Medieval Feudal
System
By: Cole Monroe
Luke Derbawka
Aaron Cochrane
Introduction to Feudalism
• Feudal System: The political, military, and social
system in the middle ages based on kings who
grant land to their vassals who control the land
and the peasants who work it.
• Kingdoms were divided into areas of land called
Fiefs.
• The essence of feudalism is that whoever owns
the land rules it.
Kings
• King Clovis was the first king and
helped the Christian Church become
a rising force in a changing time.
• King Clovis led the Germanic people
to defeat the Romans to take their
land.
• King Clovis was the first King in a
Feudalist society
• King Charlemagne’s kingdom
established a much more exact
version of feudalism.
Kings Cont.
• Knights were given land by a Baron in return for military
service when demanded by the King.
• They also had to protect the Baron and his family, as well as
the Manor, from attack. The Knights kept as much of the land
as they wished for their own personal use and distributed the
rest to villeins (serfs).
• Although not as rich as the Barons, Knights were quite
wealthy.
Knights In Feudalism
• Knights were given land by
the Baron in return for
military service when the
King demanded it.
• The Knights kept as much of
the land as they wished for
their own personal use and
distributed the rest to
villeins (serfs).
• Overall the Knights controlled
the peasants land as well as
their own.
Workers in Feudalism
• There were two groups of
peasant workers on the
manor
• Freemen- skilled workers
who paid rent and could
leave the manor whenever
they wished. (They usually
had a skill needed by others
on the manor.)
• Serfs – workers bound to the
land by contract with the
nobles. (They had no
freedom - they where the
noble’s property.)
Fun Facts About Feudalism
• 90% of people in this style of society were peasants working
the land.
• A peasant’s work day was normally very long and consisted of
obeying the vassal that controlled them.
• Kings held their power through divine right, they had the
authority of god.
• There was no formal justice system; nobles decided there own
punishments from crime to crime.
The Decline of Feudal Power
• Edward the First restored most of the royal
authority his father had forfeited
• Overall Edward the First destroyed Feudalism
and formed it into a monarchy
• Put power into Barons and the Royal
Government
Bibliography
Works Cited
• "Feudal Justice." Feudal Justice. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/feudal-justice.htm>.
• "Feudalism." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 17 Oct. 2012.
Web. 18 Oct. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feudalism>.
• "Medieval Life - Feudalism." Medieval Life - Feudalism. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.historyonthenet.com/Medieval_Life/feudalism.ht
m>.