This volume details the life of the English knight during the 13th century, a period in which knighthood became so expensive that many eligible men had to be forced into it by royal command. How the tournament, a highly dangerous but lucrative way of accumulating wealth and status, evolved through the century is thoroughly explored along with the formation of the army using the feudal system, commutation of duty by the money payment of scutage and the hiring of mercenaries. Photographs of rare surviving pieces of armour along with Graham Turner's colour plates are used to illustrate this volume.