Chapter II: The Buke of the Order of Knyghthood

Although subjoined to "The Buke of Batailles," there is no evidence to show that it was written by the same Author. The original Work, entitled "LE LIVRE DE L'ORDRE DE CHEVALERIE," is anonymous. A copy of it is contained in a magnificent volume, written upon vellum, and illuminated for Henry VII. of England, which forms part of the Royal collection of Manuscripts in the British Museum (MSS. Bibl. Reg. 14 E. II. Art. 5). The Work also exists in a printed form, although now of great rarity. "L'Ordre de Chevalerie, auquel est contenue la maniere comment en doit, faire les Chevaliers, et de l'honneur qui à eux appartient, et de la dignité d'iceulx; compose par ung Chevalier, lequel en sa veillesse fut Hermite." Lyon, Vincent de Portunaris de Trine, 1510, in folio, black letter. It is, however, a proof of the great popularity of the Work, that a copy of it having fallen into the hands of our venerable Typographer, WILLIAM CAXTON, (who probably never heard of Sir Gilbert Hay's previous version,) he added this to his other translations from the French, and having printed his own translation, he addressed the volume to King Richard the Third. It has no date, but must have been printed about the year 1484; and his edition is acknowledged to be one of the rarest specimens of his press. Lewis in his Life of Caxton, 1737; Oldys in his British Librarian, 1738; Ames and Herbert in their Typographical Antiquities, 1749 and 1785; and Dibdin, in his enlarged edition of that work, 1810, and also in his Bibliotheca Spenceriana, 1815, have each given a more or less detailed account of Caxton's translation.

In the Advocates' Library, Edinburgh, among the collection of MSS. which belonged to Sir James Balfour of Denmyln, Lord Lyon in the reign of Charles the First, there is a volume, to which he has prefixed this title, "Collectanea Domini Davidis Lyndesay de Monthe Militis Leonis Armorum Regis." This volume is described by Dr Leyden[8] in the Preface to his republication of "The Complaynt of Scotland," but he has confounded two persons of the same name, and who held the same office, at an interval of half a century. The volume, which contains nothing to identify it with Sir David Lyndesay the Poet, is here noticed, from containing a copy of "The Order of Knighthood," without the name of the translator. This is evidently a transcript from Caxton's printed volume, omitting the concluding Address to Richard the Third, in which Caxton introduces his own name as the translator; while the transcriber has used his own discretion in adapting the language to the Scotish orthography and dialect.

Dr Leyden passes over this portion of the MS. in a very summary manner, and strangely says, that it, along with "The Buke of Cote-Armouris," which immediately follows, in Lyndesay's MS., was transcribed from Dame Juliana Berners's Treatise on Hunting, Hawking, &c., which is usually known as the "Booke of St Albans."

The following extracts from the copy of Caxton's volume, in the British Museum, will be sufficient to convey to the reader some idea of the work itself; and to form a comparison of the English and Scotish versions. The first leaf is here given in black letter, line for line, in imitation of the original:--

¶ HERE BEGYNNETH THE TABLE OF
THIS PRESENT BOOKE INTYTLED THE
BOOK OF THE ORDRE OF CHYUALRY
OR KNYGHTHODE.

UNTO THE PRAYSYNGE AND DYUYNE
GLORYE OF GOD/ WHICHE IS LORD AND
SOUERAYNE KYNGE ABOUE AND OUER
ALLE THYNGES CELESTYAL/ AND WORDLY/ WE
BEGYNNE THIS BOOK OF THE ORDRE OF CHYUALRY
FOR TO SHEWE THAT TO THE SYGNEFYAUNCE OF
GOD/ THE PRYNCE ALMYGHTY WHICHE SEYGNO=
RYETH ABOUE THE SEUEN PLANETTES/ THAT MA=
KE THE COURS CELESTYAL/ AND HAUE POWER &
SEYGNORYE IN GOUERNYNGE & ORDEYNYNGE
THE BODYES TERRESTRE AND ERTHELY/ THAT IN
LYKE WYSE OWEN THE KYNGES PRYNCES AND
GRETE LORDES TO HAUE PUYSSAUNCE AND SEYG=
NORY UPON THE KNYGHTES/ AND THE KNY=
TES BY SYMYLYTUDE OUGHTEN TO HAUE PO=
WER AND DOMINACION OUER THE MOYEN PEPLE
AND THIS BOOKE CONTEYNETH VIIJ CHAPITRES

