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The Three Levels Of Feudalism In Medieval Europe

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Medieval Europe wasn’t governed like countries or like a kingdom, but through an intriguing system known as feudalism. Feudalism was a profound political system that organized its citizens into a feudal pyramid, allowed for a functioning military by its knights, and for a stable economy. In feudalism, manors were created in a system called manorialism which had its people contribute to the society as a whole by giving obligations to others in order to receive their own benefits. Out of all these contributors, the bakers were the most crucial to the functioning of feudalism as they provided the staple food of the time. Through its economy, military, and manors, feudalism was a system that allowed everyone to contribute to its society, and one of these people were the …show more content…

Feudalism was the political system based upon social obligations, loyalty, and commitments, and one of the basic foundations for holding up this system are the three levels in the feudal pyramid. The three basic levels on the feudal pyramid were one of the ingredients for the basic structure of the system as a whole. In this system, lords, who were right below the king, granted fiefs to the vassals, who, in the form of land and labor, returned political and military services to the king (A. Smith 2). The serfs then gave the manor the labor and work while the lord gave them protection and shelter (Focus on Feudalism 2:26). The knights, who were one of the lower nobles, were hired by the king and they hoped to win a knight’s fee in return for their services (Norman 113). This is much like a contract, and any vassal under the lord is much like insurance for their family. None of this was written law or court but more of social bonds with trust and loyalty (C. Smith 3). These three levels were all dependant upon each other

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Underneath the nobles and barons, there are knights that are trained from the age of 7. In return for service to the nobles and barons, they are given grants of land. The peasants and serfs are on the bottom of the social system, there are peasants who farm the land in return for shelter and protection (history.com). This compares with

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These relationships were called feudalism (Doc. 1). Feudalism and the Church greatly contributed to the social, economic, and political life in Europe in the Middle Ages. “Feudalism was a political, economic, and social system which included kings, nobles, knights, and serfs (Doc. 1).” Every position or status had a job that benefitted another ranking (Doc. 1). For example, a king grants land to nobles, nobles granted land to knights, and knights grant land to serfs (Doc. 1).

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Both systems together illustrated the legal, economic, and social aspects of the Middle Ages, were known as the guidelines for the proprietors of the time, and were closely interconnected; nevertheless, they are still known as two separate systems with a few significant disparities, mainly their distinct concepts. The primary difference between the two was that Feudalism was a diplomatic and military framework, while Manorialism was a fiscal framework for the feudal estates of society, and it did not have the military component present in Feudalism. An example of this is how Feudalism included the concept of a fief, which was the agreement between the lord and the vassal to give the vassal land and his protection in exchange for his service.

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As merchants travelled from city to city in Europe and in the Middle East, they had to change money from one currency to another. Manorialism was a huge aspect of economic in Europe. It is the name for the organization of the economy in the Middle Ages. The economy relied mainly on agriculture. Manorialism describes how land was distributed and who profited from the land.

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By 1000 A.D. the promise had become a social order. Thus, Feudalism was born. The king would hand out land to noblemen who would pledge their loyalty to him. The noblemen would be judge, jury and executioner in legal issues. Noblemen would also maintain an army and impose taxes.

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However, this could be better seen in their form of government. Feudalism was a system that had land owners at the top (Kings and lords) and those who worked the land and keep the community safe at the bottom. It was basically impossible to move between social classes, and a desire to keep the rich with the rich meant that one couldn’t marry into money It was a social, economic, political, and legal system that stood in place for hundreds of years. The system, however meant that the government was weak, and it rarely stretched far; the larger the kingdom, the harder it was to keep it working. It also meant there were a lot of poor people living in the fifteen hundreds.

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The major portions within this were the life on the manor, and the trade and commerce in the time period. First off, the life on the manor itself was the entire “economic side of feudalism” (Document 2). The work of the serfs (peasants tied to the land) for the lords was the support of the economic system of manoralism, and the Middle Ages as a whole. The serfs had to go through tedious and excruciating work in order to continue living on the land (Document 2). On top of all the work they did, they also had to pay taxes to the lord in order to continue living on the land.

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In Medieval Europe, they used a system called manorialism. This is where a lord would provide serfs with housing, farmland, and protection from bandits. In return, the serfs would have to tend the lord’s lands, care for his animals, and other jobs to maintain the estate. A manor was a lord’s estate in Medieval Europe which would be given to serfs who were peasants. These serfs were not permitted to leave the land they were in.

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Furthermore the vassal also had to provide the lord with 3 nights of protection if the lord was traveling nearby, gifts for the marriage of the lord 's eldest daughter and the knighthood of the lord’s son, fund other events the lord decided he wanted to do, come up with a ransom for the lord when needed, and give

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The Vassals would run the land and help keep for the land. The Serfs and Peasants would do all the physical labor well most of it however they had the worst lives. The Wealthy classes would hold grand ceremonies and banquets, collected taxes, settled disputed, and made laws-they held special court sessions to sort out arguments over land-holding. But for the Serfs/Peasants life was rough the only way for freedom for the Serfs was to marry a free women, or saving enough money to buy a plot of land. According to the law, they did not belong to themselves, everything they had belonged to the

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The barons were positioned in high class of the feudal system, and they reported directly to the king and were very powerful. In return, they pledged their loyalty and

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The Medieval Era was one of the most exciting, turbulent, and transformative eras in history. But with transformation comes major change, which in these circumstances, meant that with the rise of trade and towns meant the breakdown of feudalism and the rise of individual, common man. The occupants of towns that wound up rich through trade came to despise being ruled by feudal lords, particularly when lords levied taxes on their incomes. Merchants, lawyers,and other town members regularly declined to recognize the feudal bonds that theoretically put them under the rule of lords, usually resorting to monarchs to secure their sovereignty through special charters. So, the ascent of towns weakened lords as it strengthened kings.

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