The medieval city developed in competition with feudalism Even when the King was relatively powerless during that period of fecund disarticulation that encouraged the rise of feudalism, he continued to represent a great deal as a symbol, a reminder of the past and a hope for the future. Feudal Japanese and European societies were built on a system of hereditary classes. The nobles were at the top, followed by warriors, with tenant farmers or serfs below. There was very little social mobility; the children of peasants became peasants, while the children of lords became lords and ladies.

ADVERTISEMENTS:The Lords stored arms and weapons and found grains inside the castle. At the time of external invasion, it provided shelter to the common people. There was strong and high wall with towers at intervals around the castle.

In some cases the castles were surrounded by wide ditch or moat.From towers one could watch the movement of enemies. The gateway of the castle was very strong. Deep ditches were dug around the castle and filled up with water. This was connected with a bridge.During the attack, this bridge was lifted off Mild the enemy could not enter into the castle. A feudal Lord had many castle and he lived inside different castles at different time. ADVERTISEMENTS:Another significant mark of feudalism was Manor. The land associated with the castle was known as Manor.

This was like a small estate. The castles, cultivated land, dwelling houses of barons and Church were associated with it. A feudal Lord had one or more manors.

According to the possession of Manors, the strength of a feudal Lord was known. Demense:Another feature of feudalism was ‘Demense’. After distributing the land among his serfs whatever land remained with him was known as Demense.

This law entirely belonged to the Lord which he could use according to his whims and caprices. The Feudal Society:The division of a feudal society followed a pyramidal pattern.

This society was largely an agrarian society. The ‘King’ was at the top of the society and he was quite powerless. Below him was placed the ‘Feudal Lord’. Then came the ‘Vassels’ or ‘Independent Farmers’. They could resort to independent profession and move from one place to another according to their own hill.The lowest stratum in the society projected the ‘Serfs’.

They had neither the land of their own, nor they were independent. They worked in the land given to them by their Lord. In one day of the week, they worked in the field of their Lord without payment which was known as ‘Forced Labour’.

They remained inside small huts with their domestic animals like cows and pigs in a very unhealthy condition. They had to lead a miserable life. ADVERTISEMENTS:Another characteristic feature of the feudal society was ‘Knighthood’. A Knight took oath to fight with enemy and to protect the weak.

Generally, the sons and relatives of a Lord received education and training to be a Knight. When one wanted to be a Knight, he had to work as a ‘Page’ or servant near another Knight. When he could serve property, he was appointed as a ‘Squire’ or body-guard of that Knight.During that period he learnt how to clean the weapons and prepare a horse.

After he achieved mastery in these works, he was to be appointed as a Knight. He had to spend a night inside the Church in prayer.Then he had to kneel down before priest who would deliber a light blow of his palm on the young man’s neck with the blessings-“Be a Valiant Knight”. This act was famous as ‘Accolade’. After becoming a Knight, he had to purchase horse and arms for himself.

By exhibiting chivalry he could save an old man, destiture, weak man from the clutches of injustice and tyranny. A Knight also respected a lady. They also spent their time in different plays and gymnastics.

The medieval European literature sang the glory of these Knights in no uncertain terms. The Rights and Duties of Feudal Lords:The Lords had many duties to perform. Most of them were employed in the work of the Government, army and diplomacy. They also looked to the administration of estates, draining of swamps and trade and commerce. Their main duty was to save their subjects from the invaders. The Lords enjoyed certain rights too.

A Lord became the owner of the land of a vassal who died leaving a minor son.This ownership was called ‘Wardship’ and it continued till the minor came of age. In that case, the land was to be handed over the heir on payment of a sum known as ‘Relief, when a Vassal died without the heir, his fiefs was taken over by the Lord. This was called ‘Escheat’.

Thus, the feudal Lords had many duties which they discharged and they also enjoyed certain rights inside the society. Duty of Vassals:In the feudal society, the vassals or subjects had certain duties towards the Lord. The vassal had to be present in the court whenever the Lord needed. The Vassal rendered compulsory military service to the Lord for forty days in a year. He accompanied his master to the battle field and guarded his castle.The vassal had to pay money to his Lord or Master on the occasion of his eldest daughter’s marriage, when the Lord’s eldest son became a Knight and when the Lord became captive in the hands of his enemy and was to be released.

The vassals had to render these duties because the Lord guaranteed them security of Life and property against external invasions and gave them justice. Ceremony of Homage:The leading feature of feudalism prevailing in Europe was the Ceremony of Homage. This Ceremony was organised to cement the bond between the ‘Lords’ as ‘Vassal’. After assembling in the castle of the noble each man used to Kneel down before the Lord with uncovered head. Then each one placed his folded hands on the hands of the Lord. He then took the oath to be his “man” or “Vassal”. This ceremony was famous as “Homage” in which the Vassal took vow to remain loyal to his Lord.

