Being Knighted

It takes a long time to become a knight. You start when you're about seven. Then you become a page. You no longer live with your parents but instead with another noble family in a castle. You help the knights and wait on the ladies. And you have time to learn many things. Reading and writing are not usually among them. What do you learn? Good manners. And you have riding lessons. That sounds like fun.

You can't become a squire until you turn fourteen. Every squire serves his own knight. He learns archery, wrestling, lance-throwing, sword-fighting, and much more. Sometimes a squire takes part in a war or a pitched battle. But usually he does all the boring jobs, just like a robot. So wolf is right about that.

Are you twenty one? And have you passed all your tests? Then the big day is almost here. First there's a long night to endure when you mustn't sleep or talk. You pray all night long. You won't be knighted until the next morning. Then you receive your own sword ... and your own squire!

Being knighted doesn't hurt. The squire kneels before his lord and bow his head. The lord give him a tap on the shoulder - with his sword. But it's a gentle tap. And the lord doesn't use the sharp edge of the sword, otherwise knighthood could be fatal!

What Dog Knows, P56-57
Sylvia Vanden Heede, illustrated by Marije Tolman
ISBN 978-1-776570-37-9