who is interested in learning some key points of the knightly profession as well as what it meant to live by the Code of Chivalry as it was in Medieval Europe. This is a "five star" book composed by a knight that lived his life to the end in accordance to his beliefs. Likewise, the introduction composed within this book is extremely informative in its own right, and Richard W. Kaeuper is to be highly commended for his introduction. Whether a historian or simply someone who enjoys the topic of knighthood or things Medieval, this book is a must have for the personal library.

I am a history buff, I get this from my mom. Because of her, I grew up with a healthy appreciation for history. I was looking for something to get my mom for Christmas that would be unique, this book was perfect. It contains rare survived writings of a French knight. How fascinating it is to climb inside the thinking of a genuine knight of the era and read how they thought. It really shows an interesting side of history that often no one gets exposure to, except through fictionalized Hollywood fabrications and almost always are way off from that of reality. If your a fan of history and would like to read something drastically different from the usual, check this book out!

If you're a fan of medieval times, then this book is for you!! I ran into problems with history books as they are at the mercy of the historian. He puts his opinions into the historical documents, bringing in a slant that can be misleading. So I went straight to the source and what a source!!Sir Geoffrey not only brings Chivalry to life, but he also brings in the philosophy and history behind it without the annoying slants. I kinda wish this stuff never went out of style.Also Fantasy writers, don't poo-poo this book as it can be helpful when your world building revolves around medieval times. There's a lot of cool stuff in this book that you can 'borrow'. :)

Love it still studying with it.

If you want to know what Chivalry really was, not the romanticised Victorian hokum that people today try to pass off as chivalry, then this is the book for you. Charney was one of the premier knights of France and interestingly enough the first recorded owner of the Shroud of Turin.

good product

The opening section is well laid out and establishes de Charny as a reliable source on the functional requirements of chivalry. De Charny himself tells of chivalry in simple chapters that lay out what is of value, and what it means to be a good knight.

An excellent and rare glimpse of a real Medieval Knight waxing large on Chivalry. It was dictated, so you can tell the treatise rambles a bit and does occasionally repeat ideas and themes (when you can practically sense him getting carried away with excitement over certain topics he gets most passionate about). But the stark honesty in the presentation makes it even more interesting, historically. The language is as flowery as you'd expect, and the content is really fascinating.

Good read

I am greatly looking forward to being able to read this book this summer