The lady will have...
Pretty much whatever the man in her life determined would be best for her. And, if you're a woman, without social, economic and, most importantly, legal standing, you would pretty much accept whatever was offered. In chivalrous times, what a woman wanted was unimportant. What was important is what her husband wanted her to have.
Costumes and Customs
Clothes, too, played a part in the evolution of chivalric customs. Imagine the challenge of opening a door while wearing a hoop skirt with a six-foot diameter. Or the difficulty of even the most minor physical exertion with a corset condensing a 26-inch waist to a 16, pushing internal organs into the chest cavity and making even shallow breathing extraordinarily hard. Is it any wonder that traditions evolved requiring men to assist women with relatively simple tasks such as opening doors, carrying small packages, and helping with chairs? These "gentlemanly traits" evolved because women were seen as "dainty," less capable physically. And because of the constraints placed upon them by fashion, indeed they were.
The lady will have...
