Feudalism in England
Encyclopedia
Feudalism
as practiced in the Kingdom of England
, in the traditional sense, is a state of human society which is formally structured and stratified on the basis of land tenure
and the varieties thereof. Society was thus ordered around relationships derived from the holding of land, which landholdings are termed "fiefdoms, fiefs, or fees", which word originates from an ancient common source. These political and military customs existed in medieval Europe, having developed around 700 A.D., flourished up to about the first quarter of the 14th.c. and declined until their legal abolition in England in 1660, with the Tenures Abolition Act
.
in this form. Because feudalism was in its origin a Teutonic
or Gothic system from northern Europe untouched by Roman civilization, it did not exist in ancient Rome, where the nearest equivalent was clientelism
. No classical Latin word therefore exists to signify it, and a new Low-Latin word feodum was invented by mediaeval European scribes to use in their Latinised charters and other writings.
,consisting of military and non-military service. It is important to understand that there was only one absolute "owner" of land in the feudal system, in the person of the king asserting his allodial right. All nobles, knights and other tenants, termed vassal
s, merely "held" land from the king, who was thus at the top of the "feudal pyramid". Such feudal tenures were deemed freehold where of indeterminate duration and hereditable, and non-freehold where they for a fixed term and non-hereditable. Freehold fiefs were however only conditionally heritable, the condition being the payment by an heir of a suitable feudal relief
. Below the king in the feudal pyramid was a tenant-in-chief
(generally in the form of a baron
or knight) who was a vassal of the king, and holding from him in turn was a mesne tenant
(generally a knight, sometimes a baron, including tenants-in-chief in their capacity as holders of other fiefs) who held when sub-enfeoffed
by the tenant-in-chief. Below the mesne tenant further mesne tenants could hold from each other in series. The obligations and corresponding rights between lord and vassal concerning the fief form the basis of the feudal relationship
composed of the two-part act of homage
and oath of fealty
. During homage, the lord and vassal entered a contract in which the vassal promised to fight for the lord at his command, whilst the lord agreed to protect the vassal from external forces, a valuable right in a society without police and with only a rudimentary justice system. Fealty comes from the Latin fidelitas and denotes the fidelity
owed by a vassal to his feudal lord. "Fealty" also refers to an oath which more explicitly reinforces the commitments of the vassal made during homage. Such an oath follows homage. Once the commendation was complete, the lord and vassal were now in a feudal relationship with agreed-upon mutual obligations to one another. The vassal's principal obligation to the lord was the performance of military service. Using whatever equipment the vassal could obtain by virtue of the revenues from the fief, the vassal was responsible to answer to calls to military service on behalf of the lord. This security of military help was the primary reason the lord entered into the feudal relationship. In addition, the vassal had another obligation to his lord, namely attendance at his court, whether manorial, baronial or at the king's court itself in the form of parliament
. This involved the vassal providing "counsel", so that if the lord faced a major decision he would summon all his vassals and hold a council. On the manorial level this might be a fairly mundane matter of agricultural policy, but also included the handing down by the lord of sentences for criminal offences, including capital punishment in some cases. Concerning the king's feudal court, the prototype of parliament
, such deliberation could include the question of declaring war. Depending on the period of time and location, feudal customs and practices varied, see examples of feudalism
.
existed, each effectively a contract with differing rights and duties attached thereto. The main varieties are as follows:
Non-freehold (fixed-term & non-hereditable):
was among the better structured and established in Europe at the time. However, it could be structurally complex, which is illustrated by the example of the feudal barony
of Stafford
as described in a survey of knight's fees made in 1166 and recorded in The Black Book of the Exchequer. This was a roll of parchment, or several such, recording the quantity and tenant of each knight's fee held in capite. It was a record commissioned by the Treasury
as the knight's fee was the primary basis for assessing certain types of taxation, for example feudal aid
.
Feudalism is the exchange of land for military service, thus everything was based on what was called the knight's fee
, which was a fiefdom or estate of land
. A feudal barony
contained several knight's fees, for example the baron Robert of Stafford
held a barony containing 60 knight's fees. Often lords were not so much lords presiding over great estates, but managers of a network of tenants and sub-leases.
