II

Feudalism
Roots of the feudal system
1. The roman empire
In the 4th and 5th centuries simplification and unification of society took place
Similarly, to later feudal society, there were only two basic layers of society:
o The landowners, who owned the land, but did not work on it
o The tenants (or coloni), who worked on the lands, but did now own it
2. The barbarians
The barbarian tribes gradually settled down in the Roman Empire
In return for military service, the Germanic tribes were granted lands
After 476 they became lords of the lands
The barbarian society provided a model for later feudal society:
o Great landowners with great retinue
o Small and middle landowners with land of their own
o Free peasants
o Tenant farmers
o Slaves
3. Christianity
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Christian monks were the only ones
who could read and write
They kept literacy alive
Their task was to spread Christianity among the barbarians

Feudalism
Feudalism is a form of society and government based on the ownership of the land and
the relationship between lord and vassal.
The ownership of the land could be transferred in different ways:
1. Freemen could offer the land to a greater landlord, king or the Church (called
commendatio). Freemen could either become
Vassals, who give military service to the landlord in return for protection
and military equipment
Serfs, who lost their freedom with the land. For the proportion of the crop
and socage they received protection
2. The king or the landlord could grand lands to the members of his retinue as:
Beneficium, which was a not inheritable piece of land received for loyalty,
and earlier services as a present
 Fief, which was granted for military service. It was an inheritable piece of
land. It was given as a token of loyalty so the vassal had to swear an oath
of loyalty, also called feudal vow, or homage
Feudal hierarchy
Feudal society was like a pyramid and it implied only vertical subordination
At the bottom there were many knights, each with a small fief
Above them, there were many liege lords, who held larger fiefs
They belonged to the retinue of royal vassals, the vassals of the king
The king was the greatest feudal lord, however, even kings could become vassals of the
pope or and emperor.
Vertical subordination restricted the king’s power as the vassals of their vassals weren’t
directly subordinated to them, so they had no obligation to the king. (‘My vassal’s vassal
is not my vassal’)
New groups in feudal society
1. Knightly class
Knights were professional cavalrymen, who lived in feudal dependency
There were changes in the army: heavily armed cavalry was introduced,
knights needed more expensive equipment (armor, weapons, horse)
Because of the changes, military service turned into a privilege, from being a
general obligation
Knights were also differentiated on the basis of their wealth
2. Churchmen
The Church helped the establishment of the new civilization
Bishops became leaders of local authorities
The pope became the spiritual leader of the Western Christendom, which
gradually separated from the Eastern Christendom
Secular clergy: priests, who were responsible for the spiritual well-being of
Christian communities
Regular clergy: Clergy of monastic orders. The firs monastic order was the
Benedictine Order, founded by St. Benedict in 529. Their basic principle was
‘Ora el labora’
3. Serf
Serfs did now own, just used the land of the lord
That’s why feudal ownership was dual ownership
Serf owned their lords: proportion of the crop, socage, gifts on special
occasions
They also owned the Church: proportion of the crop
They were bound to the soil (they weren’t free to move)
They were under the lord’s jurisdiction
Feudal economy
Economy was concentrated on agriculture
People returned to self-sufficiency
The majority of people were serfs
New systems of production appeared:
o Two-field system:
Peasants divided the land into two sections. One half was cultivated, and one was
left to fallow. The fields were rotated annually.
o Three-field system:
Peasants divided the land into three sections. The first section was cultivated in
autumn, the second was cultivated in spring, and the third was left to fallow. The
fields were also rotated annually.
Framing revolution
The population increased, so people had to cultivate poorer-quality lands, so they needed
better tools and techniques:
o Heavy plough
o Horse collar
o Horseshoes
Landlords employed guest-workers to clear forests and drain marshlands
The guest-workers were treated better by the landlord than the serfs
o Their lands were inheritable, they did now own socage work, the rent was fixed in
contracts, they could move freely, and they were not under the lord’s jurisdiction
When the serfs saw all these, they started to demand rights.
Changes were made:
o They were free to move, they could inherit the land
The new agricultural methods led to more surplus, which led to the reappearance of the
money, which put an end to self-sufficiency
Lords started to demand the rent in money rather than the proportion of crop
Medieval towns
The growth of population and the separation of agriculture, crafts and trade led to the
growth of towns
Towns were formed in favourable geographical and economic positions: near markets, at
important road-links, near sources of raw material
Towns could be founded by kings, Church leaders, or landlords
Most towns came into being under feudal authority, but townspeople (burghers) did not
fit into the traditional feudal groups, so they formed a middle class
They started to fight for their independence and privileges. Finally, they obtained:
o The right of annual taxation
o The right of jurisdiction
 o The right of administration
Towns were given charters, which listed the Town’s privileges and actually declared their
independence.
Royal towns had the most privileges:
o The right to hold fairs
o The right to stop goods
o The right to have custom-free places
o The right of immunity (any serf could become free by spending a year and a day
in a town)
Medieval crafts
Artisans of the same trade formed associations to protect their interests: craft guilds
They were set up to plan and guide production, to control price and distribution, to train
craftsmen and take care of the members’ welfare
Characteristics:
o They were against the competition of bunglers (craftsmen outside of the guild)
o They prohibited both negative and positive advertising
o They established a standard quality and quantity
o They fixed the prices
o A regular sum was spent on the welfare of orphans and widows of artisans
o They took part in the defence of the town – they had to guard a certain part of the
town wall
Guild followed the apprentice system.
o Apprentices worked for the master for 3-12 years without salary
o At the end of their education they had to work as a journeyman to gain experience
o Finally, they had to make a masterpiece, and if it met the requirements, he could
become a master
Medieval trade
The most important source of large-scale was long-distance trade
Traders also formed guilds (the most important: Hanseatic League, Levant trade)
Hanseatic League:
o Was formed in 1161 – Hamburg and Lübeck made and alliance
o They controlled the trade from Novgorod to London
o They transported: Russian skins, Baltic herring, Scandinavian wood, honey, wax,
French wine, English wool etc.
Levant trade:
o They controlled the Mediterranean region
o It was started by Venice, Genoa and Pisa
o They created contact with the East trading with luxuries: silk from China, spices
from Indonesia, precious metals, stones, oriental goods