Introduction
The feudal system of the Middle Ages was introduced to England following the invasion and conquest of the country by William I, The Conqueror.
The feudal system had been used in France by the Normans from the time they first settled there in about 900 AD. It was a simple, but effective system, where all land was owned by the King. One quarter was kept by the King as his personal property, some was given to the church and the rest was leased out under strict controls.
A simple plan showing how the Feudal System works
The Heirarchy
The King: Leader of the Feudal System
The King was in complete control under the feudal system (at least nominally). He owned all the land in the country and decided to whom he would lease land. He therefore typically allowed tenants he could trust to lease land from him. However, before they were given any land they had to swear an oath of fealty to the King at all times. The men who leased land from the King were known as Barons, they were wealthy, powerful and had complete control of the land they leased from the King.
Barons: Executors of the Feudal System
Barons leased land from the King that was known as a manor. They were known as the Lord of the Manor and were in complete control of this land. They established their own system of justice, minted their own money and set their own taxes. In return for the land they had been given by the King, the Barons had to serve on the royal council, pay rent and provide the King with Knights for military service when he demanded it. They also had to provide lodging and food for the King and his court when they travelled around his realm. The Barons kept as much of their land as they wished for their own use, then divided the rest among their Knights. Barons were very rich.
Knights
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.
Villeins
Villeins, sometimes known as serfs, were given land by Knights. They had to provide the Knight with free labour, food and service whenever it was demanded. Villeins had no rights. They were not allowed to leave the Manor and had to ask their Lord’s permission before they could marry. Villeins were poor.
Crime and Medieval Punishment
Throughout the Middle Ages, it was believed that the only way to keep order was to make sure that the people were scared of the punishments given for crimes committed. For this reason all crimes from stealing to burglary of houses to murder had harsh punishments.
Although there were gaols, they were generally used to hold a prisoner awaiting trial rather than as a means of punishment. Fines, shaming (being placed in stocks), mutilation (cutting off a part of the body) or death were the most common forms of medieval punishment.
There was no police force in the Middle Ages so law-enforcement was in the hands of the community.
The King’s Court (Trial by Ordeal)
Serious crimes were heard by the King’s court. The accused had to face trial by ordeal to decide whether they were guilty or not guilty.
Ordeal by Fire
The accused had to pick up a red hot iron bar and hold it while they walked three or four paces. Their hand was then bandaged. After three days they had to return to the court where the bandages were removed. If the wound was beginning to heal they were innocent but if the wound showed no sign of healing then they were pronounced Guilty.
Ordeal by Water
The accused had their hands and feet tied together. They were then thrown into water. If they floated they were guilty but if they sank they were innocent.
Ordeal by Combat
Noblemen would fight (usually to the death) in combat with their accuser. The winner of the battle would be considered to be in the right. After 1215 Trial by Ordeal was replaced by Trial by Jury.
The Manorial Court (Trial by Jury)
The manorial court dealt with all but the most serious crimes. It was held at various intervals during the year, and all villagers had to attend or pay a fine. All men were placed in groups of ten called a tithing. Each tithing had to make sure that no member of their group broke the law. If a member of a tithing broke a law then the other members had to make sure that he went to court.
The Lord’s steward was in charge of the court. A jury of twelve men was chosen by the villagers. The jury had to collect evidence and decide whether the accused was guilty or not guilty and, if found guilty, what the medieval punishment should be.
The inequality of the feudal system
There was great inequality in medieval society because of the distribution of land and wealth. The nobility was able to raise large amounts of money from payments from peasants living on their land. Peasants were usually villeins. This meant they were legally tied to the land they worked on and could only leave with their Lord’s permission. If they had a bad harvest, they faced possible starvation. Freemen were a minority of peasants who were allowed to move around to work on different land.
There was a belief in medieval England that you would stay at the society level you were born into. So, if you were born a peasant, you would almost always stay a peasant. Peasants' lives were heavily controlled by those above them in society: the nobility, the Church and the king.
Inequality was written into the law. If someone was murdered, the compensation was called a Weregild. The higher someone was in society, the more compensation their family would be paid.
Consequences of the feudal system
This unequal distribution of power and wealth had several implications throughout the medieval period.
In 1215, King John signed the Magna Carta, which was a document that set out how power and decisions would be made between the monarch and powerful nobility. It took away some of the power of the monarch and meant future kings or queens would have reduced power and would be unable to make all decisions on their own.
In 1381, the Peasants' Revolt took place which was partly caused by the peasants being angry at unfair taxes and restrictions on their freedoms.
Decline of the feudal system
Medieval feudalism was essentially based on the relationship of reciprocal aid between lord and vassal but as that system became more complex over time, so this relationship weakened. Lords came to own multiple estates and vassals could be tenants of various parcels of land so that loyalties became confused and even conflicting with people choosing to honour the relationship that suited their own needs best.
Another blow to the system came from sudden population declines caused by wars and plagues, particularly the Black Death (which peaked between 1347-1352), and by peasant revolts (most famously in England in 1381). Such crises caused a chronic shortage of labour and the abandonment of estates because there was no one to work them. The growth of large towns and cities also saw labour leave the countryside to find a better future and the new jobs available there.
By the 13th century, the increase in commerce and the greater use of coinage changed the way the feudal system worked. Money allowed feudal lords to pay their sovereign instead of performing military service; the monarch's use of mercenaries then meant military service, and thus the barons themselves became less important to the defence of the realm. Conversely, a monarch could now distribute money instead of land in his system of rewards. A rich merchant class developed with no ties of loyalty to anyone except their sovereign, their suppliers and their customers. Even serfs could sometimes buy their freedom and escape the circumstances into which they were born. All of these factors conspired to weaken the feudal system based on land ownership and service even if feudalism would continue beyond the medieval period in some forms and in some places.