Stafford tenants were themselves lords of the manors
they held from him, which is altogether different from their being barons
. Henry d'Oilly, who held 3 fees from Robert of Stafford, also held, as a tenant-in-chief
, over 30 fees elsewhere that had been granted to him directly by the king. Thus while Henry was the vassal of his overlord Robert, Henry was himself a lord of his own manors held in capite
and sub-enfeoffed
many of his manors which he did not keep in demesne
, that is to say under his own management using simple employees. It would also have been possible and not uncommon for a situation where Robert of Stafford was a vassal of Henry elsewhere, creating the condition of mutual lordship/vassalage between the two. These complex relationships invariably created loyalty problems through conflicts of interests. To resolve this the concept of a liege lord
existed, which meant that the vassal was loyal to his liege lord above all others, except the king himself, no matter what. However, even this sometimes broke down when a vassal would pledge himself to more than one liege lord.
From the perspective of the smallest land holder, multiple networks of tenancy were layered on the same small plot of land. A chronicle of the time says "different lordships lay on the land in different respects". Each tenant laid claim to a certain aspect of the service from the land.
Feudalism in England also brought around massive social change and in the true sense of the phrase it made the rich richer and the poor poorer.
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
as practiced in the Kingdom of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
, in the traditional sense, is a state of human society which is formally structured and stratified on the basis of land tenure
Feudal land tenure
Under the English feudal system several different forms of land tenure existed, each effectively a contract with differing rights and duties attached thereto. Such tenures could be either free-hold, signifying that they were hereditable or perpetual, or non-free where the tenancy terminated on the...
and the varieties thereof. Society was thus ordered around relationships derived from the holding of land, which landholdings are termed "fiefdoms, fiefs, or fees", which word originates from an ancient common source. These political and military customs existed in medieval Europe, having developed around 700 A.D., flourished up to about the first quarter of the 14th.c. and declined until their legal abolition in England in 1660, with the Tenures Abolition Act
Tenures Abolition Act 1660
The Tenures Abolition Act 1660 was an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of England passed in 1660. The long title of the Act was An act for taking away the Court of Wards and liveries, and tenures in capite, and by knights-service, and purveyance, and for settling a revenue upon his Majesty in...
.
Etymology
The term "fee" of "fief" which is the basic root of the word "feudal" derived from an ancient Gothic source faihu signifying simply "property" which in its most basic sense was "cattle". This can be compared to the very ancient classical Latin word pecunia, which means both cattle and money. Many primitive societies in existence today demonstrate the ancient use of cattle as financial currency, for example the Masai of Kenya, who still pay dowriesDowry
A dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
in this form. Because feudalism was in its origin a Teutonic
Teutonic
Teutonic or Teuton may refer to:*the Teutons* Germanic peoples , see Theodiscus**Teutonic Mythology** Germanic languages * Having qualities related to Modern Germans*Nordic race*Furor Teutonicus...
or Gothic system from northern Europe untouched by Roman civilization, it did not exist in ancient Rome, where the nearest equivalent was clientelism
Clientelism
Clientelism is a term used to describe a political system at the heart of which is an assyemtric relationship between groups of political actors described as patrons and clients...
. No classical Latin word therefore exists to signify it, and a new Low-Latin word feodum was invented by mediaeval European scribes to use in their Latinised charters and other writings.
Classic English feudalism
There were many varieties of feudal land tenureFeudal land tenure
Under the English feudal system several different forms of land tenure existed, each effectively a contract with differing rights and duties attached thereto. Such tenures could be either free-hold, signifying that they were hereditable or perpetual, or non-free where the tenancy terminated on the...
,consisting of military and non-military service. It is important to understand that there was only one absolute "owner" of land in the feudal system, in the person of the king asserting his allodial right. All nobles, knights and other tenants, termed vassal
Vassal
A vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...
s, merely "held" land from the king, who was thus at the top of the "feudal pyramid". Such feudal tenures were deemed freehold where of indeterminate duration and hereditable, and non-freehold where they for a fixed term and non-hereditable. Freehold fiefs were however only conditionally heritable, the condition being the payment by an heir of a suitable feudal relief
Feudal relief
Feudal Relief was a one-off "fine" or form of taxation payable to an overlord by the heir of a feudal tenant to licence him to take possession of his fief, i.e. an estate-in-land, by inheritance...
. Below the king in the feudal pyramid was a tenant-in-chief
Tenant-in-chief
In medieval and early modern European society the term tenant-in-chief, sometimes vassal-in-chief, denoted the nobles who held their lands as tenants directly from king or territorial prince to whom they did homage, as opposed to holding them from another nobleman or senior member of the clergy....
