In the Middle Ages, most of the deeds of paladins gradually evolved into written records in the form of bard singing, and a few came from the literary creation of monks and scholars.
There are thirteen paladins who are most widely circulated in European epics: Charlemagne, Roland, Oliver, Hogir, Tupin, Astor, rinaldo, Malagigi, Philan ballas, Floresmat, Namo, Solomon and Garilon. These thirteen people differ greatly in professional titles, personalities and specialties. , but without exception, they are active in epics and legends as knights (including Archbishop Tuping and magician Malagigi and others are also knights, and even blacksmiths, chefs and businessmen in medieval Europe can be knighted).
It is worth noting that the paladin's role list is not static. Although the above thirteen characters are considered as the most classic and mainstream chivalrous lineup, some chivalrous poems in some regions and nationalities will be changed and modified according to the adjustment of plot background. Most of the time, each paladin poem maintains a list of 1+ 12, but it occasionally changes according to the creator's settings. (1+ 12 is Charlemagne)
Some paladins are real historical figures in real history, such as Charlemagne, Roland and Tu Ping. , but there are also some fictional characters in medieval poetry, such as Flores Matt and Malagigi.
The knights of the Round Table and the paladins in medieval poetry were almost born under the identical cultural background (England after Norman conquest was fully influenced and infiltrated by the French knight culture, and many deeds of the knights of the Round Table originated from the creation of French minstrels), but the knights of the Round Table were more involved in Celtic mythology than the paladins, while the stories of the interaction between the paladins and various cultures and pagans in Europe, Asia and Africa were more abundant, blending the jihad themes of the Crusaders, especially the stories of some Muslim soldiers.
However, although the Paladin Tales Collection and the Round Table Tales Collection are generally regarded as two giants in medieval knight literature, in essence, their works are actually medieval epics with extremely strong fantasy colors. The fantasy works of 2 1 century that we see today are essentially the continuation of their medieval knight legends, which are a mixture of various myths and religions.
We can see that Montesquieu (A.D. 1689- 1755), the enlightener of modern thought, in his representative work The Spirit of Law, Chapter 28, Section 22, how did a French scholar with worldwide influence evaluate paladin:
————
"In literature, people can see paladins, wizards, fairies, winged or clever horses, invisible people and invulnerable people; A magician who is very interested in the origin and education of great men; A enchanted or disenchanted palace. A brand-new world has emerged in our world, and only ordinary civilians continue to live along the original trajectory of nature.
Paladins are always armed to the teeth and haunt castles, fortresses and robbers. They are proud of the weak. In today's culture, the thoughts based on love are intertwined with the thoughts of force and protection.
So people fantasize about a brave man. The man saw a slim and delicate woman with extraordinary appearance, and was willing to stand up and take all risks for her and please her in daily life. The atmosphere of chivalry was thus created.
These chivalrous literature satisfied the desire to please women and brought this spirit of respecting women and valuing chivalry to some parts of Europe. It can be said that this chivalry is rare among the ancients. "
————
As early as the Middle Ages, Rangers were deeply rooted in the hearts of the people because of the spread of poems by bards and monks and scholars. Needless to say, the Knights of the Round Table also have unique supernatural powers.
The most typical example is15th century written by Thomas Malory, the title and content of the three chapters in the first 19 volume of Death of King Arthur, the most famous knight literature in English history:
The tenth time-how did Sir Yuri come to King Arthur's court in order to seek medical treatment, and how did King Arthur begin to touch him with his hands.
Eleventh time-King Arthur touched Sir Yuri's wound, and then let the knights of the Round Table take turns to touch and treat it.
Twelfth time-how did King Arthur order Sir Lancelot to reach out and touch Yuri's wound? Soon Yuri recovered completely. How can they thank God?
Just as paladins have all kinds of incredible powers, knights of the Round Table have acquired the ability of touch therapy because of their belief in God. Among them, Sir Lancelot, who is a descendant of King David and related to Jesus Christ, naturally has the most powerful touch therapy ability among these knights of the Round Table (surpassing King Arthur, second only to his son Sir Graham, but now Graham has died in the Holy Grail), and Sir Gawaine's magical power Gerald obtained through sunshine.
However, the stories of the knights of the Round Table have been widely circulated in the revival of Celtic culture in modern times, while the stories of the paladins have not had this opportunity. The epic paladin, which was carried forward in medieval bard, has declined in the modern history of the disintegration of the feudal system.
Until the rise of modern fantasy in the 20th century, D&; Gary gygax and Dave Arnesen, the two founders of D, rediscovered the concept of paladins, which made paladins who had been weak in modern history for centuries after the end of the Middle Ages finally re-enter the stage in another form. But in fact, the paladins who appear in front of us today have become Charlemagne paladins, King Arthur's Knights of the Round Table, Three Knights (Hospital, Temple and Teutonic), Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, Knights of Santiago, Godfrey of Buyong, baldwin iv of jerusalem of Jerusalem, Louis IX, Sid, Ivanhoe, Marshal William, Bertrand Gasklin, Joan of Arc, Maximilian I and many other historical facts and facts.
Of course, the cultural image and core features of Charlemagne's 12 attendants have been inherited by the paladins in modern fantasy, such as lightsaber, Shen Jun, fearless courage, pious belief, being good at rallying and inspiring people with speeches, being good at leading and negotiating on the battlefield, being eloquent and insightful in political affairs or legal arbitration.