As a kid growing up surfing in Southern California, Thomas Montgomery wasn’t sure what he wanted to be when he grew up. After installing garage doors for a year in a family business, he knew that swinging a hammer was not his goal in life, so he decided to swing a sword instead.
He became a knight.

The Green Knight, Bryan Ludens riding Hobie (a Thoroughbred) about to collide with The Black Knight, Tom Montgomery astride Nala (a Belgian/Quarter Horse).

He and his wife, Andrea Montgomery, run the Imperial Knights Production Company, a 12 year old touring entertainment company that recreates the thrill of a medieval joust and tournament.
“I love the excitement of jousting,” says Thomas, who performs as the Black Knight. “I love to thrill the crowd.”
The Imperial Knights Production Company is composed of assorted athletes and actors, including some Hollywood stuntmen, who come together for the performances. Shows can involve anywhere from four to more than a dozen knights, squires and ladies.
The company has custom designed shows for all types of venues including Renaissance festivals, county and state fairs, corporate events, school anti-drug shows as well as family nights, birthday parties and TV spots “We can customize a show for any type of venue or event,” Thomas says.
The Knights’ school performances not only bring history to life for the children, but “we teach them about freedom – how they can be anything they want to be in this world if they follow their dreams,” Thomas says.
Tournaments can include games on horseback, jousting, dancing horses, horseback sword-fighting and ground combat, depending on time and content requests.

The company uses authentic Medieval weapons and armor along with colorful heraldry and costuming for each character. When the troupe participates in jousting competitions, a partial or full suit of steel armor is used and can weigh up to 100 pounds.
Thomas got his start working at Medieval Times Dinner Theater in Orange County’s Buena Park. He did not have any horse experience when he began his career as a knight, but with training and lots of practice became an accomplished rider. His sword-fighting skills were helped by studying the art of hand-to-hand combat with prominent swordsmen such as James Dawson and Patrick Lambke.

Enter The Princess
He then spent a year performing in King Arthur’s Tournament at the Excalibur Hotel in Las Vegas. This knight met his princess while he was performing at the Excalibur by night and moonlighting at The World-Famous Lipizzaner Stallion Show during the day.

Lady Andrea and Capriole saluting the audience after their classical dressage exhibition.

Andrea worked with the Lipizzaner show for eight years and was head trainer there for five years. She has studied dressage with many well-known trainers and attends clinics regularly to keep her riding skills honed. She also has studied High School dressage, which includes the “airs above the ground,” as well as exhibition maneuvers such as Spanish walk and trot, circus bows and rears.
They own six horses and board additional horses that are sometimes used in the shows, at their ranch in Norco. Andrea teaches classical dressage to both horse and rider and competes throughout Southern California.
Their horses are of diverse breeds and include a Friesian, an Andalusian cross, a Percheron-Quarter Horse cross, a Thoroughbred and a Missouri Fox Trotter.
“I don’t look for any particular breed. I look for their brain and their sensibility,” Thomas says.
“We like to rescue horses,” he says. “There are sometimes horses that are too much for their riders but, when we give them a job, they fit right into our program.”
In addition to training the horses to participate in jousting sessions, Thomas and Andrea teach aspiring knights and ladies.
Their Knight School is a true night school, taking place on Tuesday and Thursday evenings at the Norco ranch so that working adults can participate.
Students begin their paths to knighthood by learning how to be squires, who assist the knights in preparing their mounts, assembling the weapons and helping the knights to get into their armor.
Aspiring knights can learn on school horses or, in some cases, on their own mounts. All the equipment is provided. It can take anywhere from three months to three years to master the necessary skills, Thomas says.
Accomplished jousters can participate in shows or in jousting tournaments, which are held around the country, sometimes in connection with events such as Renaissance fairs.
Last year, the Imperial Knights took first place in team competition and Thomas took second place at the international jousting tournament, light armor division, in Estes Park, CO. The team won almost $13,000 in prize money.
They will perform on the second and third weekends of this month, August, at the Big Bear City Renaissance Faire, and then on to the Long Peaks Scottish Irish Festival in Colorado for the International Jousting Competition in September.
“When you see the Knights, you are witnessing a timeless tradition done to perfection,” Thomas says. “It’s a fun thing to do.”
Contact the Imperial Knights at 951-898-4764, e-mail imperialknights@sbcglobal.net or visit the web site at www.imperialknights.com.