¶ THE FYRST CHAPYTRE SAYTH/ HOW A KNYGHT
BEYNG AN HEREMYTE DEUYSED TO THE SQUYER
THE RULE AND ORDRE OF CHYUALRYE

¶ THE SECOND IS OF THE BEGYNNYNGE OF CHYUALRY

¶ THE THYRD IS OF THOFFYCE OF CHYUALRY

¶ THE FOURTHE OF THEXAMYNACION/ THAT OUGHT
TO BE MADE TO THE ESQUYER WHAN HE WYLLE ENTRE
IN TO THE ORDRE OF CHYUALRY

¶ THE FYFTHE IS IN WHAT MANER THE SQUYER
OUGHT TO RECEYUE CHYUALRY

¶ THE SYXTHE IS OF THE SYGNEFYAUNCE OF THE
ARMES LONGYNGE TO A KNYGHT AL BY ORDRE

¶ THE SEUENTH OF THE CUSTOMMES THAT APPERTEYNE
TO A KNYGHT

¶ THE EYGHT IS OF THE HONOUR THAT OUGHTE
TO BE DONE TO A KNYGHT

¶ THUS ENDETH THE TABLE OF THE BOOK OF
CHYUALRY

¶ Here after foloweth the mater and tenour of this said Booke.

And the Fyrst chapyter saith hou the good Heremyte deuysed to the
Esquyer the Rule and ordre of Chyualrye.

A Contrey ther was in which it happed that a wyse knyght whiche longe
had mayntened the Ordre of Chyualrye/ And that by the force & noblesse
of his hyghe courage and wysedom and in auenturyng his body had
mayntened warres justes & tornayes & in many batailles had had many
noble victoryes & gloryous & by cause he sawe & thought in his corage
y^t he my[gh]t not long lyue as he which by long tyme had ben by cours
of nature nyghe unto his ende/ chaas to hym an heremytage/ For nature
faylled in hym by age/ And hadde no power ne vertu to vse armes as he
was woned to do/ Soo that thenne his herytages/ & all his rychesses he
lefte to his children/ and made his habytacion or dwellynge place in a
greete wode habondaunt of watres and of grete trees/ and hygh berying
fruytes of dyuerse manyers/ And fledde the world/ by cause that the
feblenesse of his body in the whiche he was by old age fallen/

And that he dishonoured not that/ whiche that in honourable thynges and
aventurous hadde ben longe tyme honoured/

The same knyght thynkynge on the dethe/ remembryth the departynge fro
this world in to that other/ and also thought of the ryght redoubtable
sentence of oure lord in the whiche hym behoued to come to the day of
Jugement/ In one of the partyes of the same wode was a fayr medowe/ in
whiche was a tree wel laden and charged of fruyte in his tyme/ of which
the knyght lyued in the forest/ And vnder the same tree was a fontayne
moche fayre and clere/ that arowsed and moysted all the medowe/ And in
the same place was the knyght acustomed to come euery daye for to preye
and adoure God Almyghty/ To whome he rendryd thankynge of the honoure
that he had done to him in this world alle the dayes of his lyf/ In
that time it happed at the entryng of a strong wynter/ that a kynge
moche noble/ wyse and ful of good custommes/ sente for many nobles/ by
cause that he wold hold a grete courte/ And by the grete renommee that
was of thys courte/ It happed that a squyer moeued hym for to goo
thyder/ in entencion that there he shold be made knyght/

