The Age of ChivalryA chivalrous knight was a very different kind of man from the brutal, proud, rebellious, land-grabbing warriors who seemed to have been all too common in the Middle Ages. Warriors may or may not transform into chivalrous knights. Chivalry was a game of make-believe, a fashionable game that the ruling classes played when they weren't busy squabbling and plotting for more lands, following their lords to war, or trying to squeeze more out of the peasants and merchants who they lived on their own property. Earth. These people were either "bold and wicked barons" or they were "kind and perfect knights". They were probably a mixture of both. In this essay it will be shown that chivalry existed and played a role in the training of a knight. The age of knights was often called the age of chivalry. Chivalry comes from the old French word chevalerie, which meant "soldier on horseback." Over time, the term came to mean a code of behavior or set of rules that a knight was expected to follow and abide by. To understand the code of chivalry, it is necessary to consider the steps a person must take to prepare to become a knight. A boy preparing for knighthood usually left home around the age of seven. He was sent to an overlord's or relative's castle as it was the only logical place for a boy to learn all the required knightly skills. There he went through more than one training phase. The first stage towards knighthood was becoming a page where the code of chivalry was taught. A page usually trained in the household of a knight or noble, as mentioned before. There he faced a bloody battle, testing his strength and power through daily exercise. His exercises consisted of running, fighting, learning to handle the spear, spear and sword. Knights or nobles taught him how to cut and parry blows using a blunt sword. He also learns to ride and jump on a horse without a saddle. During this phase of training the most difficult and boring part was courtesy. A page was also an errand boy and had to learn to serve other knights and nobles. This was believed to be one of the key elements to becoming a good knight.