The Household Knights of King John

The first full-length study of the elite group which surrounded King John, his household knights.

S. D. Church (Author)

9780521553193, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 22 July 1999

202 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.6 cm, 0.47 kg

'… a well-argued work which deepens our understanding …'. Heather Tanner, University of Oregon

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.

Subject Areas: Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500 [HBLC], British & Irish history [HBJD1]