Feudalism

• Feudalism is a term used by historians to describe the governmental system and the relationships between landowners and warriors
• Warriors known as knights
• they would pledge their allegiance to a lord, who would in turn give that knight land
• the lord would grant a fief (property)to the knight, who would then become the lord's vassal (servant) -  this was called the "feudal compact"
• the vassal must fight for the lord when he needs it and attend his court once a month

Homage and Knighthood

• A vassal was required to pay homage to his lord, usually this meant kneeling down and taking the lord's hands in his while speaking an oath of loyalty
• Men were apprenticed to older knights before they could become a full knight themselves
• When a knight died, his fief would revert to his son, thought his lord would be protected of that son if he was underage

Feudalism of the Church

• Some clergy were known to fight as nights themselves

Feudal States

• Barons were lords of large territories who usually paid homage to a king
• Often a baron's army could outnumber that of a king, which kept a check on the king's power

Peasants and Lords

• Medieval society was divided into three "estates": the clergy, the nobility, and the common people
• Usually the peasantry farmed on large plantations known as "manors" which were owned by a lord or a lady of the nobility
• Iron plows and water-powered grinding mills helped with agricultural production, but the yield was still miniscule by today's standards
• To maintain the health of the soil, the "three-field system" was used where two fields were planted and one was left to reconstitute its fertility - they were rotated
• Villages spring up on and around manors with small cottages for the peasants and large manor houses for the lords and ladies

People of the Manor

• Most peasants were serfs, meaning they were bound to the land and to their lords for labor service a few days a week
• The serfs were responsible for the "internal colonization" of Europe, that is the cultivating and settling of previously uninhabited land 

The Growth or Trade

• The agricultural boom after 1000 allowed tor the establishment of many towns across Europe

The Location and Appearance or Towns

• Most medieval towns were surrounded by fortified walls
• Residences also sprung up outside the walls in the suburbs
• Towns were dominated by a main church and a central market place
• Buildings for the craft guilds and the wealthiest families would also be in the center of town

Life of Townspeople

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