History Main / SelfProclaimedKnight

* In ''Film/SevenSamurai'', Kikuchiyo (played by Toshiro Mifune) is the samurai equivalent. In caste-based feudal Japan, one has to be born into the samurai class, and his manners and [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech mid-film epic rant]] make it clear that he was born a peasant. At one point he produces a family history scroll to prove to the other samurai that he is from a noble family, but it is obviously fake, bought, and/or stolen: according to its timeline, he would be thirteen years old, and 'Kikuchiyo' is a girl's name. It would be like a male European peasant proclaiming himself "Sir Susan".

* ''Manga/{{Yaiba}}'' has Frederick Luther III, who claims to be a knight. His [[CombatPragmatist behaviour in battle]] proves otherwise.

* ''Manga/FireForce'': Arthur Boyle is remarkably similar to Don Quixote in that he is severely delusional and thinks that he is a knight. He calls his LaserBlade Excalibur, refers to any girls he meets as princesses, calls the Special Fire Cathedral 8 his castle, etc.

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]

* In the 1954 film, ''Film/TheBlackKnight'', John, a blacksmith and swordsmith, is tutored at [[Myth/ArthurianLegend Camelot]]. As a commoner, he can't hope to win the hand of Lady Linet, daughter of the Earl of Yeoniland, so he creates a secret alternate identity as the Black Knight.

* Alanna in the first half of ''Literature/SongOfTheLioness'' pretends to be a boy named Alan so that she can train for knighthood. After she earns her shield the lie becomes known and she leaves in search of adventure. Her knighthood is recognized, though, since one's worth to be a knight is ''really'' decided by a minor EldritchAbomination that approves of her.

* ''Literature/DonQuixote de la Mancha'' who reads novels about Chivalry and sets out to revive chivalry as a self-proclaimed knight. This example is PlayedForLaughs (before the onset of CerebusSyndrome) as in the time ''Don Quixote'' takes place, wandering knights no longer exist.
** Bear in mind, however, that Don Quixote's status as a member of the landed gentry is not in question (he's a ''hidalgo''); it's the whole "knight-in-shining-armor" thing that qualifies him.
** To elaborate: Don Quixote is truly GenreSavvy at ChivalricRomance books. Chapter III shows him aware of this trope and he tries to defy it when he insists to [[ThePresentsWereNeverFromSanta an innkeeper (who he thinks is a castellan)]] [[{{Knighting}} to knight him after he has watched his armor in the castle chapel -- that is, in the stable of the inn]]. So Literature/DonQuixote believes he has averted this trope. However, ''Las partidas de Alfonso el Sabio'', the Spanish chivalry code, states that a man cannot be knighted if he is too poor or if he is knighted as a joke… so, Don Quixote, being an ImpoverishedPatrician [[{{Irony}} trying to defy this trope, only has enforced it]].
* In EdmundSpenser's ''Literature/TheFaerieQueene'', Braggadocio. A MilesGloriosus whose name is the origin of the noun.

* ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger'' and ''Series/PowerRangersSamurai'' use samurai instead of knights, but the situation's the same. Where the Rangers came from long lineages of samurai, the SixthRanger is an old friend of the Red Ranger's; teaching himself to fight and building his own gear to fulfill a promise to help his buddy. The Rangers are reluctant to involve him in the fighting at first, but they soon accept his help.

* The ''Series/{{House}}'' episode "Knight Fall" starts in a medieval reenactment community. A knight collapses in battle. While in the hospital William tells how he tries to live by the knight's code of honor.

* ''TabletopGame/ArsMagica'' has, in the ''A Medieval Tapestry'' sourcebook, a sample character named Gontrond, a former lowly foot soldier who used his mustering-out pay to acquire a horse, armor, and a shield with a red lion on it - and essentially became a knight without actually ''being'' a knight. He doesn't actively ''call'' himself a knight, but other peasants still treat him like one, and he rather enjoys it. But without a lord to serve, he's in more than a little trouble...

* Sterkenburg Cranach in the ''Arland'' trilogy of the ''VideoGame/AtelierSeries''. He ''was'' an actual knight in ''VideoGame/AtelierRorona'', but between that game and ''VideoGame/AtelierTotori'', Arland has changed from a monarchy into a Republic, and disbanded the knights. He travelled the lands trying to find the disappeared former king, while still calling himself a knight. He continues this in ''VideoGame/AtelierMeruru''.

* Fernando from ''VideoGame/{{Paladins}}'' became one after assuming the identity of a knight whom he once served. His false knighthood is his closest kept secret. Despite having no real combat training, he is a surprisingly effective fighter with the courage to match.

A character wishes to become a knight but cannot, either because of gender, social class, or some other limitation. Thus they either lie about being a knight, or set out to become one in secret, often using a helmet to conceal their true identity. The character's motivation for becoming a knight can vary: sometimes they seek to prove themselves, sometimes they wish to escape another fate, or perhaps they aspire to the ideal and romance of becoming a KnightInShiningArmor or KnightErrant. Often will be known by a descriptive title like "BlackKnight" or similar, or may be using a suitably noble sounding alias. Generally the deceit can last a good while, whether in war or TheTourney.

The knight's identity may either be revealed, normally alongside AnAesop about prejudice, or remain a mystery and become some sort of legend that inspires the people. May also involve the character actually being knighted for real at the end for their heroism.

