World War I and II: The Knight Legacy

When one recalls the history of the first and second world wars, that person’s first thoughts probably revolve around all of the blood shed and death that came as a result. It is most likely very rare to find a person whose first thoughts are of the ways in which those fighting in the war acted merciful, or for a better word, chivalrous. This is in fact just how many fighter pilots acted during this time. There are many stories of mercy being shown by the fighter pilots of the sky, like a knight, these pilots acted on a code of honor and many people are not aware of this happening. The public perception of air combat is different than the reality of it. Through many first hand accounts of those who experienced air combat and reported it later, one can see that the fighter pilot strives to live by a code of honor much like knights did on the battlefield many years before.

According to Lordsandladies.org, there was not actually an authentic Knights Code of Chivalry but yet a moral system which went beyond the rules of combat and introduced the concept of Chivalrous conduct, qualities idealized by knighthood, such as bravery, courtesy, honor, and gallantry. Among other things, to protect the weak and defenseless and to never turn the back upon a foe were included in the Code of Chivalry. The knight’s legacy is important in understanding many aspects of western military and social practices. The knight himself has virtually disappeared, but that does not mean that his chivalric legacy does not live on in modern warriors. According to many, fighter pilots developed to possess a similar role in air combat as the knight had on the battlefield.

Joe Granducci and Dr. Carl Edwin Lindgren believe that there are many parallels between a kni...

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...times elaborate funerals for pilots even if they were on the opposing side. For many pilots during World War I and World War II, the final destination was the grave. But the French and British pilots were trained to extend their respect even into the real of death. One of the first Americans killed when flying with the French was Victor Chapman. Chapman was killed at a time when thousands and thousands of French soldiers were being killed in the trenches and Chapman’s funeral showed just how exceptionally pilots were treated in comparison to ground troops. Edmond Genet described the funeral in a letter that he wrote to home saying that almost all of the American colony staying in Paris, as well as many of the French, were at the funeral. This funeral was an important event to the French as they felt the need to honor an American who fell in service in their country.