¶ Thus as he wente all allone rydynge vppon his palfroy/ It happed/
that for the trauaylle that he had susteyned of rydynge/ he slepte vpon
his horse/

¶ In the meane whyle that he rode soo slepynge/ his palfroye yssued
oute of the ryght waye/ and entryd in to the forest/ where as was the
knygte Heremyte/ And soo longe he wente/ that he came to the fontayne
at the same tyme that the knyght whiche dwellyd in the wode to doo his
penaunce was there comen for to praye vnto God/ and for to despyse the
vanytees of this worlde/ lyke as he was acustomed euery day/ whan he
sawe the squyer come/ he lefte his oroyson/ and satte in the medowe in
the shadow of a tree/ And beganne to rede in a lytyl book that he had
in his lappe/ And whan the palfroy was come to the fontayne/ he beganne
to drynke/ And the squyer that slept anone felte that his hors meued
not/ and lyghtly awoke/ And thenne to hym came the knyght whiche was
moche old/ and had a grete berde/ longe heer/ and a feble gowne worne
and broken for ouer longe werynge/ And by the penaunce that he dayly
made was moche discolourd and lene/ And by the teres that he had wepte/
were his eyen moche wasted/ and hadde a regard or countenaunce of moche
hooly lyf/ Eche of them merueylled of other/ For the knyghte whiche
hadde ben moche longe in his heremytege/ had sene no man sythe that he
had lefte the worlde/ And the sqyuer merueylled hym strongly/ how he
was comen in to that place/ Thenne descended the squyer fro his
palfroy/ and salewed the knyght/ And the knyght receyued hym most
wysely/ And after sette them vpon the grasse that one by that other/
And er ony of them spak/ eche of them byheld eche others chere/ The
knyght that knewe that the squyer wold not speke fyrst/ by cause that
he wold doo to hym reuerence spak fyrst and said/ Fayr frend what is
your corage or entent/ and whyther goo ye/ wherfor be ye comen hyther/
Syre sayde he/ the renommee is sprad by ferre contreyes/ that a kynge
moche wyse and noble/ hath commaunded a courte general/ And wylle be
maade hym selfe newe knyght/ And after adoube and make other newe
knyghtes/ estraunge barons and pryue/ And therfore I goo to this courte
for to be adoubed knyght/ But whanne I was a slepe for the trauaylle
that I haue had of the grete journeyes that I haue made/ my palfroy
wente oute of the ryghte way/ and hath brought me vnto this place/
Whanne the knyght herd speke of the knyghthode & chyualrye/ And
remembryd hym of thordre of the same/ And of that whiche apperteyneth
to a knyght/ he caste out a grete syghe/ and entryd in a grete
thou[gh]t remembrynge of the honoure/ in which chyualrye hadde ben so
longe mayntened/

¶ In the meane whyle that the knyghte thus thought/ the Esquyer
demaunded of hym/ wherof he was so pensyf/

¶ And the knyght answerd to hym/

¶ Fayre sone my thoughte is of the ordre of Knyghthode or Chyualrye/
And of the gretenesse in which a knyght is holden/ in mayntenynge the
gretenesse of the honour of chyualry/ Thenne the esquyer prayed to the
knyght/ that he wold saye to hym thordre and the manere/ wherfore me
ought the better to honoure and kepe in highe worshippe hit/ as it
ought to be after the ordenaunce of god/

¶ How sone sayd the knyght knowest thou not what is the rule and ordre
of knyghthode/ and I meruaylle how thow darest demaunde chyualrye or
knyghthode/ vnto the tyme that thou knowe the ordre/

¶ For noo knyght can loue the ordre/ ne that whiche apperteyneth to his
ordre/ but yf he can knowe the defaultes that he dothe ageynst the
ordre of chyualry/

Ne no knyght ought to make ony knyghtes/ but yf he hym self knowe
thordre.

