O feudalism is a system of social, economic and political organization that emerged during the Middle Ages, in force between the 5th and 15th centuries, in Western Europe. It developed from the mixture of aspects of Roman society with characteristics of Germanic kingdoms and presents as its main characteristics the system of collective servitude and adoption of beneficium, of comitatus and the settlement.
In feudalism, the economy was ruralized, and society was divided into three orders (nobles, clergy and peasants) and was estate-based. There was little social mobility.
The crisis of this system occurred from the 11th century onwards, with the strengthening of commercial relations that gave rise to mercantilism. Furthermore, the Crusades, the bubonic plague and the Hundred Years' War played a fundamental role in the disruption of feudalism, contributing to the centralization of royal power.
Read too: How the Catholic Church developed during the Middle Ages
Summary about feudalism
- Feudalism is a system of social, economic and political organization that emerged during the Middle Ages, in force between the 5th and 15th centuries, in Western Europe.
- Its characteristics include: the system of collective servitude and the adoption of beneficium, of comitatus and the settlement.
- In feudalism, society was estate-based and divided into three orders (nobles, clergy and peasants).
- The fief was self-sufficient and hereditary or conquered through donations or wars. It belonged to the nobles or the clergy.
- Work took place through the servitude system, in which landowners guaranteed the protection and safety of settlers who lived and worked on their properties.
- The crisis of feudalism began in the 11th century, with the strengthening of commercial relations that gave rise to mercantilism.
What is feudalism?
Feudalism is a system of social, economic and political organization that emerged during the Middle Ages, in force between the 5th and 15th centuries, in Western Europe.
What is the origin of feudalism?
Feudalism developed in Western Europe from the mixture of aspects of Roman society with characteristics of Germanic kingdoms. It falls within the context of the Middle Ages, a period that extended between the 5th and 15th centuries.
Main characteristics of feudalism
Feudalism presents as its characteristics the system of collective servitude replacing the hand of enslaved labor and the adoption of cultural practices inherited from Germanic peoples, such as the practice of beneficium It's from comitatus.
A practice of beneficium consisted of donating land to warriors as a reward for bravery on the battlefield, and the practice of comitatus it consisted of the loyalty of warriors to a military leader. Furthermore, feudalism adopted the colonato system, in which field workers became tied to the land, granting a part of what they produced to the landowners.
In feudalism, the economy was ruralized, society was divided into three orders (nobles, clergy and peasants) and was estate. There was little social mobility. Relationships occurred vertically and horizontally, an example of a vertical relationship being the relationship between the noble and the servant and an example of a horizontal relationship being suzerainty and vassalage between nobles.
Read too: High Middle Ages — the initial phase of the medieval period
Society in feudalism
Feudal society was essentially rural, estate and divided into three orders: the clergy, the nobles and the peasants.
The clergy were made up of members of the Catholic Church, such as the pope, monks and priests. The nobility was made up of the king, feudal lords and medieval knights. She performed military duties and did not dedicate herself to manual work, which was seen as something without prestige.
The serfs were the peasants, who were most often born and died in fiefdoms, were tied to the land, and could not leave their lots without the authorization of the feudal lords and could not be bought or sold, as happened with the enslaved. Additionally, there were the villains, who were free workers who could offer their services to various feudal lords in exchange for shelter, food, and protection.
Each order had its established function. O religious discourse of the Catholic Church was widely used during this period to try to justify the roles of each order and try to maintain control over the peasants, seeking to avoid revolts.
Furthermore, as the society was status-based, there was little social mobility, since each person belonged to the group into which they were born. Marriage between people from different social groups was not customary and permitted.
Economy in feudalism
In the feudal system, Properties were called fiefdoms and their owners were feudal lords. The formation of fiefs was an inheritance of the culture of the Germanic peoples, who had a custom known as beneficium, which consisted of donating land as a form of gratitude in the context of war.
O fief was self-sufficient and hereditary or conquered through donation or wars and belonged to the nobles or the clergy. During feudalism, the exchange of produced items between fiefdoms was common. As there was not much use of currency, this practice was known as barter.
O work was carried out through the servitude system, in which landowners guaranteed the protection and security of settlers who lived and worked on their properties. In this vertical relationship, the servant did not receive a salary, carried out his work in exchange for housing and protection and handed over part of his production to the nobleman. The servant was tied to the land, did not have the right to abandon the property and could not be sold. In addition, he had a series of obligations, which became known as servile obligations. Among the servile obligations were:
- The corvee, which was free work on manorial lands for a few days of the week;
- The carving, which consisted of the delivery of part of what was produced on servile lands to the feudal lord;
- The banality, which was a fee paid for the use of ovens and mills;
- The capitation, which was the tax paid by an individual who lived in the manor; It is
- The formariage, which consisted of paying tax to nobles for marriages in the fief. In addition to these fees, there was also tithe paid to the Catholic Church.
