"The Children of the Light were founded in FY 1021, during the War of the Hundred years, by Lothair Mantelar, as a priesthood dedicated to proselytizing against Darkfriends. Over the turbulent century that followed, the group evolved from preachers to fighters. At first they only fought as needed to defend themselves while preaching, but as the chaos of the war grew, so did the perceived need for military intervention against Darkfriends. The Children gradually turned from preaching against Darkfriends to actually fighting them, until by approximately FY 1111 the Children of the Light had become a full-fledged military society dedicated to the defeat of the Dark One and the destruction of all Darkfriends." (The Children of the Light)

"The organization of the Children has some similarities to that of the Aes Sedai. Each [b]society[/b] is controlled by one high-ranking individuals; each owes allegiance to no nation, and is therefore not limited to one kingdom or region. The central headquarters of the Children, the Fortress of Light, is located in Amadicia's capital city of Amador, but only a small percentage of the total membership of the Children are ever in attendance at the Fortress at any one time. The majority are usually dispersed throughout the Land, constantly traveling in their search for Darkfriends." (tCotL)

"The Children of the Light, or Whitecloaks, always wear a pure white cloak or tabard over their clothes and armor. The left breast of each has a golden sunburst worked into it, a symbol of the Light they are sworn to follow. All officers' cloaks and tabards are further adorned with silver lightning bolts for under-officers, and golden stars or knots in increasing quantity to indicate rank for higher officers." (tCotL)

"The intelligence branch of the Children consists of [b]'eyes-and-ears'[/b] spread throughout all kingdoms and provinces." (tCotL)

"The Children of the Light are always deployed as mounted cavalry, usually in groups of about one hundred; they can move very quickly when necessary. The highest rank among the soldiery is Lord Captain. A Lord Captain usually commands a legion, which is officially two thousand men, though any given legion in the Children may actually be larger, and is often smaller. Below Lord Captain, the officers' ranks progress through Senior Lieutenant, Lieutenant, and Under-lieutenant. Below Under-lieutenant is the Hundredman, one who theoretically commands a hundred soldiers. In practice, the actually numbers varies widely" (tCotL).

"The number of legions within the Children varies at any given time. Not all units are organized into legions, and not all are commanded by a Lord captain. Some of the smaller units may be commanded by a Lieutenant or even an Under-Lieutenant; except when the Hundredman and his men are functioning alone, Lieutenant is usually the lowest rank to hold a position of command, though they usually act as support officers for the higher ranks. A Hundredman ranks below officers but above common soldiers and is usually a common soldier who has risen. When a Lord Captain commands a unit or legion, the Lieutenant chosen as second-in-command is given the temporary rank of Second Captain to differentiate him from any other Lieutenants within the units" (tCotL). "Below the officer and Hudredman are Bannermen, with Second Bannermen below them, then Squadmen and Second Squadmen. Below these are the file leaders and the regular troopers" (tCotL). "Part of the reason the Children of the Light have thrived without serious challenge is the general lack of military organization and discipline throughout the nations of the land" (The Military of the Land).