146 



A HISTORY OF CAVALRY. 



[period II. 



Ri' ' 



dress in furs or silk. They performed services of every 

 sort : some acted as carvers at the table, some poured out 

 wine, some offered water for ablution. Services con- 

 sidered menial among the Romans, and also at the 

 present day, were then performed by noblemen of the 

 highest birth. The squires so serving at table did not 

 join in the conversation, but were enabled in that way 

 to learn the manners of society, and the habits of cour- 

 tesy. The Count of Artois, brother of King Louis IX., 

 waited upon the king at dinner at the Court held by 

 St. Louis at Saumur, and he was assisted by the Count 

 de Soissons. 



In war, however, the squires accompanied their masters 

 as aids and assistants. They carried his armour among 

 them, one carrying the helmet, another the lance, another 

 the sword, &c. One also led the charger, which was a 

 large powerful animal that was only used in action. 

 On the march the knight rode a palfrey or easy-paced 

 horse, and on the approach of danger he mounted his 

 charger, and his squires proceeded to arm him. This 

 was a duty requiring great care and skill, as the safety 

 of the combatants depended often upon the attention 

 that had been bestowed on arming them. Neglect in 

 fastening the visor on Henry II. 's helmet is supposed to 

 have been the cause of his death. 



When the knights were fully armed and mounted 

 upon their battle horses and the action was about com- 

 mencing, they were ranged in single line, the squires 

 forming a second rank behind their lords. The knights 

 charged in full career, with lances in rest, while their 

 attendants remained idle spectators of the fight. If 

 the knight was unhorsed, he raised himself from the 

 ground, if able to do so, and taking his mace or sword 

 or battle-axe, continued the combat on foot. Each squire 

 attentively watched his own master during this struggle, 

 and if hardly pressed, came to his assistance, giving him 

 a fresh horse in case of need, or new arms. He also 

 defended him from blows if wounded, and used every 

 possible means to aid him, but in doing so confined 

 himself strictly to the defensive. If the knight was 



