Knights always bring visions of noble men in shining armor and perfect posture, mounted on beautiful horses draped in colorful brocades, heading off on crusade, questing for holy grails, rescuing maidens, and slaying pesky dragons. 🐉
Real Knights originate way before the Middle Ages for which they are the most famous. All knights are essentially trained cavalry or military horsemen. Now I’m no historian but I’m sure that there have been warriors on horseback from the moment that men learned to ride horses. But horsemen as a social class seems to originate in the early days of the Roman Empire with the Equites (Latin for horsemen).
Jump ahead 1,000 years and we see history repeat itself. With the rise of feudalism in Medieval Europe, Knights, starting as cavalry horsemen quickly changing into minor nobility, then evolving even further with the Crusades and Orders of Knights (Hospitaller, Templars etc.) becoming a social class unto themselves.
Spanning so much history its no surprise that there are hundreds of stories of knights whose lives and deeds were every bit as gritty and glamourous as you could imagine. One could spend a lifetime studying their stories. And their armor. And their weapons. And their heraldry. When I had the opportunity to visit just a few castles in Europe (There are sooooo many!) the variety of armor, weapons and heraldic pieces was mind-boggling. Who knew you could fill a room the size of my house with just different kinds of halberds and swords?
How can one not be inspired by the creativity and craftsmanship put into the trappings of Knighthood? So I knew that I would eventually create a design that somehow had a Knight on it. So I made Sir Gauntlet (pun totally intended) protector of hands and defender from the cold. I love the infinite possibilities of heraldry and the meaning attached to all the different parts. To be honest I just started with something that I thought looked believable based on what I had seen. Then curiosity got to me and I researched if Sir Gauntlet’s heraldry actually meant anything and I was pleasantly surprised. Sir Gauntlet’s heraldry includes:
The Stag - one who will fight if provoked,
Vertical stripe or the Pale - denoting strength
Horizontal stripe or the Fees – representing honor.
Crown - for nobility
Cross – declaring true Christian faith (as a Crusader should)
Even colors have meaning! Purple being royal (I just really like purple!) and green for joy and abundance.
What better way to warm your hands than with the protection of a noble knight? And apparently Sir Gauntlet is incredibly strong and honorable, regal in bearing and only fights for a worthy cause!
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