Page ( servant ) - wikipedia Page ( servant ) Jump to : navigation , search For other uses , see Page boy ( disambiguation ) . This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . ( November 2010 ) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message ) Lord Patten , robed as Chancellor of Oxford University , assisted by a page A page or page boy is traditionally a young male attendant or servant , but may also have been used for a messenger at the service of a nobleman . The origin of the term is uncertain , but it may come either from the Latin pagus ( servant ) , possibly linked to peasant , or an earlier Greek word παῖς ( pais = child ) . During wedding ceremonies , a page boy is often used as a symbolic attendant to carry the rings , a role comparable to the scattering of flower petals by flower girls . Contents ( hide ) 1 The medieval page 2 The household page 3 The decorative page 4 Modern pages 5 See also 6 References The medieval page ( edit ) Alof de Wignacourt and a page , by Caravaggio . Louvre , Paris . In medieval times , a page was an attendant to a nobleman , a knight , a Governor or a Castellan . Until the age of about seven , sons of noble families would receive training in manners and basic literacy from their mothers or other female relatives . Upon reaching seven years of age , a boy would be sent to the castle , great house or other estate of another noble family . This would match the age at which apprenticeships or servants ' employment would be entered into by young males from lower social classes . A young boy served as a page for about seven years , running messages , serving , cleaning clothing and weapons , and learning the basics of combat . He might be required to arm or dress the lord to whom he had been sent by his own family . Personal service of this nature was not considered as demeaning , in the context of shared noble status by page and lord . It was seen rather as a form of education in return for labour . While a page did not receive reimbursement other than clothing , accommodation and food , he could be rewarded for an exceptional act of service . In return for his work , the page would receive training in horse - riding , hunting , hawking and combat -- the essential skills required of adult men of his rank in medieval society . Less physical training included schooling in the playing of musical instruments , the composition and singing of songs , and the learning of board games such as chess . The initial education received as a child in reading and writing , would be continued to a level of modest competence under the tuition of a chaplain or other cleric , and possibly from a grammar master . They also learned courtly manners and , in attending to the needs of their master , a degree of temporary humility . Medieval pages might accompany their lords to war . While their roles in battle were generally limited to secondary assistance and minor support functions , pages might expect to participate directly in siege situations . This could occur when a castle was under attack and crossbows were available for use by pages among the defenders . The mechanical and long - range nature of these devices made them almost the only medieval weapon which could be employed effectively by a youth . At age fourteen , the young noble could graduate to become a squire , and by age 21 , perhaps a knight himself . These boys were often the scions of other great families who were sent to learn the ways of the manorial system by observation . Their residence in the house served as a goodwill gesture between the two families involved and helped them gain social and political contacts for their adult lives . A reference to this kind of page is found in the Christmas carol Good King Wenceslaus : `` Hither , page , and stand by me , if thou know'st it , telling ... '' This type of page is almost unheard of today outside of royal residences , although the functions and status of legislative pages are a clear continuation of the earlier role . The household page ( edit ) Until the early 20th century , boys of humble background might gain a similar place in a great house . According to the International Butler Academy , these pages were apprentice footmen . Unlike the hall boys , who did heavy work , these pages performed light odd - jobs and stood in attendance wearing livery when guests were being received . The decorative page ( edit ) See also : Lawn jockey Page boy with silver collar , Dutch 17th century During and following the Renaissance , it became fashionable for black boys and young men to be decorative pages , placed into fancy costumes and attending fashionable ladies and lords . This custom lasted for several centuries and the `` African page '' became a staple accoutrement of baroque and rococo style . The character is frequently illustrated in literature and film , particularly periodwork : In the Grace Kelly film , To Catch a Thief , an undercover detective wears the costume of her `` African page '' to a costume ball . Valentine Nwanze played an `` African page '' attending James Graham , Marquess of Montrose in the film Rob Roy . `` Koko '' , the fictional manservant of an opera diva , is cast as her African page in A Nut at the Opera by Maurice Vellekoop . Decorative pages feature in a drawing room scene in Persuasion . In the 2012 historical drama film A Royal Affair , Christian VII has an African page boy named Moranti . Similarly , Oriental pages were periodically in fashion , e.g. in Napoleonic France since Bonaparte 's conquest of Ottoman Egypt . Modern pages ( edit ) See also : page ( assistance occupation ) While the traditional pages are rare in the modern private workforce , US television network NBC 's page program is a notable example of contemporary workplace pages . See also ( edit ) Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pages ( people ) . Page of Honour Page ( assistance occupation ) Slave collar References ( edit ) Jump up ^ Luke , Harry ( 1949 ) . Malta : An Account and an Apreciation . Harrap . p. 77 . Jump up ^ Tuchman , Barbara W. A Distant Mirror - the Calamitous 14th Century . p. 52 & 62 . ISBN 0 - 14 - 005407 - 3 . Jump up ^ Chambers , David ( 1985 ) . The English House . London : Guild Publishing . p. 34 . Jump up ^ Page 27 BBC History Magazine July 2017 Jump up ^ The Slave in European Art : From Renaissance Trophy to Abolitionist Emblem , ed Elizabeth McGrath and Jean Michel Massing , London ( The Warburg Institute ) and Turin 2012 . Jump up ^ `` Page Program '' . NBC . Retrieved 3 August 2014 . Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Page_(servant)&oldid=837589071 '' Categories : Domestic work Feudalism Titles Gendered occupations Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from November 2010 All articles needing additional references Articles containing Ancient Greek - language text Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català Čeština Dansk Español Esperanto Français 한국어 Italiano Lietuvių Magyar Македонски Nederlands Nedersaksies 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Русский Simple English Suomi Svenska Українська 13 more Edit links This page was last edited on 21 April 2018 , at 19 : 49 . 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what was a knight's job in medieval times
