The Knights of Tighe, crowned for their good deeds, are, standing from left, Ruby Sardes, Lexi Blanchet, Billy Kral, Jacob Rosen and Walter Luchay; and, kneeling, Cameron Marchel and Brandon Gonzalez. MARGATE – Chivalry is not dead. It is alive and well at the Eugene A. Tighe School, where the semester culminated in a cross-curricular project that had seventh-graders in Kathy Styles Landgraf’s class returning to medieval times when knights, epic battles and fair maidens of the kingdom were the way of life.

Students studied the medieval period and learned about battles and the weapons used by soldiers and knights. At a Medieval Fair Tuesday, Jan. 21 students made and wore costumes of the period and displayed and demonstrated the model weapons they made.

Styles Landgraf, who teaches social studies, said her students heavily researched the period.

“They composed ballads that reflected life during the period, told folk tales and talked about what merchants bought and sold in the marketplace,” she said.

“The students created shields that reflected their own personality just as the shield carried into battle would have reflected the knight or a soldier who carried it during the period.”

Leading up to the Medieval Fair, seventh-grade boys, who were the squires, earned chivalry points for doing good deeds for the maidens – the seventh grade girls – or for the nobles, members of the school staff.

The squires who accrued the most points were knighted at a ceremony at the fair by former knights who are now in eighth grade. Knighted with a sword laid upon their shoulder were Lexi Blanchet, Brandon Gonzalez, Billy Kral, Walter Luchay, Cameron Marchel, Jacob Rosen and Ruby Sardes.

Styles Landgraf said the Medieval Fair is one of the most anticipated events of the school year for the seventh-graders, and every student has an active role in preparing for the event.

The fair maidens of the Kingdom of Tighe are, from left, Sophia Weiner, Kate Dulac, Julie Reeves and Julianne Affanato. The ladies in waiting are seventh-graders Victoria McHugh, Bridget Migone and Grace Sacco.