Feudalism Essay

The Origins and Development of European Feudalism The Middle Ages consisted of the time between the fall of Rome in 476 CE and the beginning of the Renaissance in the 14th century. Because of the bubonic plague, and the lack of scientific accomplishments and the rise of great leaders, many have considered the Middle Ages as the “Dark” age. However, it was the period of time a new system, called feudalism, emerged. It resulted from many factors, which include attacks from barbarians, invasions and wars between neighboring kingdoms, the disintegration of Roman institutions, and the decline of numerous empires. Although it brought many consequences, feudalism also brought many benefits and developments to the political, economical, and social

These people are called vassals, and owed service and allegiance to the lord. They ensured their loyalty and obedience by taking an oath, known as the Oath of Fealty, and the ceremony in which they do this is called homage. The lord, in return, provided vassals with protection and pieces of land, called fiefs. Fiefs varied from huge estates and whole provinces to a plot of few acres (Stubbs). Tied to these fiefs were serfs, or peasants who were obligated to farm the land of the lord in exchange for a small plot of land of their own (The Development of Feudalism in Western Europe). They were bound to the lord for life and could own no property. In addition, they needed the lord’s permission to marry and to leave the land (Ross). However, they did have some rights, and these include that they were not required to fight and were still provided protection by the lord (Ross). And although even some vassals, called barons, held their fiefs directly from the crown and were tenants in chief (Stubbs), not all vassals received fiefs. These vassals instead lived at their lord’s court to serve as his household knights. Furthermore, other than providing military services, some vassals were also required to accompany the lord at his court, help administrate justice, and contribute money if needed (Ross). Additionally, lords lived on manors, and these became the economic and social units of life in the early Middle Ages (Ross). They were made up of manor houses, one or more villages, and several thousand acres of land. Furthermore, the lords themselves were vassals under some greater lord and bound themselves to bring all their own vassals to serve him (Harding). This then created a pyramid of loyalty, in which the king of the land was at the top, then under him were his vassals, or the nobles, and under