The musings and meandering thoughts of a crotchety old man as he observes life in the world and in a small, rural town in South East Nebraska. I hope to help people get to Heaven by sharing prayers, meditations, the lives of the Saints, and news of Church happenings. My Pledge: Nulla dies sine linea ~ Not a day without a line.
Were medieval knights actually gay, or is the modern internet completely misunderstanding history? From viral TikToks to John Boswell's controversial 1994 book, Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe, there is a growing myth that knighthood was a cover for same-sex marriage. The truth is much more complicated—and tells us a lot about modern male isolation.
In this video, we explore the concept of medieval marriage, the intense psychological world of medieval chivalry, the trauma of the Hundred Years' War, and why extreme emotional vulnerability and "brother-making" ceremonies (adelphopoiesis) were actually considered peak masculinity. We also look at the historical figures who did have same-sex relationships, like King Edward II and Piers Gaveston, and how the Knights Templar were destroyed by weaponised accusations.
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - The "Gay Knight" Myth
0:22 - The Isolated Childhood of a Knight
1:38 - Medieval PTSD & The Trauma of War
2:54 - Marriage as a Transactional Business
4:43 - Courtly Love vs. Reality
7:46 - John Boswell & The "Gay Marriage" Book
8:23 - Adelphopoiesis (Brother-Making Ceremonies)
11:31 - Contracts of Brotherhood (du Guesclin & de Clisson)
13:38 - Why Knights & Kings Shared Beds
15:23 - Emotional Vulnerability as "Alpha" Behavior
17:08 - Piers Gaveston & King Edward II
20:20 - The Trial of the Knights Templar
21:25 - Modern Male Isolation vs. Medieval Intimacy
WORKS CITED
Barber, Malcolm. The Trial of the Templars. 2nd ed., Cambridge University Press, 2006.
Boswell, John. Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe. Villard Books, 1994.
Childs, Wendy R., editor and translator. Vita Edwardi Secundi: The Life of Edward the Second. Oxford University Press, 2005.
Riley, Henry T., translator. The Annals of Roger de Hoveden: Comprising the History of England and of Other Countries of Europe from A.D. 732 to A.D. 1201. Vol. 2, H.G. Bohn, 1853.
Vernier, Richard. The Flower of Chivalry: Bertrand du Guesclin and the Hundred Years War. Boydell Press, 2003.
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Comments are subject to deletion if they are not germane. I have no problem with a bit of colourful language, but blasphemy or depraved profanity will not be allowed. Attacks on the Catholic Faith will not be tolerated. Comments will be deleted that are republican (Yanks! Note the lower case 'r'!), attacks on the legitimacy of Pope Leo XIV as the Vicar of Christ, the legitimacy of the House of Windsor or of the claims of the Elder Line of the House of France, or attacks on the legitimacy of any of the currently ruling Houses of Europe.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments are subject to deletion if they are not germane. I have no problem with a bit of colourful language, but blasphemy or depraved profanity will not be allowed. Attacks on the Catholic Faith will not be tolerated. Comments will be deleted that are republican (Yanks! Note the lower case 'r'!), attacks on the legitimacy of Pope Leo XIV as the Vicar of Christ, the legitimacy of the House of Windsor or of the claims of the Elder Line of the House of France, or attacks on the legitimacy of any of the currently ruling Houses of Europe.