Was There Any Form of Ritual Suicide Among the Knightly Classes During the Middle Ages?

by Manyrandomtacos

Alternatively, was suicide ever considered to be an acceptable way out of a difficult situation, political or otherwise?

sunagainstgold

No and no.

For Christians in medieval Europe--which is to say, including all nobles--suicide was the final sin, the mortal sin where the person died without the possibility of forgiveness. In other words, the sin that absolutely, always sent the person straight to hell.

When Alexander Murray investigated medieval chronicles (narrative accounts of events, arranged in small reports), which primarily talk about the nobility, for stories of suicide, he only found what he calls "whispers." That is to say, rumors, attempts to talk around it, insistences that the lord had not actually killed himself after all. In some cases, the whispers aren't even about someone who committed suicide, they involve a suicide attempt.

And just to drive the point home, suicide wasn't just a sin--it was a crime. No, obviously the secular authorities could not punish the suicide victim themselves. However, the court could strip away any property or money the victim's family would inherit.

Some theologians, however, did posit one exception. No, not for facing down enemies in battle. In fact, when 13th century bishop Jacques de Vitry illustrated his sermons with stories of the Crusades, he talked of knights who tried such a thing but were saved by God from the fate of suicide and hell.

No, this exception was for women. Since Jerome and Augustine at the turn of the 4th century, Christian men had debated whether women should commit suicide instead of "letting" themselves be raped. Yes, you read that right. Augustine hedged but ultimately said no. Jerome said yes. Although later medieval theology was rather fanboyish for Augustine, there were a few theologians who sided against women with Jerome on the subject of killing themselves.