] ] Yes, Sir William Lucas was a knight.

] Marks - most knights were knights bachelor (or perhaps knights banneret, if that type still existed). That means they were simply knighted, without belonging to any chivalric order.

Hmm. Is that right? On reading through your links (thanks for that *bows*), there were only references to the various specific orders. Also in my memory (which admittedly might be mega-faulty) of seeing Queen's Birthday and New Year honours lists, all Knighthoods were divided into the various orders, within which people were elevated to the various degrees of knighthood. eg Companion of the Order of the Bath as the 'entry level' Knight in that Order.

Also in the faqs in the urls you provided it was stated that knighthoods only started to be awarded outside the nobility in the 18th century. Would that not mean that the award of a Knighthood was of especial significance in those times? (Or was it just that the King was strapped for cash - cynical Marks!)