''The Broad Stone of Honour, or Rules for the Gentlemen of England'', is a book written by

Kenelm Henry Digby Kenelm Henry Digby (c. 1797 – 1880) was an Anglo-Irish writer, whose reputation rests chiefly on his earliest publication, ''The Broad-Stone of Honour, or Rules for the Gentlemen of England'' (1822), which contains an exhaustive survey of medi ...

and published first in 1822 by F. C. & J. Rivington of London. Then the work was subdivided into its constituent parts and published as ''Godefridus'' (1829), ''Tancredus'' (1828), ''Morus'' (1826) and ''Orlandus'' (1829). Later it was revised and republished as ''The Broad Stone of Honour: Or, the True Sense and Practice of Chivalry'' (1844 to 1948). Now almost unknown, Digby's ''The Broad Stone of Honour'' (named after his favourite castle,

Ehrenbreitstein Ehrenbreitstein Fortress (german: Festung Ehrenbreitstein, ) is a fortress in the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the east bank of the Rhine where it is joined by the Moselle, overlooking the town of Koblenz. ...

) was an attempt to describe the true meaning of chivalry and to revive it in modern life. In his ''Godefridus'' section, Digby defined chivalry: :''Chivalry is only a name for that general spirit or state of mind which disposes men to heroic actions, and keeps them conversant with all that is beautiful and sublime in the intellectual and moral world.'' The ''Broad-Stone'' is plentifully supplied with examples from

medieval literature Medieval literature is a broad subject, encompassing essentially all written works available in Europe and beyond during the Middle Ages (that is, the one thousand years from the fall of the Western Roman Empire ca. AD 500 to the beginning of t ...

, even the most obscure accounts. Even his admirers often found his appreciation of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

excessive, in that he refused to see any fault in them. Still, the work was deeply influential, in its attack on

Utilitarianism In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for all affected individuals. Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different chara ...

and its devotion to rational thinking over the heart, his lack of interest in intellectual ability, and his disdain for making money all had serious impact on the Victorian notion of a proper gentleman. Digby concluded that the whole concept of

gallantry Gallantry may refer to: * military courage or bravery * Chivalry * Warrior ethos * Knightly Piety Knightly Piety refers to a specific strand of Christian belief espoused by knights during the Middle Ages. The term comes from ''Ritterfrömmigkei ...

or chivalry is to be found in the Eight Beatitudes; significantly the eight-pointed crosses used by the Knights of Malta and other such orders are believed to have alluded to the same idea. The book was so influential in its day that ideas such as the Boy Scout movement can be traced back to it. pp. 56, 255 & 256 - "Quoted in ''Forster''"

Footnotes

*Holland, Bernard - ''Memoir of Kenelm Digby'' first published 1919; paperback, Fisher Press, 1992 {{DEFAULTSORT:Broadstone of Honour, The 1822 non-fiction books British books Chivalry