(generally in the form of a baron
English feudal barony
In England, a feudal barony or barony by tenure was a form of Feudal land tenure, namely per baroniam under which the land-holder owed the service of being one of the king's barons. It must be distinguished from a barony, also feudal, but which existed within a county palatine, such as the Barony...
or knight) who was a vassal of the king, and holding from him in turn was a mesne tenant
Mesne
Mesne , middle or intermediate, an adjective used in several legal phrases....
(generally a knight, sometimes a baron, including tenants-in-chief in their capacity as holders of other fiefs) who held when sub-enfeoffed
Subinfeudation
In English law, subinfeudation is the practice by which tenants, holding land under the king or other superior lord, carved out new and distinct tenures in their turn by sub-letting or alienating a part of their lands....
by the tenant-in-chief. Below the mesne tenant further mesne tenants could hold from each other in series. The obligations and corresponding rights between lord and vassal concerning the fief form the basis of the feudal relationship
Vassalage
Before a lord could grant land (a fief) to a tenant, he had to make that person a vassal. This was done at a formal and symbolic ceremony called a commendation ceremonyCommendation ceremony
A commendation ceremony is a formal ceremony that evolved during the Early Medieval period to create a bond between a lord and his fighting man, called his vassal . The first recorded ceremony of commendatio was in 7th century France, but the relationship of vassalage was older, and predated even...
composed of the two-part act of homage
Homage (medieval)
Homage in the Middle Ages was the ceremony in which a feudal tenant or vassal pledged reverence and submission to his feudal lord, receiving in exchange the symbolic title to his new position . It was a symbolic acknowledgment to the lord that the vassal was, literally, his man . The oath known as...
and oath of fealty
Fealty
An oath of fealty, from the Latin fidelitas , is a pledge of allegiance of one person to another. Typically the oath is made upon a religious object such as a Bible or saint's relic, often contained within an altar, thus binding the oath-taker before God.In medieval Europe, fealty was sworn between...
. During homage, the lord and vassal entered a contract in which the vassal promised to fight for the lord at his command, whilst the lord agreed to protect the vassal from external forces, a valuable right in a society without police and with only a rudimentary justice system. Fealty comes from the Latin fidelitas and denotes the fidelity
Fidelity
"Fidelity" is the quality of being faithful or loyal. Its original meaning regarded duty to a lord or a king, in a broader sense than the related concept of fealty. Both derive from the Latin word fidēlis, meaning "faithful or loyal"....
owed by a vassal to his feudal lord. "Fealty" also refers to an oath which more explicitly reinforces the commitments of the vassal made during homage. Such an oath follows homage. Once the commendation was complete, the lord and vassal were now in a feudal relationship with agreed-upon mutual obligations to one another. The vassal's principal obligation to the lord was the performance of military service. Using whatever equipment the vassal could obtain by virtue of the revenues from the fief, the vassal was responsible to answer to calls to military service on behalf of the lord. This security of military help was the primary reason the lord entered into the feudal relationship. In addition, the vassal had another obligation to his lord, namely attendance at his court, whether manorial, baronial or at the king's court itself in the form of parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
. This involved the vassal providing "counsel", so that if the lord faced a major decision he would summon all his vassals and hold a council. On the manorial level this might be a fairly mundane matter of agricultural policy, but also included the handing down by the lord of sentences for criminal offences, including capital punishment in some cases. Concerning the king's feudal court, the prototype of parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
, such deliberation could include the question of declaring war. Depending on the period of time and location, feudal customs and practices varied, see examples of feudalism
Examples of feudalism
Examples of feudalism are helpful to fully understand feudalism and feudal society. Feudalism was practiced in many different ways, depending on location and time period, thus a high-level encompassing conceptual definition does not always provide a reader with the intimate understanding that...
.
Varieties of feudal tenure
Under the feudal system several different forms of land tenureLand tenure
Land tenure is the name given, particularly in common law systems, to the legal regime in which land is owned by an individual, who is said to "hold" the land . The sovereign monarch, known as The Crown, held land in its own right. All private owners are either its tenants or sub-tenants...
existed, each effectively a contract with differing rights and duties attached thereto. The main varieties are as follows:
Military tenure
Freehold (indeterminate & hereditable):- by baronyEnglish feudal baronyIn England, a feudal barony or barony by tenure was a form of Feudal land tenure, namely per baroniam under which the land-holder owed the service of being one of the king's barons. It must be distinguished from a barony, also feudal, but which existed within a county palatine, such as the Barony...
