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Vocabulary

• Feudalism• vassal • feudal contract• fief• knight• tournament• chivalry• troubadour• manor• serf

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Feudalism and the

Manor Economy

A new political and social system

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Vows

Lord (King)

Nobles

Peasants

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Emergence of Feudalism

• People needed protection for themselves, their homes, and their land.

• Feudalism is a loosely organized system of rule in which powerful local lords divided their land among lesser lords or vassals.

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Mutual Obligations

• Feudal contract – exchange of pledges between lords and vassals.

• Lord granted vassal a fief or estate– Few acres to hundreds of square miles– Included peasants to work the land– Included any towns in area

• Vassal agreed to be loyal to Lord– 40 days of military service– Provide payments to Lord

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Structured SocietyKings & QueensThe greatest lords of Europe and all nobles and knights were their vassals.

Nobles were vassals of kings and queens. Many were also lords of lower ranking nobles and Knights

Knights served their noble lords in exchange for their land.

Peasants owned no land, so they were not part of the feudal system, But many worked on land owned by nobles and knights.

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The World of Nobles

• Warfare was a way of life• Most trained from

boyhood to be a knight – or mounted warrior

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Castles

• Strongholds of powerful lords• Included:– Keep (wooden tower) surrounded by a fence– Moat (water filled drench)

• Gradually became larger and grander– Walls built of stone

• Wars often centered on seizing castles

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Noblewomen

• Lady of the Manor– Supervised vassals– Managed the household– Oversaw estate

• Women given land as a dowry – to be given to her husband

• Arranged marriage

• Before marriage, taught to spin, weave and manage household. – Some learned to read and write

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Chivalry

• Code of conduct for Knights• Required to be brave, loyal,

and true to their word.• Required to be fair in war– No to attack if opponent wasn’t

ready• Place women on a high

pedestal– Called for women to be

protected and cherished

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Chivalry

• Troubadours – wondering poets– Praised the beauty,

perfection and wit of women

• Ideas of chivalry shaped western ideas of romantic love

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Peasants and Manor Life

• Manor was the center of medieval economic life.

• Most peasants were serfs – bound to the land.– They were not free– Could not leave the manor

without permission

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Mutual Obligations

• Peasant’s had to farm the Lord’s land several days per week– Repaired roads, bridges, and

fences• Paid fees:

– Marriage, inheritance, and use of mill, etc.

– Christmas and Easter other fees due

• Money didn’t exist – barter – Grain, honey, eggs, …….

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Mutual Obligations

• In return for lifetime of labor:– Right to farm a few acres

for themselves– Protection – Couldn’t be forced off the

land• Guaranteed food, housing

and land.

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Homework Questions

• Describe three features of feudal society.• What obligations did lords and vassals have

under the feudal system?• How did the code of chivalry affect medieval

ideas about women?• What responsibilities did the peasant have

toward the lord of a manor and Lord to the peasants?