When where the Middle Ages? What is feudalism?
THE MIDDLE AGES AND FEUDALISM
Many historians associate the beginning of medieval times, or the Middle Ages, with the fall of
the Roman Empire in AD 476. Many years of excess and corruption within the empire, along with
relentless invasions by the barbarian Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Vandals, and Huns, finally took their
toll
When the Roman Empire fell, the ancient age of the Romans and Greeks ended and the Middle
Ages began. By the time the Renaissance began around AD 1500, effectively ending the
medieval period, the world had been introduced to entities such as nations, cities, states,
representative governments, and capitalism. One of the most significant ideas from which such
notions evolved was feudalism
Feudalism
Feudalism shaped medieval society and the overall power structure. It was a political, economic,
and military system based on control of the land. Feudalism was rooted in pledges of loyalty and
mutual support
Two nobles a lord (or suzerain) and a vassal (Often a knight)-pledged support to each other. A
lord controlled al e area of land. A vassal gave an oath of fealty to a lord in which he promised
loyalty and more specific things such as military service. For his part, the lord gave the vassal a
fief or benefice
Another word for tief is feudum-the basis for the word feudalism. This was a fee or gift, usually
in the form of a share of the lord's property. The lord also promised protection from enemies. Law
enforcement was also within the purview of the lord
In many cases, lords were also vassals, and vassals could be lords. The whole system revolved
around the various levels of property accrued and how the land was divided and subdivided. The
bottom of the social ladder consisted of peasants. The peasantry was further divided into
freemen and serfs. Freemen enjoyed the rights of the citizens they were. Serfdom did not
translate to slavery Serfs had rights, but they couldn't leave the land where they were born. On
the other hand, the lord couldn't banish them either
The Focal Point
The nucleus of medieval life was the manor. In the mansion or castle resided the lord, his family,
servants, and others. If the lord called together a court to resolve a legal issue, it would usually
convene in the manor
Surrounding the manor were the homes of the vassals and the peasantry-the village. Peasants
ved simply in rough cottages. Beyond that, farmland and the remainder of the lord's property
fanned out. A farming system was developed to ensure that a parcel of land would not become
totally depleted. The parcel was split into three portions. Each year, one was planted in spring.
one in winter, and one not at all. The following year a different portion would be left fallow
A Workable System
For a time, this system seemed to work. However, there was no centralized legal system or
government. For example, when there was a dispute between two lords, there was no overall
legal code to allow easy solution of the problem. This resulted in warfare between lords-not a
great unifying tool for society

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