n nA magisterial history of the origins, reality, and legend of the knightn nA carefully researched, concise, readable, and entertaining account of an institution that remains a part of the Western imagination. --Los Angeles Timesn nBorn out of the chaos of the early Middle Ages, the armored and highly mobile knight revolutionized warfare and quickly became a mythic figure in history. From the Knights Templars and English knighthood to the crusades and chivalry, The Knight in History, by acclaimed medievalist Frances Gies, bestselling coauthor of Life in a Medieval Castle, paints a remarkable true picture of knighthood--exploring the knights earliest appearance as an agent of lawless violence, his reemergence as a dynamic social entity, his eventual disappearance from the European stage, and his transformation into Western cultures most iconic hero.n