Chivalry and Courage on 9/11
Presented by the Upper School
This year the Upper and Middle School students are studying Arthurian legends. Arthurian legends are stories based on the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and these legends can be dated as early as the 6th century! When you think of knights and King Arthur, you likely think of men in suits of armor slaying dragons and rescuing princesses. Central to these legends is the idea of chivalry- a strict code of conduct a knight pledges to follow.
One could not just decide to be a knight. Knighthood was something bestowed on a man after years of preparation. In Roger Lancelyn Green’s novel King Arthur, Arthur blesses a future knight with this directive: “...I lay upon you all the Order of Chivalry…do not ever depart from the high virtues of this realm. Do no outrage nor murder nor any cruel or wicked thing; fly from treason and all untruthfulness and dishonest dealing; give mercy unto those who seek it…always give all the help in your power to ladies and damsels, go out to succour gentlewomen and widows…Nor, for love or gain, fight in any quarrel that is not just and righteous.”[1]
C.S. Lewis, a medieval scholar and Christian apologist, wrote about the importance of the image as a knight and the idea of chivalry as one of critical importance for a successful modern society…. In his essay “The Necessity of Chivalry,” Lewis writes: “The word chivalry has meant at different times a good many different things…The important thing about this ideal is, of course, the double demand it makes on human nature. The knight…is not a compromise or happy mean between ferocity and meekness; he is fierce to the nth and meek to the nth. The medieval ideal brought together two things which have no natural tendency to gravitate towards one another…”[2]
While we no longer go on quests to slay dragons or rescue princesses, as Christians we do seek to overcome the world and “comfort them which are in any trouble.”[3]
Thought written by Courtney Carman
Assistant Head of School
After this thought about courage and honor in mediaeval England, Mr. Carman (head of school) told the story of a modern-day hero, Stephen Siller, who returned to Manhattan after his firefighter’s shift and gave his life while saving victims of the 9/11 attacks. On the week of September 11th, we remembered with gratitude the sacrifice of courageous first responders who rescued victims of the arial attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon.
This historical thought was delivered by our Upper School students at devotional on 09/10/2026. Each week one class leads the student body in prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, scripture recitation, a meditation, and an historical thought. Belmont family and friends are welcome, Thursdays 8:40-9:05 am.
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[1] Roger Lancelyn Green, King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table (London: Puffin Books, 1953), “The First Quest of the Round Table.”
[2] C. S. Lewis, “The Necessity of Chivalry,” in Present Concerns: Journalistic Essays, ed. Walter Hooper (San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1986), 13–14.
Lewis, “The Necessity of Chivalry,” 14.
[3] 2 Corinthians 1:4 (KJV).
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