(per baroniam). Such tenure constituted the holder a feudal baronEnglish feudal baronyIn England, a feudal barony or barony by tenure was a form of Feudal land tenure, namely per baroniam under which the land-holder owed the service of being one of the king's barons. It must be distinguished from a barony, also feudal, but which existed within a county palatine, such as the Barony...
, and was the highest degree of tenure. It imposed duties of military service. In time barons were differentiated between greater and lessor barons, with only greater barons being guaranteed attendance at parliamentParliamentA parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
. All such holders were necessarily tenants-in-chief. - by knight-serviceKnight-serviceKnight-service was a form of Feudal land tenure under which a knight held a fief or estate of land termed a knight's fee from an overlord conditional on him as tenant performing military service for his overlord....
. This was a tenure ranking below barony, and was likewise for military service, of a lesser extent. It could be held in capiteTenant-in-chiefIn medieval and early modern European society the term tenant-in-chief, sometimes vassal-in-chief, denoted the nobles who held their lands as tenants directly from king or territorial prince to whom they did homage, as opposed to holding them from another nobleman or senior member of the clergy....
from the king or as a mesneMesneMesne , middle or intermediate, an adjective used in several legal phrases....
tenancy from a tenant-in-chief. - by castle-guardCastle-guardCastle-guard was an arrangement under the feudal system, by which the duty of finding knights to guard royal castles was imposed on certain manors, knight's fees or baronies. The greater barons provided for the guard of their castles by exacting a similar duty from their sub-enfeoffedknights...
. This was a form of military service which involved guarding a nearby castle for a specified number of days per year. - by scutageScutageThe form of taxation known as scutage, in the law of England under the feudal system, allowed a knight to "buy out" of the military service due to the Crown as a holder of a knight's fee held under the feudal land tenure of knight-service. Its name derived from shield...
where the military service obligations had been commuted, or replaced, by money payments. Common during the decline of the feudal era and symbolic of the change from tenure by personal service to tenure for money rent. As such tenure had at one time been military, the jurist Henry de BractonHenry de BractonHenry of Bracton, also Henry de Bracton, also Henrici Bracton, or Henry Bratton also Henry Bretton was an English jurist....
(d.1268) deemed it to be still categorised as a military tenure.
Non-military tenure
Freehold (indeterminate & hereditable):- by serjeantySerjeantyUnder the feudal system in late and high medieval England, tenure by serjeanty was a form of land-holding in return for some specified service, ranking between tenure by knight-service and tenure in socage...
. Such tenure was in return for acting as a servant to the king, in a non-military capacity. Service in a ceremonial form is termed “grand serjeanty” whilst that of a more functional or menial nature is termed “petty sergeanty”. - by frankalmoinageFrankalmoinFrankalmoin or frankalmoigne was one of the feudal land tenures in feudal England. Its literal meaning is "free pity/mercy", from Norman French fraunch aumoyne, “free alms”, from Late Latin eleemosyna, from Greek ἐλεημοσύνη , "pity, alms", from ἐλεήμων "merciful", from ἔλεος , "pity"...
, generally a tenure restricted to clerics.
Non-freehold (fixed-term & non-hereditable):
- by copyholdCopyholdAt its origin in medieval England, copyhold tenure was tenure of land according to the custom of the manor, the "title deeds" being a copy of the record of the manorial court....
, where the duties and rights were tailored to the requirements of the lord of the manorLord of the ManorThe Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
and a copy of the terms agreed was entered on the roll of the manorial court as a record of such non-standard terms. - by socageSocageSocage was one of the feudal duties and hence land tenure forms in the feudal system. A farmer, for example, held the land in exchange for a clearly defined, fixed payment to be made at specified intervals to his feudal lord, who in turn had his own feudal obligations, to the farmer and to the Crown...
. This was the lowest form of tenure, involving payment in produce or in money.
Example: 12th century England
Feudalism in 12th century EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
was among the better structured and established in Europe at the time. However, it could be structurally complex, which is illustrated by the example of the feudal barony
English feudal barony
In England, a feudal barony or barony by tenure was a form of Feudal land tenure, namely per baroniam under which the land-holder owed the service of being one of the king's barons. It must be distinguished from a barony, also feudal, but which existed within a county palatine, such as the Barony...
of Stafford
Stafford
Stafford is the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies approximately north of Wolverhampton and south of Stoke-on-Trent, adjacent to the M6 motorway Junction 13 to Junction 14...
as described in a survey of knight's fees made in 1166 and recorded in The Black Book of the Exchequer. This was a roll of parchment, or several such, recording the quantity and tenant of each knight's fee held in capite. It was a record commissioned by the Treasury
Treasury
A treasury is either*A government department related to finance and taxation.*A place where currency or precious items is/are kept....
as the knight's fee was the primary basis for assessing certain types of taxation, for example feudal aid
Feudal aid
Feudal aid, or just plain aid is the legal term for one of the financial duties required of a tenant or vassal to his lord. Variations on the feudal aid were collected in England, France, Germany and Italy during the Middle Ages, although the exact circumstances varied.-Origin:The term originated...
