eleven o'clock
Supper was now served , and the young knights were well pleased with the entertainment provided for them . It was the principal meal of the day . Their fast was broken by a glass of wine , a manchet of bread , and fruit soon after rising . At eleven o'clock they sat down to a more substantial meal ; but in that climate the heat was at that hour considerable , and as there were duties to be performed , there was no sitting long at table . At supper the day 's work was over , their appetite was sharpened by the cool evening breeze , and the meal was hearty and prolonged . After it was concluded , several of the knights brought up from below viols and other instruments of music ; for the ability to accompany the voice with such an instrument was considered an essential part of the education of a knight . For some hours the songs and romances , so popular at the time , were sung in the various languages represented on board ; then the knights , one by one , went down to their sleeping places , until only the seven knights of the langue of Auvergne , who were to watch the first night , remained on deck .