Knighthood

Being a knight . Knighthood was conferred in the adoubement ceremony, or the accolade , at which time a young man or squire was formally adopted into the brotherhood of knights. Even though knights differed in their allegiance to king and kingdom , they often treated one another with a degree of respect uncommon in our age, when soldiers from opposing sides get little opportunity to make nose to nose contact with their opponents. Knighthood was a solemn office, but also an economic one, a defined social station that declined over time in favor of the economic might of the middle classes. The military role of knights metamorphasized into the officer, the values of virtues of knighthood becoming the description of a gentleman .