Feudalism
medievaleurope.mrdonn.org/feudalism.html
In medieval times, there were three major groups of people - the nobility, the
church, and the commoners. Relationships between groups and people were
based on a balance system, a sort of 'you do this for me, and I'll do this for you'
approach.
It's easy to understand the job of the common people. Their job was to do all the
work. But what about the lord of the manor? His job was to defend the common
people. How did he plan on doing this? There were thousands of armed warriors
across Europe who would like his land and who would have no problem killing him
for it.
When the Frankish Empire collapsed, things really got bad for a while. Without a
strong central government to act as a control, people were always fighting. Many
fief owners were former warriors. They thought of terms of battle. If they wanted
more land or more workers, they would start a war with someone.
Around 900 CE, the continued lack of a strong, central government led to a new
form of government called feudalism. Manorialism had to do with the land.
Feudalism had to do with organizing an army quickly. But it went far beyond that.
Feudal obligation was a huge thing.
In the feudal system, everyone was a vassal. The word vassal means servant. At
the top of the secular heap was the local king. Near the bottom were the knights,
the professional fighting men. In the middle were the lords, other nobles, counts
and officials. At the absolute bottom were the peasants.
Vassals could promise their loyalty to more than one person. A vassal might
pledge their support to 10 or 12 lords. Problems arose when lords went to war. For
example, let's imagine you have pledged your support to the lord on either side of
your land. These two lords are both counting on you. Both have given you gifts of
land, weapons, and goods. What happens if these two lords go to war? You have
promised your support to both. You could find yourself quite literally in the middle,
and you would lose no matter who won.
Being a vassal was taken quite seriously. Written agreements were rare, as very
few vassals could read. But a ceremony, called a homage, was held and
witnessed.
It was critical for everyone's survival that the lord had strong vassals. The peasants
were not armed. They had no defense. They had to count on the lord of the manor
to protect them. The lord had to count on his vassals. Everything circled around
violence - preparing, defending, recovering from battle. The people were terrified
and exhausted.
The Catholic Church tried to limit the battles. First, the church issued a decree (a
law) that said no one could fight in church. They they decreed that no one could
fight on a holiday or on a weekend. Then they issued a decree that made fighting
legal on only 80 days a year. Since the Church had no army of its own to enforce
these decrees, private wars continued to ravage Western Europe.
Hierarchy of Rulers
King - The top leader in the land was the king. The king could not control all of the
land by himself, so he divided it up among the Barons. In return, the Barons
pledged their loyalty and soldiers to the king. When a king died, his firstborn son
would inherit the throne. When one family stayed in power for a long time, this was
called a dynasty.
Bishop - The Bishop was the top church leader in the kingdom and managed an
area called a diocese. The Catholic Church was very powerful in most parts of
Medieval Europe and this made the Bishop powerful as well. Not only that, but the
church received a tithe of 10 percent from all the people. This made some Bishops
very rich.
Baron - Barons ruled large areas of land called fiefs. They reported directly to the
king and were very powerful. They divided up their land among Lords who ran
individual manors. Their job was to maintain an army that was at the king's service.
If they did not have an army, sometimes they would pay the king a tax instead.
This tax was called shield money.
Lord - The lords ran the local manors. They also were the knights and could be
called into battle at any moment by their Baron. The lords owned everything on
their land including the peasants, crops, and village.
Peasants or Serfs
Most of the people living in the Middle Ages were peasants. They had a hard rough
life. Some peasants were considered free and could own their own businesses like
carpenters, bakers, and blacksmiths. Others were more like slaves. They owned
nothing and were pledged to their local lord. They worked long days, 6 days a
week, and often barely had enough food to survive.
Fun Facts about the Middle Age Feudal System
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Around 90 percent of the people worked the land as peasants.
Peasants worked hard and died young. Most were dead before they
reached 30 years old.
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The kings believed they were given the right to rule by God. This was called
"divine right".
Lords and Barons swore oaths of homage and fealty to their kings.
The Lord held absolute power over the fief or manor including holding court
and deciding punishments for crimes.