Plantations on the manor were typically small and subsistence-oriented. The cultivation of grains, fruits and vegetables was common. In addition, there was the production of wine from the cultivation of grapes and the production of bread from wheat. Although there was animal husbandry, such as chickens and goats in the manor, the consumption of meat by peasants was rare, being restricted to the clergy and nobility.
Read too:The role of the merchant in the Late Middle Ages
Politics in feudalism
During feudalism, power was decentralized, and the king was considered suzerain of suzerains, because all the lands in the kingdom were his. In this sense, the donation of fiefs among nobles became common with the aim of creating bonds of fidelity and loyalty. This horizontal practice became known as suzerainty and vassalage relations.
Crisis in feudalism
The crisis of feudalism began in the 11th century, with the strengthening of commercial relations that gave rise to the mercantilism. Furthermore, the Crusades, the bubonic plague and the Hundred Years' War played a fundamental role in the disruption of feudalism, contributing to the centralization of royal power.
End of feudalism
You Commercial, cultural and scientific revivals contributed to the end of feudalism to the extent that they enabled the expansion of royal power, the questioning of the power of the Catholic Church and cultural transformations in Western Europe. Furthermore, the commercial revival enabled the emergence of a new social group: the bourgeoisie, which Little by little he began to form alliances with the kings and develop enterprises together with the nobles.
Read too: Low Middle Ages — the final phase of the medieval period
Solved exercises on feudalism
1. (UFRR 1 2023) “[In the feudal system] While the vassal swore loyalty and obedience to the lord throughout life, the chief or patron of a group of vassals granted them housing, clothing, food and equipment. Sometimes, the lord, in exchange for remuneration in goods, ceded land to the vassal and transferred the obligation to maintain it to him.” (Source: MICELI, Paulo. Feudalism. 3 ed. Campinas: UNICAMP, 1988, p. 37.)
Regarding the Feudal System, it is CORRECT to state that:
a) From the 13th century onwards, taxes linked to fiefs were called Overdue Quota, a type of tax levied by feudal lords even if there was no surplus in the final harvest.
b) The chief or patron of a group of vassals applied severe penalties called Iudicium ad Furtum, if these servants secretly reserved for themselves part of the harvest intended for the feudal lord's profit.
c) Only the high ecclesiastical class – bishops and cardinals – enjoyed the profits obtained in the fiefdom, granting in exchange the exclusive performance of all religious offices to the suzerains.
d) The fief was a form of ownership over some real assets that took place through a pact of fidelity and loyalty, therefore becoming the basis for the establishment of a land aristocracy.
e) The search for specialists in planting and manufacturing equipment took place in the towns where farmers and artisans, specialists in the production or manufacture of equipment, lived.
Response: D. The text mentions the relationship of suzerainty and vassalage that existed in the feudal system. In this horizontal relationship, both were nobles and entered into an alliance based on loyalty and fidelity.
2. (Unesp 2023) Christianity appears in almost all phases of the feudal-vassalic ritual. First, the ceremony (even if none of the participants, neither lord nor vassal, are clerics) can take place in a church, a privileged place for entering into vassalage. And it is often emphasized that the ceremony takes place in the most sacred part of the church, the main altar.
The oath that constitutes an essential element of fidelity is almost always sworn on a religious object, and even a particularly sacred one — the Bible or relics.
(Jacques Le Goff. Towards a new concept of the Middle Ages: time, work and culture in the West, 1980. Adapted.)
When characterizing one of the main rituals of feudalism in medieval Western Europe, the excerpt highlights:
a) the submission of kings and lords to papal power.
b) the relationship mechanism between masters and workers.
c) the complete political decentralization existing in feudalism.
d) the link between personal commitments and religious commitments.
e) the decline of urban activities during the feudal period.
Response: D. During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church played a central role in people's public and private lives. During the ceremony of homage between vassal and suzerain, the Church played an aggregating role, legitimizing the action.
Sources:
RUE, JosephJobsonof A. and PILETTI, Nelson. All the history. 4 ed. São Paulo: Ática, 1996.
PANAZZO, Silvia; VAZ, Maria Luisa. Journeys. History. – History, 7th year. 2nd ed. São Paulo: Saraiva, 2012.
VICENTINO, Cláudio; DORIGO, Gianpaolo; VICENTINO, José. Multiple Project; History, single volume. São Paulo: Scipione, 2014.
