The history of medieval aristocracy is in crisis, collapsing under the weight of three centuries of work and confused by separate and mutually uncomprehending Anglophone and Francophone historiographies. David Crouch lucidly summarises and analyses this enormous international field of publications, unpicking the basic assumptions behind both national traditions in order to explain and reconcile them. He offers new ways to take the study of aristocracy forward in both England and France. The Birth of Nobility breaks down the study of medieval aristocracy into four debates on noble conduct, noble lineage, noble class and noble power. Each is subjected to a thorough review by comparing current scholarship with a vast range of historical source material. This is the first attempt to reconcile British and French ideas about aristocracy and shape them into a new debate. Supported by illustrations, this book: - Redirects the historiography concerning aristocracy - offers an original analysis of the nature of aristocracy and how it might be defined - discovers and explains for the first time the origins of chivalry - disposes of the myths around concepts like 'feudalism' and 'primogeniture' David Crouch is Professor of Medieval History at the University of Hull. He is an authority on twelfth- and thirteenth-century English, Welsh and Norman history and his numerous books on aristocracy and Anglo-Norman History include The Beaumont Twins (1986); The Image of Aristocracy in Britain, 1000-1300 (1992); William Marshal (2002); The Reign of King Stephen, 1135-1154 (20000) and The Normans: the History of a Dynasty (2002).