This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . ( November 2010 ) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message ) This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . ( November 2010 ) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message ) A page or page boy is traditionally a young male attendant or servant , but may also have been used for a messenger at the service of a nobleman . The origin of the term is uncertain , but it may come either from the Latin pagus ( servant ) , possibly linked to peasant , or an earlier Greek word παῖς ( pais = child ) . During wedding ceremonies , a page boy is often used as a symbolic attendant to carry the rings , a role comparable to the scattering of flower petals by flower girls . In medieval times , a page was an attendant to a nobleman , a knight , a Governor or a Castellan . Until the age of about seven , sons of noble families would receive training in manners and basic literacy from their mothers or other female relatives . Upon reaching seven years of age , a boy would be sent to the castle , great house or other estate of another noble family . This would match the age at which apprenticeships or servants ' employment would be entered into by young males from lower social classes . A young boy served as a page for about seven years , running messages , serving , cleaning clothing and weapons , and learning the basics of combat . He might be required to arm or dress the lord to whom he had been sent by his own family . Personal service of this nature was not considered as demeaning , in the context of shared noble status by page and lord . It was seen rather as a form of education in return for labour . While a page did not receive reimbursement other than clothing , accommodation and food , he could be rewarded for an exceptional act of service . In return for his work , the page would receive training in horse - riding , hunting , hawking and combat -- the essential skills required of adult men of his rank in medieval society . Less physical training included schooling in the playing of musical instruments , the composition and singing of songs , and the learning of board games such as chess . The initial education received as a child in reading and writing , would be continued to a level of modest competence under the tuition of a chaplain or other cleric , and possibly from a grammar master . They also learned courtly manners and , in attending to the needs of their master , a degree of temporary humility . Medieval pages might accompany their lords to war . While their roles in battle were generally limited to secondary assistance and minor support functions , pages might expect to participate directly in siege situations . This could occur when a castle was under attack and crossbows were available for use by pages among the defenders . The mechanical and long - range nature of these devices made them almost the only medieval weapon which could be employed effectively by a youth . At age fourteen , the young noble could graduate to become a squire , and by age 21 , perhaps a knight himself . These boys were often the scions of other great families who were sent to learn the ways of the manorial system by observation . Their residence in the house served as a goodwill gesture between the two families involved and helped them gain social and political contacts for their adult lives . A reference to this kind of page is found in the Christmas carol Good King Wenceslaus : `` Hither , page , and stand by me , if thou know'st it , telling ... '' This type of page is almost unheard of today outside of royal residences , although the functions and status of legislative pages are a clear continuation of the earlier role . Until the early 20th century , boys of humble background might gain a similar place in a great house . According to the International Butler Academy , these pages were apprentice footmen . Unlike the hall boys , who did heavy work , these pages performed light odd - jobs and stood in attendance wearing livery when guests were being received . During and following the Renaissance , it became fashionable for black boys and young men to be decorative pages , placed into fancy costumes and attending fashionable ladies and lords . This custom lasted for several centuries and the `` African page '' became a staple accoutrement of baroque and rococo style . The character is frequently illustrated in literature and film , particularly periodwork : In the Grace Kelly film , To Catch a Thief , an undercover detective wears the costume of her `` African page '' to a costume ball . Valentine Nwanze played an `` African page '' attending James Graham , Marquess of Montrose in the film Rob Roy . `` Koko '' , the fictional manservant of an opera diva , is cast as her African page in A Nut at the Opera by Maurice Vellekoop . Decorative pages feature in a drawing room scene in Persuasion . In the 2012 historical drama film A Royal Affair , Christian VII has an African page boy named Moranti . In the Grace Kelly film , To Catch a Thief , an undercover detective wears the costume of her `` African page '' to a costume ball . Valentine Nwanze played an `` African page '' attending James Graham , Marquess of Montrose in the film Rob Roy . `` Koko '' , the fictional manservant of an opera diva , is cast as her African page in A Nut at the Opera by Maurice Vellekoop . Decorative pages feature in a drawing room scene in Persuasion . In the 2012 historical drama film A Royal Affair , Christian VII has an African page boy named Moranti . Similarly , Oriental pages were periodically in fashion , e.g. in Napoleonic France since Bonaparte 's conquest of Ottoman Egypt . While the traditional pages are rare in the modern private workforce , US television network NBC 's page program is a notable example of contemporary workplace pages .