For a disordynate knyghte is he/ that maketh a knyghte/ and can not
shewe the ordre to hym/ ne the customme of chyualry.

¶ In the meane whyle that the knyght sayd these wordes to the esquyer/
that demaunded chyualrye/ withoute that he knewe/ what thynge was
chyualrye/ The esquyer answered and sayde to the knyght/ Syre yf hit be
your playsyre/ I byseche yow/ that ye wylle saye and telle to me the
ordre of chyualrye/

For wel me semeth and thynketh that I should lerne hit for the grete
desyre/ that I haue therto/ And after my power I shalle ensiewe hit/ yf
hit please yow to enseynge shewe and teche hit me/

¶ Frend sayde the knyght/ the Rule and ordre of chyualrye is wreton in
this lytyl booke that I hold here in myn handes in which I rede and am
besy somtyme/ to the ende/ that hit make me remembre or thynke on the
grace and bounte/ that god hath gyven and done to me in this world/ by
cause that I honoured and mayntened with al my power thordre of
chiualrye/ For alle in lyke wyse as chyualrye gyueth to a knyghte all
that to hym apperteyneth/ In lyke wyse a kny[gh]t ought to gyve alle
his forces to honoure chyualrye/

¶ Thenne the knyght delyuered to the esquyer the lytyl booke.

¶ And whanne he hadde redde therin/ he vnderstode that the knyght only
amonge a thousand persones is chosen worthy to haue more noble offyce
than alle the thousand/ And he had also vnderstanden by that lytyl
booke/ the Rule and ordre of chyualry/ And thenne he remembryd hym a
lytyl/ And after sayd/ A syre blessyd be ye/ that haue brought me in
place and in time/ that I haue knowlege of Chyualrye/ the whiche I haue
longe tyme desyred/ withoute that I knewe the noblesse of the ordre/ ne
the honoure in whiche oure lord god hath sette alle them that ben in
thordre of Chyualrye/

¶ The knight sayd/ Fayre sone I am an old man & feble/ and may not
forthon moche longe lyue/ And therfor this lytyl booke that is made for
the deuocion/ loyalte/ and the ordinance that a knyght ought to haue in
holdynge his ordre/ ye shall bere with yow to the courte where as ye go
vnto/ and to shewe to alle them that will be made knyghts/ And whan ye
shalle be newe doubed knyght/ and ye shall retorne in to your countrey/
Come ageyne to this place/ And lette me haue knowlege who they be that
haue ben maade newe knyghtes/ and shalle haue ben obeyssant to the
doctryne of chyualry/ Thenne the knyght gaf to thesquire his blessynge/
and he took leve of hym/ and tooke the booke moche deuoutely/ And after
mounted vpon his palfroy/ and went forth hastely to the courte/ And
whan he was comen/ he presented the booke moche wysely and ordynatly to
the noble kyng/ & furthermore he offryd that euery noble man that wold
be in thordre of Chyualry myght haue a copye of the sayd book/ to thend
that he myght see & lerne thordre of knyghthode and Chyualrye/

