What is a Squire?
The meaning of the term “squire” has shifted greatly over the centuries. When people use this term in reference to historical squires, they are usually talking about the apprentices who served knights on the way to their own knighthoods. In the modern sense, a squire is a member of the landowning gentry in England; the term is also sometime used in familiar slang, generally in an ironic sense. Historical squires were young men, usually around the age of 12 or 13, who were interested in becoming knights. Initially such men worked as pages, glorified messenger boys who would carry messages, serve at the table, and perform an assortment of other menial tasks. While working as a page, a prospective knight would also begin training in the use of weapons, often absorbing this knowledge while watching the practice of older pages, squires, and knights. Once a page had reached an appropriate age or level of training, he would be promoted to a squire. Squires acted as personal attendants for kni
A squire is a person that has been accepted into the service of a Knight. In exchange for faithful service, a Knight trains the squire in the hopes that the squire might someday become a Knight. Length of service and duties required from different Knights vary greatly. Serving as a squire in no way guarantees Knighthood. Go back to the top.
