Chivalry comes from the same root word as cavalry, and it refers originally to the honor code of mounted soldiers. Medieval knights swore oaths to protect their lords and countries; these codes, with their rules for good behavior, varied across the centuries. Most of what modern people know of those codes were inscribed in books that told stories, many fictional, of chivalrous knights of the past.

In literature, chivalry became a theme during the 1100s, especially in the stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Among these are the 12th-century epic poem Yvain by Crétien de Troyes and Le Morte d’Arthur, a 15th-century prose book by Thomas Malory. These tales portrayed knightly conduct as more refined than it was in reality. The cruelties of warfare and feudal life often collided with virtuous ideals; chivalry thus was as much a figment of fiction writers’ imaginations as it was a well-observed code of conduct.

Several basic principles are common to both the fictional and real chivalric codes. They include compassion, courage, heroism, honesty, honor, and politeness, especially toward women, children, and the poor.