¶ Here endeth the book of thordre of Chyualry/ whiche book is
translated out of Frensshe into Englysshe at a requeste of a gentyl and
noble esquire by me/ William Caxton dwellynge in Westmynstre besyde
london in the most best wyse that god hath suffred me/ and accordynge
to the copye that the sayd squyer delyuerd to me/ whiche book is not
requisyte to euery comyn man to haue/ but to noble gentylmen that by
their virtu entende to come & entre in to the noble ordre of chyualry/
the whiche in these late dayes hath ben vsed accordyng to this booke
here to fore wreton but forgeten/ and thexcersitees of chyualry/ not
used/ honoured/ ne exercysed/ as hit hath ben in auncyent tyme/ at
whiche tyme the noble actes of the knyghtes of Englond that vsed
Chyualry were renomed thurgh the vnyuersal world/ As for to speke to
fore thyncarnacion of Jesu Chryste/ where were there euer ony lyke to
brenius and belynus that from the grete Brytagne now called Englond
vnto Rome & ferre beyonde conquered many Royaumes and londes/ whos
noble actes remayn in thold hystoryes of the Romayns/ And syth the
Incarnacion of oure lord/ byhold that noble king of Brytayne king
Arthur/ with all the noble kny[gh]tes of the ro[=u]d table/ whos noble
actes and noble chyualry of his knyghtes occupye soo many large
volumes/ that is a world/ or as thing incredyble to byleue/ O ye
knyghtes of Englond where is the custome and vsage of noble chyualry
that was vsed in tho dayes/ what do ye now/ but go to the baynes &
playe atte dyse/ And some not wel aduysed/ vse not honest and good rule
ageyn alle ordre of knyghthode/ leue this/ leue it and redde the noble
volumes of saynt graal of lancelot/ of galaad/ of Trystram/ of perse
forest/ of percyual/ of gawayn/ & many mo/ Ther shalle ye see manhode/
curtosy/ & gentylnesse/ And loke in latter dayes of the noble actes
syth the c[=o]quest/ as in kyng Rychard dayes cuer du Lyon/ Edward the
fyrste/ and the thyrd/ and his noble sones/ Syre Robert Knolles/ Syr
Johan Cha[=u]dos/ and Syre gualtier Manuy/ rede froissart/ And also
behold that vyctoryous and noble kynge harry the fyfthe/ and the
captayns vnder hym his noble bretheren/ Therle of Salysbury Montagu/
and many other whoos names shyne gloryously by their vertuous noblesse
& actes that they did in thonour of thordre of chyualry/ Allas what do
ye/ but sleep & take ease/ and are al dysordred fro chyualry/ I wold
demaunde a question yf I shold not displease/ how many knyghtes ben
there now in Englond/ that haue thuse and thexcercyse of a knyght/ that
is to wete/ that he knoweth his hors/ & his hors hym/ that is to saye/
he beyng eredy at a poynt to haue al thyng that longeth to a knight/ an
hors that is accordyng and broken after his hand/ his armures and
harnoys mete and syttyng/ & so forth/ _et cetera_/ I suppose and a due
serche shold be made/ there shold he many founden that lacke/ the more
pyte is/ I wold it pleasyd our souerayn Lord that twyes or threys in a
year/ or at the least ones he wold do crye Justes of pees/ to thend
that euery knyght shold haue hors and harneys/ and also the vse and
craft of a knyght/ and also to tornoye one ageynst one/ or ij against
ij/ And the best to haue a prys/ a dyamond or jewel/ suche as shold
please the prynce/ This shold cause gentylmen to resorte to thauncyent
customes of chyualry to grete fame and ren[=o]mee/ And also to be alwey
redy to serue theyr prynce whan he shalle calle them/ or haue nede/
Thenne late euery man that is come of noble blood/ and entendeth to
come to the noble ordre of chyualry/ read this lytyl book/ and doo
therafter/ in kepyng the lore and commaundements therin comprysed/ And
thenne I doubte not he shall atteyne to thordre of chyualry/ _et
cetera_.

And thus this lytyl book I presente to my redoubted naturel and most
dradde souerayne lord kyng Rychard kyng of Englond and of Fraunce/ to
thend/ that he commaunde this book to be had and redde vnto other yong
lordes knyghtes and gentylmen within this royame/ that the noble ordre
of chyualry be herafter better vsed & honoured than hit hath ben in
late dayes passed/ And herin he shalle do a noble & vertuous dede/ and
I shalle pray almy[gh]ty god for his long lyf & prosperous welfare/ &
that he may haue vyctory of all his enemyes/ & after this short &
transitory lyf to haue euerlastyng lyf in heuen/ where as is Joye and
blysse/ world without ende/ Amen/