.
Feudalism is the exchange of land for military service, thus everything was based on what was called the knight's fee
Knight's fee
In feudal Anglo-Norman England and Ireland, a knight's fee was a measure of a unit of land deemed sufficient from which a knight could derive not only sustenance for himself and his esquires, but also the means to furnish himself and his equipage with horses and armour to fight for his overlord in...
, which was a fiefdom or estate of land
Estate (law)
An estate is the net worth of a person at any point in time. It is the sum of a person's assets - legal rights, interests and entitlements to property of any kind - less all liabilities at that time. The issue is of special legal significance on a question of bankruptcy and death of the person...
. A feudal barony
English feudal barony
In England, a feudal barony or barony by tenure was a form of Feudal land tenure, namely per baroniam under which the land-holder owed the service of being one of the king's barons. It must be distinguished from a barony, also feudal, but which existed within a county palatine, such as the Barony...
contained several knight's fees, for example the baron Robert of Stafford
Robert de Stafford
Robert de Stafford was a Norman nobleman, the builder of Stafford Castle in England. He may or may not be the same as Robert de Tosny Lord of Belvoir or of the Robert de Tosny who was son of Raoul II of Tosny ; primary evidence is lacking to determine his parentage, according to Cawley...
held a barony containing 60 knight's fees. Often lords were not so much lords presiding over great estates, but managers of a network of tenants and sub-leases.
Stafford tenants were themselves lords of the manors
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
they held from him, which is altogether different from their being barons
English feudal barony
In England, a feudal barony or barony by tenure was a form of Feudal land tenure, namely per baroniam under which the land-holder owed the service of being one of the king's barons. It must be distinguished from a barony, also feudal, but which existed within a county palatine, such as the Barony...
. Henry d'Oilly, who held 3 fees from Robert of Stafford, also held, as a tenant-in-chief
Tenant-in-chief
In medieval and early modern European society the term tenant-in-chief, sometimes vassal-in-chief, denoted the nobles who held their lands as tenants directly from king or territorial prince to whom they did homage, as opposed to holding them from another nobleman or senior member of the clergy....
, over 30 fees elsewhere that had been granted to him directly by the king. Thus while Henry was the vassal of his overlord Robert, Henry was himself a lord of his own manors held in capite
Tenant-in-chief
In medieval and early modern European society the term tenant-in-chief, sometimes vassal-in-chief, denoted the nobles who held their lands as tenants directly from king or territorial prince to whom they did homage, as opposed to holding them from another nobleman or senior member of the clergy....
and sub-enfeoffed
Subinfeudation
In English law, subinfeudation is the practice by which tenants, holding land under the king or other superior lord, carved out new and distinct tenures in their turn by sub-letting or alienating a part of their lands....
many of his manors which he did not keep in demesne
Demesne
In the feudal system the demesne was all the land, not necessarily all contiguous to the manor house, which was retained by a lord of the manor for his own use and support, under his own management, as distinguished from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants...
, that is to say under his own management using simple employees. It would also have been possible and not uncommon for a situation where Robert of Stafford was a vassal of Henry elsewhere, creating the condition of mutual lordship/vassalage between the two. These complex relationships invariably created loyalty problems through conflicts of interests. To resolve this the concept of a liege lord
Liege Lord
Liege Lord was an American speed/power metal band, active in the 1980s and considered to be a pioneer of the genre. It was formed by Matt Vinci, Anthony Truglio and Frank Cortese....
existed, which meant that the vassal was loyal to his liege lord above all others, except the king himself, no matter what. However, even this sometimes broke down when a vassal would pledge himself to more than one liege lord.
From the perspective of the smallest land holder, multiple networks of tenancy were layered on the same small plot of land. A chronicle of the time says "different lordships lay on the land in different respects". Each tenant laid claim to a certain aspect of the service from the land.
Feudalism in England also brought around massive social change and in the true sense of the phrase it made the rich richer and the poor poorer.