* Gladion in ''Fanfic/InfinityTrainKnightOfTheOrangeLily'' sees himself as a knight on a grand quest to protect his little sister from the horrors of Nihilego. In fact, it was him trying to prove he ''is'' a knight is what gets him onto the Infinity Train and he makes it his quest to slay the Apex.

** James Eckert, the titular DragonKnight is one of these, claiming to be a Baron from America. However, his lack of martial capabilities makes a few wonder about it. However, the fact that he's also a magician, and thus a MagicKnight, in addition to his ability to turn himself into a dragon, at least make those who initially doubt his capabilities as a knight to accept the fact that he can't be a Master at both a Knight and a Mage at the same time.

** Ser Osmund Kettleblack, claims he was knighted by "Ser Robert... Stone," which is about as generic and untraceable a name as MrSmith. Jaime, who Kettleblack is speaking to, suspects it may be a LineOfSightName, putting together the name of the dead king Robert, (who passed away a year or two before this conversation) and a look at the castle wall (although "Stone" is also the surname shared by all bastards of nobility born in The Vale, so it is at least moderately common). Facing such a ConvenientlyUnverifiableCoverStory, Jaime more or less has to shrug and reassure himself by saying "Well, we know for sure that the guy was a mercenary, so at least he's gotta know how to handle himself in a fight."

** To elaborate: Don Quixote is truly GenreSavvy at ChivalricRomance books. Chapter III shows him aware of this trope and he tries to defy it when he insists to [[ThePresentsWereNeverFromSanta an innkeeper (who he thinks is a castellan)]] [[{{Knighting}} to knight him after he has watched his armor in the castle chapel -- that is, in the stable of the inn]]. So Literature/DonQuixote believes he has averted this trope. However, ''Las partidas de Alfonso el Sabio'', the spanish chivalry code, states that a man cannot be knighted if he is too poor or if he is knighted as a joke… so, Don Quixote, being an ImpoverishedPatrician [[{{Irony}} trying to defy this trope, only has enforced it]].

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': The Hound is an inversion of this trope. He's totally eligible to be a knight, but isn't because he doesn't want to. He views the entire institution of Knighthood to be deeply hypocritical because they claim to have lofty ideals yet monsters like his brother are knighted without issue.
* ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger'' and ''Series/PowerRangersSamurai'' use samurai instead of knights, but the situation's the same. Where the Rangers came from long lineages of samurai, the SixthRanger is an old friend of the Red Ranger's; teaching himself to fight and building his own gear to fill a promise to help his buddy. The Rangers are reluctant to involve him in the fighting at first, but they soon accept his help.
* Lancelot in ''{{Series/Merlin 2008}}''. He isn't a noble, so he can't become a knight, but lies about it to enter the tournament. Uther finds out and only spares his life because he believes Lancelot killed the griffin. Later, Arthur knights him for real. Gwaine zig zags the trope: He is a noble but does not reveal that, so he can't be a knight and eventually gets exiled after trying to stop a couple of guys impersonating knights with magic (further examples of the trope). Later, he gets knighted like Lancelot did.

* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'', the Kingdom of Bretonnia is a feudal society that places great religious importance on knighthood and a chivalric code, but by law only pure-blooded noblemen can become knights. Despite this, its not uncommon for women to play SweetPollyOliver by donning a full suit of armor and presenting themselves as young [[RiteOfPassage knights errant]] out to prove themselves. According to some lore, major battles are known to result in at least one knight being outed as a woman after dying or sustaining injury; an embarrassing OpenSecret that is typically swept under the rug to avoid scandal.

** Bear in mind, however, that Don Quixote's status as a member of the landed gentry is not in question (he's an ''hidalgo''); it's the whole "knight-in-shining-armor" thing that qualifies him.

* Sterkenburg Cranach in the ''Arland'' trilogy of the ''VideoGame/{{Atelier}}'' series. He ''was'' an actual knight in ''VideoGame/AtelierRorona'', but between that game and ''VideoGame/AtelierTotori'', Arland has changed from monarchy into a Republic, and disbanded the knights. He travelled the lands trying to find the disappeared former king, while keep calling himself a knight. He continues this in ''VideoGame/AtelierMeruru''.

[[folder:Anime And Manga]]

* Leopold Scorpos from ''LightNovel/ScrappedPrincess'' rides around the land like a KnightErrant, despite not technically having been knighted (which he also strives to be).

[[folder:Film]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E21KingsTide King's Tide]]" reveals that [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEmperorBelos Philip/Belos]] expects to be made "Witch Hunter General", similar to self-proclaimed "Witchfinder General" [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Hopkins Matthew Hopkins]] and essentially a position on the same level of Postmaster General or Attorney General in the British colonies, for his actions in the Isles as part of his GloryHound nature after he returns post-Day of Unity. His correction of Luz when she gets it wrong implies that he's wanted to be called that for a ''while''.

** Ser Osmund Kettleblack, claims he was knighted by "Ser Robert... Stone," which is about as generic and untraceable a name as MrSmith. Jaime, who Kettleblack is speaking to, suspects it may be a LineOfSightName, putting together the name of the dead king Robert, (who passed away a year or two before this conversation) and a look at the castle wall. Facing such a ConvenientlyUnverifiableCoverStory, Jaime more or less has to shrug and reassure himself by saying "Well, we know for sure that the guy was a mercenary, so at least he's gotta know how to handle himself in a fight."