Knight-errant
Knight-errant
A knight-errant[1] (or knight errant) is a figure of medieval chivalric romance literature. The adjective errant (meaning "wandering, roving") indicates how the knight-errant would wander the land in search of adventures to prove his chivalric virtues, either in knightly duels (pas d'armes) or in some other pursuit of courtly love.
The knight-errant is a character who has broken away from the world of his origin, in order to go off on his own to right wrongs or to test and assert his own chivalric ideals. He is motivated by idealism and often illusory goals.
In medieval Europe, knight-errantry existed in literature, though fictional works from this time often were presented as non-fiction. The character of the wandering knight existed in romantic literature as it developed during the late 12th century. However, the term "knight-errant" was to come later; its first extant usage occurs in the 14th-century poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
A knight-errant typically performed all his deeds in the name of love invoked their lover’s name before performing an exploit. Their adventures often include mythical enemies such as giants, enchantresses, or dragons.
The models of the knight-errant are the heroes of the Round Table of Arthurian legend such as Gawain, Lancelot, or Perceval. Their greatest quest is that of Holy Grail, originating from Perceval, the Story of the Grail written by Chrétien de Troyes in the 12th century.