See also
- Bastard feudalismBastard feudalismBastard feudalism is a term that has been used to describe feudalism in the Late Middle Ages, primarily in England. Its main characteristic is military, political, legal, or domestic service in return for money, office, and/or influence...
- Cestui que
- Charter of LibertiesCharter of LibertiesThe Charter of Liberties, also called the Coronation Charter, was a written proclamation by Henry I of England, issued upon his accession to the throne in 1100. It sought to bind the King to certain laws regarding the treatment of church officials and nobles...
- ChivalryChivalryChivalry is a term related to the medieval institution of knighthood which has an aristocratic military origin of individual training and service to others. Chivalry was also the term used to refer to a group of mounted men-at-arms as well as to martial valour...
- Concordat of WormsConcordat of WormsThe Concordat of Worms, sometimes called the Pactum Calixtinum by papal historians, was an agreement between Pope Calixtus II and Holy Roman Emperor Henry V on September 23, 1122 near the city of Worms...
- English Feudal Baronies
- GentryGentryGentry denotes "well-born and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past....
- Landed propertyLanded propertyLanded property or landed estates is a real estate term that usually refers to a property that generates income for the owner without the owner having to do the actual work of the estate. In Europe, agrarian landed property typically consisted of a manor, several tenant farms, and some privileged...
- MajoratMajoratMajorat is the right of succession to property according to age . A majorat would be inherited by the oldest son, or if there was no son, the nearest relative. This law existed in some of the European countries and was designed to prevent the distribution of wealthy estates between many members of...
- ManorialismManorialismManorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
- Medieval demographyMedieval demographyThis article discusses human demography in Europe during the Middle Ages, including population trends and movements. Demographic changes helped to shape and define the Middle Ages...
- Middle AgesMiddle AgesThe Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
- Nulle terre sans seigneurNulle terre sans seigneurIn feudal law, Nulle terre sans seigneur is the principle that one provides services to the sovereign for the right to receive land from the sovereign....
- Quia EmptoresQuia EmptoresQuia Emptores of 1290 was a statute passed by Edward I of England that prevented tenants from alienating their lands to others by subinfeudation, instead requiring all tenants wishing to alienate their land to do so by substitution...
- Sark
- SerfdomSerfdomSerfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
- Statutes of MortmainStatutes of MortmainThe Statutes of Mortmain were two enactments, in 1279 and 1290, by King Edward I of England aimed at preserving the kingdom's revenues by preventing land from passing into the possession of the Church. In Medieval England, feudal estates generated taxes upon the inheritance or granting of the estate...
- VassalVassalA vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...
- Knights
- Medieval warfareMedieval warfareMedieval warfare is the warfare of the Middle Ages. In Europe, technological, cultural, and social developments had forced a dramatic transformation in the character of warfare from antiquity, changing military tactics and the role of cavalry and artillery...
- FengjianFengjianFēngjiàn is the political ideology of the Zhou Dynasty of ancient China. Fengjian is a "decentralized system of government," comparable to European feudalism, though recent scholarship has suggested that fengjian lacks some of the fundamental aspects of feudalism.-Ranks:The sizes of troops and...
- Indian feudalismIndian feudalismFeudalism was a social system of medieval European origin, according to which the nobility held lands from the Crown in exchange for military service, and vassals were in turn tenants of the nobles, while the peasants were obliged to live on their lord's land and give him homage, labor, and a...
Further reading
- Barlow, F. The Feudal Kingdom of England 1042-1216, London, 4th. ed., 1988
- Round, J. Horace, Feudal England, London, 1909
External links
- "Feudalism", by Elizabeth A. R. BrownElizabeth A. R. BrownElizabeth Atkinson Rash Brown born in Louisville, Ky., is a Professor Emerita of History at Brooklyn College, of the City University of New York, a scholar and published author, known for her writings on Feudalism. She received her B.A. from Swarthmore College and and A.M. and PhD. from Radcliffe...
. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. - "Feudalism?", by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.
- Medieval Feudalism, by Carl StephensonCarl Stephenson (historian)Carl Stephenson at the time of his death was regarded as one of America's foremost medieval scholars. He was a student of Charles Gross and Charles Homer Haskins at Harvard University , later studied with Henri Pirenne at the University of Ghent and had close scholarly ties with other well known...
. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism. - "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay", by Robert Harbison, 1996, Western Kentucky UniversityWestern Kentucky UniversityWestern Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA. It was formally founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier....
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