German Knighthood, 1050-1300

Download or read book German Knighthood, 1050-1300 written by Benjamin Arnold and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 1985 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a thorough and original study of German knighthood as a class in its medieval heyday. Arnold draws on a rich array of descriptive detail from the lives of individual knights, their families, and various groups to examine knightly customs and practices, the impact of knighthood in the political world of the German Empire, and the curious status of most knights as at once noble and unfree. These unfree knights, argues Arnold, were above all professional warriors in an empire where violence for political ends prevailed--a harsh reality that dictated the structure and development of their class.