2 Feudalism and Manorial Society Free Online FlashCards

Who was a vassal?

A vassal was usually a noble who formed a bond with a more powerful lord.

Was medieval landholding a uniform chain from the king downward?

No: landholding was not a uniform chain in which everyone held land from the king. Agreements, custom, and local power shaped relationships.

What was a manor?

A manor was a rural estate and community organized around a lord’s authority.

How did open-field farming organize land and shared resources?

Families worked scattered strips of land, while villagers could share meadows, woods, or pasture under local rules.

What defined a free tenant?

A free tenant held land in return for rent or other agreed duties.

What were labor services on a manor?

Peasants could be required to work on the lord’s demesne, especially during busy periods of the farming year.

Why did peasant obligations differ between manors?

Local custom shaped each manor’s duties and what a lord could demand; obligations therefore varied from manor to manor.

What was a fief?

A fief was often land or rights to income from land granted by a lord to a vassal.

What services might a vassal owe a lord?

A vassal could owe military service, advice, and attendance at the lord’s court.

What did a lord owe a vassal?

A lord owed a vassal support and protection in return for the bond’s services and loyalty.

What was the lord’s demesne?

The demesne was land reserved for the lord’s household and income.

How did serfs’ status differ from that of free tenants?

Serfs or villeins had rights and obligations more closely tied to a lord and manor; their movement and choices could be restricted. They were not simply interchangeable with enslaved people.