FEUDALISM &MANORIALISMPrepared by:

Bayan, Jameson G.Murao, Kieth C.BSED-Social Studies 3

FeudalismThe system of relationships that grew out of granting of fiefs (land), a unit of land to control in exchange for a military service.

A political system developed in which there was no strong central ruler or government.

Feudal society – an age in which lords, not kings, held political power

In exchange for military assistance and other services, one lord granted land to another noble.

The noble who received the land was called vassal.

The lord-vassal relationship was cemented by a solemn ceremony in which the vassal pledged loyalty to the lord.

Feudal Pyramid of Power

Feudal Ties

o Relationship of the lord to the vassal (Duties)

a.Protection/securityb.A grant of land* Peasants who lived on the fief were included in the lord’s grant.

o Relationship of the vassal to the lord (Duties)

Aid the lord in war. Supposed to raise ransom money if the lord was captured by an enemy.

Provide lodgings when the lord travelled through their territory.

Give gift when the lord’s son was knighted and when his eldest daughter married.

Each vassal sit in the lord’s court and help to judge cases involving disputes between the lord and other vassals

o Relationships between lords and vassals were complex.a.The same noble might be a vassal to several lords.

b.A vassal might grant land to other nobles. e.g. William of Normady, a holder of a fief from the king of France

c.Sometimes, there was a clash between two lords to whom a vassal had sworn loyalty.

Lords as Warriors Through combat, lords

protected their lands, enlarged their estates and added to their wealth.

A young noble was trained to be a knight – to wear an armor, ride a war-horse and fight with sword and lance.

Knights yearned for glory and the respect of their fellow nobles.- They wanted minstrels to sing of their heroic deeds and ladies to admire their bravery.

Knights took part in mock combat (tournament).

Chivalry Code of behavior; reflect

Christian ideals

Expected to fight bravely

To be loyal to his lord To treat other knights

with respect and courtesy Expected to protect women,

children, and the weak To defend the just and

right To be a Christian

gentleman who honors Church laws and to defend the Church against its enemies.

Castles Served both as home and fortresses Where feudal life centers

What’s inside? Bedrooms, kitchen, store rooms, chapel and a great hall

Who’s inside? Lord and lady, member of their family, knights and others

First castles were built in the 9th century – made of timber and earth

Lord’s castle stood high on a rocky hill or by the bend of a river, encircled by massive walls and strong guard towers

No buildings near it.

Tress and bushes were cut down so that look outs could easily see an approaching enemy.

Moat – a wide ditch filled with water.

Duties of the Lady/Noble Women Supervised the household.

Prepare food. Keep a garden where she grow herbs to use in cooking and for medicine.

Teach young girls how to sew, spin and weave.

Cure the sick and the wounded.

Take charge on the castle.

Duties of the Lady/Noble WomenMake financial decisions.

Raise ransom to buy for lord’s release.

Put on armor and go to war.

Have some political power.e.g. Matilde of England, daugther of King Henry I.

Manorialism/SeignorialismAn economic system by which the peasants (serfs) were rendered depending on their land and on their lord

ManorBasic unit; a self sufficient landed estate or fief that was under the control of a lord who enjoyed a variety of rights over it and the peasants attached to it by means of serfdom.

Surrounding the village were fields (pasture land and forests).

The manor was largely self-sufficient; able to produce almost everything it needed.

Each lord owned at least one manor; great lords owned many.

15-30 families

What’s inside?

Serf’s cottage Church Lord’s castle/manor house

Workshops

Medieval Farmers

Used compost and manure to enrich the soil

Used a two/three-field system

Rights and Duties of the Serfs1.Farm the land set aside for the lord and turn over all its crops to him.

2.Bake their bread in the lord’s oven, grind their wheat in the lord’s mill, and press their grapes in his winepress.

3.Dig ditches, gather firewood, build fences and repair roads and buildings.

4.Women make clothing for the lord’s family.

5. Works about 3 days a week for the lord.

6. Can’t leave the manor without the lord’s permission and the lord could even decide when a serf would marry.

7. Serf’s children could not be taken from them and sold

Life of Serf/SERFDOMLive in crowded one or two-room cottages.

Serfs eat a simple diet – vegetables, coarse brown bread, grain, cheese and soup.

Serfs are forbidden to hunt wild animals in the forests.

The life of a serf was hard and tiring. - Men and women worked in the fields from sunrise to sunset. The serf’s way of life was passed on to their children that they, too, were born into a life of serfdom.

Have some simple pleasures – watching travelling minstrels and entertainers, wrestling and football.

On holidays, serfs gather in front of the village church to sing and dance.

Peasants knew almost nothing of the outside world since they lived, worked and died on the lord’s estate and buried in the village churchyard.

Most serf accept their position in life.

They believed that God determined a person’s place in society and that some people were meant to be nobles and others.

Similarities

Both systems co-existed.They were a response to the breakdown in central authority.

Both systems do share a common factor – the exchange of land in return for services.

Both a landholding system.Both determined the social status of an individual that eventually became hereditary.

Differences

King and his nobles

Feudalism

Relationship type

Manorialism

Noble and his peasants

Political & Military

System/Concept Economic and Social

Differences

King gave out land to his nobles, providing them with an income.

Feudalism

Process/Work

Manorialism

A noble controlled all the land and gave it out to tenants.