Investiture:After the Vassals showed homage, then the Lord raised him up and kissed them. He recognised them as his ‘Subject’ or ‘Vassal’. Then the Lord placed in the hands of the Vassal a little earth or some leaves or a sword as a token of gift. A legal document concerning ‘fief (land given to vassal), a staff and a flag were also handed over to the Vassal. This Sanction was termed as Investiture.

Characteristicsof the Feudal WorldTimelineThe Middle Ages or medievaltime is believed to have started with the fall of theRoman Empire in 476 and to have lasted about 1,000 yearsuntil about 1450. The beginning of the Middle Ages iscalled the Dark Ages because the great civilizationsof Rome and Greece had been conquered.The end of the Middle Ages in about1450 led to the beginning of the Renaissance. The principalfeatures of the Renaissance were that learning becameimportant, the lords and the church were both becomingpowerful forces for change, the art world was flourishingwith innovations like the development of perspectivein painting and there was great advancementin science.The barbarians were prevalent in mostof the European nations of the Middle Ages. Magyars,Mongols and Vikings invaded or raided, but the barbarianinvasions were really the transition from the classicalto the medieval worlds. The barbarians were not allprimitive, nor were they barbarian. The term basicallymeans foreigner. Greeks thought foreigners spoke unintelligiblylike barking dogs (bar-bar-bar) — hence the term“barbarian.”It should be noted that other partsof the world were thriving in this era.

North Africa,the Middle East, China, India and other parts of theworld were experiencing great changes.The PeopleLife was very hard in the Middle Ages. Very few peoplecould read or write. The people thought that fate ruledtheir existence; therefore, there was little hope forimproving their condition.During the years of the Roman Empire,the poor people were protected by the soldiers of theemperor. When the empire fell, there were no laws protectingthem, so they turned to the lords to keep the peaceand to act on their behalf. This willingness to be ruledby the lords led to the beginnings of feudalism.Some peasants were free, but most became serfsto the lord. This meant that they were required to staywith the land and pay very high rent to the lord. Theonly hope that most people had was their belief thatChristianity would make their lives better or at leastthat life in heaven would be better than life on earth.The GovernmentUnder the feudal system, everyone but the king had aruling lord above him to whom he owed loyalty and servicein exchange for land and protection.

The king awardedland grants, called fiefs, to the nobles and sometimesto the church in return for the use of their soldiersor their influence on the citizens to protect the land.For safety and for defense, peasantsin the Middle Ages formed small communities around acentral lord or master. Most people lived on a manor,which consisted of the castle, church, village and surroundingfarmland. These manors were isolated, with occasionalvisits from peddlers, pilgrims on their way to the Crusades,or soldiers from other fiefdoms.The FamilyFamily life was governed by the place one held in society.The nobles had the highest status. They possessed themost wealth and land.

The clergy could be rich or poor,depending on their title and how much influence theyhad over the people. For more information about nobles,knights, clergy, tradesmen and peasants, go to.EducationMonks taught boys from wealthy noble families how toread and write Latin. This was important because boththe Bible and the church services used the language.Some boys from wealthy families were tutored privately.Students began learning with the seven liberal arts:Latin grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry,astronomy and music. Girls were not taught to reador to write.Children of the poor spent their timeworking the fields and caring for the home.

They learnedwhat they needed to know to survive in society.SlaveryIn the Middle Ages, there were people whose lives weregoverned by their lords. They generally were peasantswho were known as serfs. Serfs generally lived in communitiesthat were ruled by the local nobles. They could notleave the manor or even marry without the lord’spermission.

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Serfs did all of the work on the manor farm.They worked in the fields, cared for the animals, builtand cared for the buildings, and made the clothing andeverything else that required manual labor. Everyoneworked: men, women and children.

Serfs generally hada small plot of land that was their own. They coulduse this land to grow crops and sell them. They couldbuy their own freedom and become free men, but thiswas a difficult task and most often not accomplished.There were also servants who worked in the manor doingthe cooking, cleaning, laundering and other householdjobs. Serfs also tended the horses.MedicineMedical knowledge was very limited; therefore, healthcare was generally dominated by myths, folklore andsuperstition. People believed that bad odors causeddisease and that some illnesses were the result of “sinsof the soul.” Sometimes the church stated thatillnesses were punishments from God and that those whowere ill were so because they were sinners.

The useof leeches for “blood-letting” was alsoa common practice. Some believed that the moon and stars,as well as their astrology sign, caused some diseases.EntertainmentMusic and art were important in the Middle Ages. Muchof this was influenced by the church. Ikariam world. People sang withand without instruments. Nobles played games such aschess, checkers and dice. Peasants played more outdoorsports such as hockey, stickball and soccer.Towns or manors often had festivalsthat included jesters, who were like clowns in a circus.Tournaments matched knights in jousts and fights. Sports(with few rules) also were played.