The Early Middle Ages Section 3

Preview

• Main Idea / Reading Focus

• The Feudal System

• Quick Facts: Feudal Obligations

• The Manorial System

• Daily Life in the Middle Ages

The Feudal and Manorial Systems

The Early Middle Ages Section 3

Reading Focus

• What duties and obligations were central to the feudal system?

• How did the manorial system govern the medieval economy?

• What was daily life like for people on a manor?

Main Idea

In Europe during the Middle Ages, the feudal and manorial systems governed life and required people to perform certain duties and obligations.

The Feudal and Manorial Systems

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Knights like William Marshal did not exist at the beginning of the Middle Ages but began to emerge as the period progressed.

• Feudalism originated partly as result of Viking, Magyar, Muslim invasions

• Kings unable to defend their lands, lands of their nobles

• Nobles had to find way to defend own lands

• Built castles, often on hills• Not elaborate structures; built

of wood, used as place of shelter in case of attack

Origins of Feudalism• Nobles needed trained

soldiers to defend castles• Knights most important,

highly skilled soldiers • Mounted knights in heavy

armor best defenders• Being a knight expensive; had

to maintain weapons, armor, horses

• Knights demanded payment for services

Knights and Lords

The Feudal System

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Fiefs and Vassals

Knights were usually paid for their services with land

• Land given to knight for service was called a fief

– Anyone accepting fief was called a vassal

– Person from whom he accepted fief was his lord

• Historians call system of exchanging land for service the feudal system, or feudalism

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Oath of Fealty• Lords, vassals in feudal system had duties to fulfill to one another

• Knight’s chief duty as vassal to provide military service to his lord

• Had to promise to remain loyal; promise called oath of fealty

Lord’s Obligations• Lord had to treat knights fairly, not demanding too much time, money

• Had to protect knight if attacked by enemies

• Had to act as judge in disputes between knights

Financial Obligations• Knight had certain financial obligations to lord

• Knight obligated to pay ransom for lord’s release if captured in battle

• Gave money to lord on special occasions, such as knighting of son

Feudal Obligations

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• Almost everyone in system served more than one lord

• Theoretically, everyone supposed to be loyal to the king

• In practice, not everyone loyal• Some powerful nobles as

strong as kings they were supposed to serve, ignored duties as vassals

• Feudal rules specific to time, place; could change over time; England’s rules not same as France’s rules

Fealty to King

• Europe’s feudal system incredibly complex

• Person could be both lord, vassal

• Some knights with large fiefs gave small pieces of land to other knights, created many levels of obligations

• One knight could serve many lords; no prohibition against knight accepting fiefs from more than one noble

Lord and Vassal

A Complicated System

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Summarize

How did the feudal system work?

Answer(s): lord gave land to knight in return for protection and loyalty

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The feudal system was a political and social system. A related system governed medieval economics. This system was called the manorial system because it was built around large estates called manors.

• Manors owned by wealthy lords, knights

• Peasants farmed manor fields

• Were given protection, plots of land to cultivate for selves

Lords, Peasants, and Serfs • Most peasants on

farm were serfs, tied to manor

• Not slaves, could not be sold away from manor

• But could not leave, marry without lord’s permission

Serfdom

• Manors had some free people who rented land from lord

• Others included landowning peasants, skilled workers like blacksmiths, millers

• Also had a priest for spiritual needs

Free People

The Manorial System

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• Most of manor’s land occupied by fields for crops, pastures for animals

• Middle Ages farmers learned that leaving field empty for year improved soil

• In time, practice developed into three-field crop rotation system

• One field planted in spring for fall harvest

• Another field planted in winter for spring harvest

• Third field remained unplanted for year

Rotation

• Each manor included fortified house for noble family, village for peasants, serfs

• Goal to make manor self-sufficient

• Typical manor also included church, mill, blacksmith

Small Village

A Typical Manor

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Analyze

How did lords and peasants benefit from the manorial system?

Answer(s): lords' farmlands were taken care of, produced food; peasants were provided protection from invaders

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Life in a Castle

• Life in Middle Ages not easy, did not have comforts we have today

• Early castles built for defense not comfort

• Few windows, stuffy in summer, cold in winter, dark always

Bedrooms

• In early castles, noble family bedrooms separated from main area by sheets

• Later castles had separate bedrooms; latrines near bedrooms

• Wooden bathtub outside in warm weather, inside near fireplace in winter

Space

• Nobles had to share space with others, including soldiers, servants

• Private rooms very rare

• Main room the hall, large room for dining, entertaining

Daily Life in the Middle Ages

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The family rose before dawn. Men went to work in the fields; women did chores. During harvest, the entire family worked in the field all day.

Despite discomforts, life in a castle was preferable to life in a village. The typical village family lived in a small wooden one-room house. The roof was made of straw, the floor of dirt, and the furniture of rough wood. Open holes in the walls served as windows.

• Most families slept on beds of straw on floor

• All shared one room with each other, animals

• Most glad to have animals to provide extra heat in cold winters

Bedrooms

Life in a Village

• Peasant families cooked meals over open fire in middle of floor

• Typical meal: brown bread, cheese, vegetables, occasionally meat

• No chimneys, house often full of smoke; fires common

Meals

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Contrast

How was life in a castle different from life in a village?

Answer(s): castle life more comfortable, people did not have to work in the fields; village life was very difficult, no comforts, whole family had to work continually