Knight stops in Mountain Grove on cross-Canada journey

May 24, 2012

Photo: Bell Line Road resident Ed Warren encountered Vincent Gabriel Kirouac and his mare, Couer de Lion, on their cross-Canada trek to promote chivalry.Is chivalry dead? Not in the heart and mind of Vincent Gabriel Kirouac of Quebec City, who arrived in Mountain Grove fully clad in knightly attire and mounted atop his mare Coeur de Lion.

Vincent Kirouac is on a six-month journey to Vancouver, BC, with a mission to promote the ideals of chivalry. On May 16, following his usual 30km daily ride, he spent the night at the home of Rick and Elaine Steele of Mountain Grove.

I came across the noble pair on the Bell Line Road just west of the Hwy 509 roughly six weeks after the two set out from the village of St. Pacome, QC. Vincent explains on his website (www.chevalierautourdemonde.com) that his is not a violent sword and throat slashing crusade, but one that “takes its source from the spirit of altruism and selflessness...that calls for mutual aid, solidarity and devotion, love pure and free...erected by nations across difficulties, disasters and above all, rising beyond the very limits of human beings.”

Riding across the country to promote chivalry is not something that came out of nowhere for Vincent. “For eight years I've always dreamed of being a knight and I wanted to realize my dream,” he said as he steadied his mare by the side of the road. “At the same time I wanted to try to bring chivalry back into our world and society. I'm hoping that people can become more warm and whole-hearted to others without having to ask anything in return. I'm trying to encourage people to bring back those chivalrous virtues such as valour, honour and generosity. I believe that 90% of people are good but that the pressure of our society doesn't allow people to be good to each other. So if we just remember that and take the time to smile and speak to people from our hearts, it can make such a huge difference in the world.”

Vincent’s attire includes a metal helmet he had made especially for the journey. He said he is relying on the kindness and generosity of farmers to provide shelter and lodging for himself and his mare. Though traveling light, he always carries a first aid kit for himself and his horse, a raincoat, and a collapsible water bucket from which his mare drinks.

Vincent said that his mare is the perfect horse for the trip and is “really very special.” One half Belgian, one quarter quarter horse and a quarter thoroughbred, he said she is “full of heart and full of muscle, in great shape with good feet and has no fear of cars, trucks or fireworks.”

And Vincent should know a good horse. When he is not riding across the country as a knight, he works as a horse trainer, and he studied equine science in Quebec for the last three years. He expects to arrive in Vancouver in September and once there, will meet his fiancée with plans to make the trip back across the country to Quebec.

It doesn't end there, though. Following that trip the two are planning to ride from Edinburgh, Scotland to Jerusalem. With six weeks under his belt and a gentle smile on his lips, he tells me that he feels his message is getting through. With that he bids me farewell and continues on his way up the Bell Line Road where the Steeles were waiting to welcome him and his mare for the night.