*Bellringer: 3/28 + 3/29*
Welcome back from Spring Break!
• 1. Pick up the papers by the door.
• 2. Answer the following review questions:
*AGENDA: 3/28 + 3/29*
Welcome back from Spring Break!
• 1. Pick up the papers by the door.
• 2. Turn in your Dark Ages doc. response to
your class drawer in the back.
• 3. Answer the following review questions:
The Middle Ages:
Feudalism and the
Manor System
How is medieval society
organized?
• 1. Kings and Queens
• Rulers
• 2. Nobility
• Lords and Knights
• Controlled the land
• 3. Clergy
• Church officials
• 4. Peasants
• Majority of the
population
• Worked the land and
served the nobles
What is feudalism?
• Political
and social
system
based on
the
granting of
land in
exchange
for loyalty,
military
assistance,
and other
services
What is feudalism?
• Developed
as a result
of frequent
invasions in
western
Europe
• Kings and
nobles
needed a
way to
protect their
lands
Structure of Feudalism
SERFS AND FREEMEN
7
How does feudalism work?
LESSER NOBLES
(KNIGHTS)
LABOR
PROTECTION
SERFS AND FREEMEN
8
How does feudalism work?
POWERFUL
NOBLES
LAND AND
PROTECTION
LOYALTY AND
MILITARY SERVICE
LESSER NOBLES
(KNIGHTS)
LABOR
PROTECTION
SERFS AND FREEMEN
9
How does feudalism work?
KING
LOYALTY AND
SERVICE
LAND
POWERFUL
NOBLES
LAND AND
PROTECTION
LOYALTY AND
MILITARY SERVICE
LESSER NOBLES
(KNIGHTS)
LABOR
PROTECTION
SERFS AND FREEMEN
10
How does feudalism work?
• Lords divided
their lands into
estates called fiefs
• Fiefs (land) given
to vassals
– A person granted
land in return
for loyalty or
military service
• All nobles were
vassals to the king
How does feudalism work?
• Knights
– Mounted warriors who
protected lord’s
lands
– Given land for their
services
– Chivalry
• Code of ethics
followed by knights
• Honesty, fairness in
battle, loyal, proper
treatment of women
•
Feudal Obligations
• Knights:
– Provide military service
– Remain loyal and faithful
– Give money on special
occasions
• Serfs:
– Work land
– Loyalty
• Give land
• Protect from attack
• Resolve disputes between
knights
Feudalism has FOUR GOALS:
1. Political Order
2. Economic Stability
3. Prosperity
4. Opportunity
Recap Questions:
• 1. Explain why feudalism developed in
western Europe.
• 2. What was a knight’s obligation to the
lord?
• 3. What was the lord’s obligation to the
knight?
What is the manorial system?
• An economic
system in the
Middle Ages that
was built around
large estates
called manors
• Included a village
and the land
surrounding it
What is the manorial system?
• Manors were self sufficient
– Most things needed for daily life were produced on the
manor
•
Who/what was involved in the
manorial system?
• Serfs
– Peasants who lived
and worked on the
lord’s manor
– Were not allowed to
leave the manor or
marry without the
lord’s permission
– Were allowed to farm
on the manor in
return for work
• Lords were required
to protect the serfs
Who/what was involved in the
manorial system?
• The life of a serf
was harsh
– Worked long
hours
– few lived past
35 years old
– Based on
heredity
• You were a
serf if you
parents were
Who/what was involved in the
manorial system?
• The Harshness of Manor Life
– Peasants pay taxes to use mill
and bakery; pay a tithe to
priest
• Tithe—a church tax—is
equal to one-tenth of a
peasant’s income
– Serfs live in crowded cottages
with dirt floors, straw for beds
– Worked long hours
• raising crops, livestock;
feeding and clothing family
– Poor diet, illness, malnutrition
make life expectancy 35 years
– Serfs generally accept their
lives as part of God’s plan
Who/what was involved in the
manorial system?
• Freemen
– skilled workers
(artisans) who
paid rent to
nobles and could
leave the manor
• Ex. Blacksmith
and millers
Recap Questions:
• What was the Manorial System
• How were manors self sufficient?
• Explain why feudalism developed in
western Europe.