West Civ Day #43- Making of Middle Ages

Today in West Civ we started to learn about the Middle Ages. These are the notes from the class:
-feudalism is a political, military and economic system based on land-holding and protective alliances
-system based on personal loyalty to people who can help you
-lord owns land and need people to help defend it and work it
-vassals help the lords on the land
-FEUDAL PYRAMID:

KING

 

Most powerful VASSALS

(nobles and bishops)

 

KNIGHTS who are mounted warriors who received

FIEFS for defending their lords land

 

PEASANTS(mostly SERFS)

Landless, powerless, moneyless, right-less

just working the land for "the man"

 

-FIEFS are parts of land Knights would get

-SERFS are peasants

-Manor is the lord's estate

          -Lord's manor house-a church- some workshops- 15-30 families- all on a few square miles

-a self-sufficient community

-harsh if peasant

-Peasants are poor AND pay high taxes

         -tax on grain- tax on marriage- Church tax(10%)