C H I V 
the tranfadtions which took place in the ordinary courfe 
of civil and domeftic life, and which, though lefs Itriking, 
mult have always prepared the way for the more remark¬ 
able events, have been generally thought unworthy of 
tranfmiffion to pofterity, and have very feldom found an 
hiftorian. Add to thefe difficulties which oppofe our re- 
fearches on this fubjedt, that the nations of Europe were 
in that age a mixed multitude, confifting of the aborigi¬ 
nal inhabitants, who, though either fubdued by the Ro¬ 
man arms, or at lead compelled to retire to the woods 
and mountains. Hill obftinately retained their primitive 
manners and cuftoms ; Roman colonies, and fuch of the 
original inhabitants of the countries in which thefe were 
eltablilhed, as had yielded not only to the arms of the 
Romans, but alfo to the influence of their laws, arts, and 
manners ; and the barbarians who, proceeding from the 
northern regions of Afia and Europe, the wilds of Scy¬ 
thia and Germany, dilfolved the fabric of the Roman 
empire, and made themfelves lords of Europe. Amid 
this confufion of nations, inftitutions, and cuftoms, it 
becomes almoft impoflible to trace any regular feries of 
caufes and effedts. Yet as the hiltory of that period is 
not entirely unknown to us, and the obfcure and imper¬ 
fect records in which it is preferved, while they comme¬ 
morate the more remarkable events, throw a faint light 
on the cuftoms, manners, and ordinary tranfadtions, of the 
age; we can at leaft collect fome circumftances, which, 
if they did not of themielves give rife to the inftitution 
of chivalry, mult certainly have co-operated with others 
to that end. We may even be allowed, if we proceed 
with due diffidence and caution, to deduce, from a con- 
iideration of the effedt, fome inferences concerning the 
caufe 5 from thofe particulars of its hiltory which are 
known to us, we may venture to carry imagination back¬ 
wards, under a proper reftraint, to thole which are hid 
under the darknels of a rude and illiterate age. 
Diftindtion of ranks appears to be effentially neceffary 
to the exiftence of civil order. Even in the limpleft and 
rudeft focial eftablilhments, we And not merely the na¬ 
tural diltindlions qf weak and llrong, young and old, pa* 
lent and child, huft>and and wife; thefe are always ac¬ 
companied with others which owe their inftitution to the 
invention of man, and the confent, either tacit or formal, 
of the fociety among whom they prevail. In peace and 
in war, fuch diftindtions are equally necelfary : they con- 
ltitute an effential and important part of the mechanifm 
of fociety. 
One of the eariieft artificial diftindtions introduced 
among mankind, is that which feparates the bold and 
fkilfnl warrior from thole whofe feeblenefs of body and 
mind renders them unable to excel in dexterity, ftrata- 
gem, or valour. Among rude nations, who are but im- 
perfedily acquainted with the advantages of focial order, 
this diftindtion is more remarkably eminent t;han in any 
other ftate of fociety. The ferocity of the human cha- 
radter in fuch a period produces almoft continual hoftili- 
ties among neighbouring tribes; the elements of nature, 
and the brute inhabitants of the foreft, are not yet re¬ 
duced to be fubfervient to the will of man; and thefe, 
with other concomitant circumftances, render the war¬ 
rior, who is equally diftinguilhed by cunning and valour, 
more ufeful and refpedtable than any other charadfer. 
On the fame principles, as the boundaries of fociety are 
enlarged, and its form becomes more complex, the claf- 
fes into which it is already diftinguilhed are again l'ubdi- 
vided. The invention of arts, and the acquilition of 
property, are the chief caufes of the new diftindtions 
which now arife among the orders of fociety; and they 
extend their influence equally through the whole fyftem. 
Difference of armour, and different modes of military 
difcipline, produce diftindtion of orders among thofe who 
pradtife the arts of war; while other circumftances, ori¬ 
ginating from the fame general caufes, occafion fimilar 
changes to take place amid the intervals of peace. 
