What do you think Gilbert Chartres' childhood was like?
Starting out with where he was born/grew up, I hc him as having grown up near/in Paris in northern France, as opposed to Victor who was raised in Southern France.
Gilbert was the only child of a smaller branch of a large noble family. As such, his mother doted on him quite a bit despite it being uncommon for parents raise/nurture their children, especially in noble families. His father never interacted with him too much, but his mother spent a lot of time with him, almost unusually so. She was an incredibly devout Christian, and so much of their time spent together was her reading/going over the Bible with Gilbert, taking him with her to Church, and even handing out alms to the poor together. That’s not to say that Gilbert learned how to read mostly through a private tutor, and received lessons in swordplay, sparring, archery, and more from a trainer his family hired.
Although his mother was a noblewoman, she was known for being “eccentric” sometimes to the point that her husband worried about her (or rather her reputation and how it would affect the family). She had a number of hobbies that might be considered strange or even inappropriate for a woman of her stature, and as a result some of that rubbed off on Gilbert. Her love for cooking and tendency to do it herself rather than rely on the chefs their family employed led to her roping in Gilbert and teaching him how to cook, and preparing meals for him herself. Because of all the time they spent together, her personality rubbed off on him a bit, which led to him growing up to become a kind, faithful, caring person with mother hen-tendencies.
As for friends and relationships with children his age while growing up, it was pretty much nonexistent. His father, who rarely spoke to him was strict about Gilbert being diligent in his studies and training, so he could grow up to be worthy of inheriting their family’s property, as well as being a good marriage candidate so that they could marry up into a higher noble family with more power and wealth. Although there were other noble children where he was trained, he rarely interacted or spoke to them outside training, and had no siblings to play or spend time with. Part of the reason why he spent so much time with his mother was because he was a lonely child, with no connections to other children his age.
Growing up between their estate in the northern country side and the city of Paris, mostly raised by his mother, Gilbert became drawn to the idea of the Templar Knights (who were headquarted in Paris) from a young age, partly due to his mother’s teachings. At age 15, he joined and became a squire, much to his father’s dismay and outrage, angered by the fact that his only son, who he’d groomed so carefully, could no longer marry.
