Feudalism
Pyramid of Power
Manoralism
Year 8 History: European Middle Ages
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Feudalism
The
Early
Middle
Ages
was a
dangerous
time.
E. Napp
Government in the Middle Ages
• Roman Empire had a central government.
• After Rome fell, Europe had dozens of little
kingdoms.
• Lots of fighting between kingdoms.
• Lots of attacks from Vikings, Magyars (from East
Asia) and Muslims.
• A new way evolved ...
Feudalism
• Feudalism was the
political and military
system of the Middle
Ages.
• In a feudal society, land
is exchanged for military
service and loyalty.
• The ownership of land
was the basis or power.
NEW PAGE:
Title: Feudalism in the Middle
Ages
Copy this definition:
Feudalism is a political system
where land – and therefore
money and power – is
exchanged for military service
and loyalty.
At the top
The King owned all
of the land.
William the Conqueror
Depending on how
much he liked
them, he gave
land to the
Nobles.
KING
NOBLES
Feudal Pyramid of Power
Nobles
• Lords and Ladies, Dukes, Earls.
• Usually related to, or mates with, the King.
• They didn’t get the Land for free: they were
required to give money and soldiers (knights)
if the King needed them to fight a war.
KING
NOBLES
Feudal Pyramid of Power
Knights
• Nobles needed trained soldiers
to defend castles and to give
the King when he asked for
them.
• Knights most important, highly
skilled soldiers
• Mounted knights in heavy
armor best defenders
KING
NOBLES
KNIGHTS
Feudal Pyramid of Power
Knights
BUT
• Being a knight is expensive;
– weapons, armor, horses
• Nobles usually paid with land.
• Land given to knight for service was called a fief
– Anyone accepting fief was called a vassal
– A vassal had to obey his Lord and fight for him
when required.
KING
NOBLES
KNIGHTS
vassals
Feudal Pyramid of Power
Many Lords
• Person could be both lord, vassal
• Some knights with large fiefs gave small pieces
of land to other knights
• One knight could serve many lords
• Everyone’s supposed to be loyal to the King.
Didn’t always work out that way.
Peasants
• Everyday people –
peasants - were
frightened.
• They turned to
landowners for
protection.
• Peasants offered
their labor in
exchange for
protection.
• These peasants
were called
serfs.
Serfs
• A serf was “bound to the land.”
• He could not leave his lord’s land.
• He was not a
slave because he
could not be sold.
• But he was not
free because he
could not leave.
• He also needed
permission to
marry.
KING
NOBLES
KNIGHTS
vassals
PEASANTS
Feudal Pyramid of Power
Manorialism
In Modern times, when we say “Manor”, we
mean this:
Manorialism
But in the Middle Ages, a Manor was
more like a town or a large estate.
Remember: a fief was all of a Lord’s land.
The Manor was the part of the fief
where the peasants farmed and lived.
In your book finish this sentence:
In the Middle Ages, a fief was …
A manor, in the Middle Ages, is …
Manorialism
• Manorialism was the economic system of the Middle
Ages.
– These days our economic system is called ‘Capitalism’.
• Manorialism is a self-sufficient economy; this means
that everything that is necessary for life was created
on the manor.
• COPY and Answer this question in your book:
What sort of things do Medieval People need
for everyday life?
Manorialism
•Manors had some free people who rented land
from lord
•Each manor included fortified house for noble
family, village for peasants, serfs
•Others included landowning peasants, skilled
workers like blacksmiths, millers
•Also had a priest for spiritual needs
Buildings
ORCHARD
The Peasants
• At the lowest level of
society were the
peasants, also called
serfs or villeins.
• The lord offered his
peasants protection in
exchange for living and
working on his land.
Hard Work & High Taxes
• Peasants worked hard to
cultivate the land and
produce the goods that
the lord and his manor
needed.
• They were heavily taxed
and were required to
relinquish much of what
they harvested.
Serfs
• A serf was “bound to the land.”
• He could not leave his lord’s land.
• He was not a
slave because he
could not be sold.
• But he was not
free because he
could not leave.
• He also needed
permission to
marry.
Repairing
fixing sheds, houses,
fences
Planting
Weaving
Ploughing
Fertilising
Sowing
Weeding
Pruning
Shearing
Scaring Birds
Harvesting
Gathering
Tying
Winnowing
Milling
Butchering
Salting/
Smoking
Collecting
Digging
Vocab Match
COPY the word and it’s correct definition into your book.
serf
A) a person who swears to be a fighter for a lord
in exchange for land.
feudalism
B) the part of the fief in which villagers and
peasants live (kind of like a small town)
fief
C) the system which involves residents of a
manor growing and making everything for
themselves (being self sufficient)
manor
D) a peasant which is tied to the land (kind of like
a slave)
vassal
E) the political system which William the
Conqueror set up which involves exchanging
land for service.
manorialism
F) Land given to Knights and Lords in exchange
for loyalty and a promise to fight.
KING
NOBLES
KNIGHTS
vassals
PEASANTS
Feudal Pyramid of Power