None of the new diftindtions which are introduced 
Vol. IV. No. zi 5, 
A L R Y. 505 
among men, with refpedt to the difcipline and condudt of 
war, in confequence of the acquifition of property and 
the invention of arts, is more remarkable than that occa- 
fioned by the ufe of horfes in military expeditions, and 
the training of them to the evolutions of the military 
art. Fire-arms, it is true, give to thofe who are ac¬ 
quainted with them a greater fuperiority over thofe tq 
whom their ufe is unknown, than what the horfeman 
poffeffes over him who fights on foot. But the ufe of 
fire-arms is of fuch importance in war, and the expence 
attending it fo inconfiderable, that wherever thefe have 
been introduced, they have feldom been confined to one 
particular order in an army; and, therefore, they pro¬ 
duce indeed a remarkable, though tranlient, diftindtion 
among different nations ; but eftablifli no permanent dif¬ 
tindtions in the armies of any one nation. But to main¬ 
tain a horie, to equip him with coftly furniture, to ma¬ 
nage him with dexterity and vigour, are’ circumftances 
which have invariably produced a Handing and conlpi- 
cuous diftindtion among the military order, wherever bo¬ 
dies of cavalry have been formed. The Roman equites, 
who, though the)' became at length a body of ufurers 
and farmers general, were originally the only body of 
cavalry employed by the ftate, occupied a refpedtable 
rank between the fenators and the plebeians ; and the 
elegance and humanity of their manners were fuitable to 
their rank. In ancient Greece, and in the celebrated 
monarchies of Afia, the fame diftindtion prevailed at a 
fimilar period. And fince the circumftances and princi¬ 
ples on which this diftindtion depends are not fuch as 
mult be confined in their influence to one particular na¬ 
tion, or one region of the globe, we may hope to trace 
their effedts among the favage warriors of Scythia and 
Germany, as well as among the Greeks or Romans. From 
the valuable treatife of Tacitus de Moribus Germano- 
rum, we learn, that among the German warriors a dif¬ 
tindtion fomewhat of this nature did adtually fublift; not 
fo much indeed a diftindtion between the warriors who 
fought on horfeback and thofe who fought on foot, as 
between thofe whom vigour of body and energy of mind 
enabled to brave all the dangers of war, and fuch as, from 
the imbecility of youth, the infirmities of age, or the na¬ 
tural inferiority of their mental and bodily powers, were 
unequal to fcenes of hardfliip and deeds of valour. 
Another fadt worthy of notice refpedting the manners 
of the barbarians of Germany before they eltablilhed 
themfelves in the cultivated provinces of the Roman em¬ 
pire is, that their women, contrary to what we find among 
many other rude nations, were treated with an high de¬ 
gree of refpedt. They did not generally vie with the men 
in deeds of valour, but they animated them by their ex¬ 
hortations to diftinguilh themfelves in the field ; and Vir¬ 
gins efpecially were confidered with a facred veneration, 
as if endowed with prophetic powers, capable to forefee 
events hid in the womb of futurity, and even to influ¬ 
ence the will of the deities. Hence, though domeftic du¬ 
ties were their peculiar province, yet they were not narlhly 
treated nor confined to a ftate of llavery. There appears 
indeed a Itriking analogy between the condition of the 
women among the rude foldiers of Sparta, and the rank 
which they occupied among the warlike cantons of Ger¬ 
many. Perhaps, indeed, the German were ftillanore ho¬ 
nourable than the Spartan women ; as they were taught 
to wield the magic weapons of fuuerltition, which in 
Greece were appropriated to the prielts. It appears, 
therefore, that, in the forefts of Germany at leaft, if not 
in the more northern regions of Afia and Europe, the 
conquerors of the Roman empire, before they penetrated 
into its provinces, treated their women with a degree of 
refpedt unknown to molt of the nations of antiquity; 
that the charadter of the warrior was likewife highly ho¬ 
nourable, being underftood to unite all 'thofe. qualifies 
which were in the highelt eilimation. 
When thole nationsTallied from their deferts and fo¬ 
refts, over-ran the Roman empire, and eltablilhed them- 
6 N felves 
