Martha
Raup 1/28/06 HIST 04B Foothill College-Dr. Konnilyn Feig

5. Feudalism.

Define feudalism.  Then build a
picture of feudalism and explain how it arose out of the political, economic,
and social conditions of the age. Are you surprised to see its development or
expected it? Why? or Why not? How
important was it?

What is
Feudalism?

Controversy Abounds...

It turns out the word "feudalism" has many meanings, and is the
center of quite a controversy.  In fact, some scholars claim the word has
no meaning at all!  However, I aim to show that the term
"feudalism" IS useful, the practice DID exist, and its emergence has
powerful repercussions even today.

Definition of Feudalism

An essay on feudalism from the Wikipedia describes a complex history of both
the WORD and the CONCEPT of feudalism. [1]
The formal definition given by the American Heritage Dictionary defines feudalism
as "a political and economic system of Europe
from the 9th to about the 15th century, based on the holding of all land in
fief or fee and the resulting relation of lord to vassal and characterized by
homage, legal and military service of tenants, and forfeiture." [2]

So – What’s This Mean?!

A second definition of feudalism is that it is any "political,
economic, or social order resembling this medieval system."[3]
So, the TERM “feudalism” is one applied by later generations to
describe a system that arose during the Middle Ages.  As such, there will always be
controversy about whether the term itself means anything at all.  As the Wikipedia asserts (too bad the
article isn’t authored so we know who is asserting it!), the term was
invented in the 17th century by lawyers in France and England who wanted to
“describe certain traditional obligations between members of the warrior
aristocracy.”[4]  At a later date, radicals in the 18th
century began using the term in a pejorative sense, “to tar the
antiquated system of the Ancien Régime, or French monarchy.”[5]  In the 19th century, Karl
Marx added his own interpretation to this definition of feudalism.  Marx’s analysis and interpretation
of the study of economics led him to believe that “feudalism is the
economic situation coming before the inevitable rise of capitalism.”
Further, for Marx, “what defined feudalism was that the power of
the ruling class (the aristocracy) rested on their control of the farmable
lands, leading to a class society based upon the exploitation of the peasants who
farm these lands, typically under serfdom.”[6]  In the 20th century, once
again, scholars criticized the use of the term, and the meaning of the concept itself.  Some of the criticism was parochial (did
feudalism exist in England BEFORE the Norman
invasion, or did the Normans
import and implement feudalism?).
Other criticisms are historical - was feudalism used by the Normans as a way dominate
and control the English, Anglo-Saxon population?  Some, such as historian Marc Bloch, have
preferred to expand the definition into a sociological description that includes
not only the hierarchical relationship between lords and vassals, but also
between lords and peasants. Finally, some such as historian Elizabeth A.R. Brown
have said the term itself has become, “an anachronistic construct which
imparted a false sense of uniformity to the concept.”

What’s My Point of View?

As a student rather than a scholar, I can avoid the controversies and the
critical distinctions, and simply choose to use the concept in a generic,
general way.  It seems to me
SOMETHING existed in the Middle Ages that was different enough from what
existed both before it and after.
And it is this “something” which many people, rightly or
wrongly, call feudalism.  It may not
have been intentionally created (what social/economic/political system is?),
and it may have varied in its appearance, its operations, and its purposes.  However, it is still a useful
concept.  It enables us to learn and
discuss and THINK about something that we, mostly, understand.  It’s kind of like calling the sky
“blue”, when we all know it matters a lot which sky we’re
talking about, and when, and where it is!
With all this aside, I shall now address the deeper meanings.

How did Feudalism Arise?

Feudalism arose after the demise of the Carolingian empire created by
Charlemagne in the 8th century (768-814).[7]  On pages 142-145 of our textbook[8], Spielvogel describes the feudal world as one
of lords and vassals.  Spielvogel
describes it thus: “With the breakdown of governments, powerful nobles
took control of large areas of land.
They needed men to fight for them, so the practice arose of giving
grants of land to vassals who in return would fight for their lord.”[9]  Encarta Online adds that Charlemagne
used the existing system of seignorialism
in giving nobles “tracts of land in exchange for loyalty and
service.”[10]  In addition, with the introduction of
larger horses and the stirrup to Europe during
the late 7th
century, warriors had begun using armored coats of mail (instead of the
throwing spears the Franks were once known for).[11]
These heavily armored fighting men,
known as “knights” needed
time to train, and money to support them.
The gifts of a fief from their lord enabled them to contract vassals to
work the land, and support them and their families.  The process of enfuedation helped insure
the system of personal loyalty and allegiance functioned for all.

What
Distinguishes Feudalism?

Dr. Feig’s online text, THE
"MIDDLE" CENTURIES OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION FROM BYZANTIUM TO THE FRENCH REVOLUTION,[12]  refers us to several sources of
information online about Feudalism. A particularly useful reference was to an
article called “The Central Middle Ages: The Military Elite”.[13]  Several characteristics distinguish a
feudal society:

·
Political
power is decentralized and personalized.
The lord and vassal, and the lord and king, sustain contracts and
pledges (loyalty oaths) that both connect them and differentiate their
positions in society.  This is a
one-to-one relationship, though later in the era the fiefs, or landholdings,
became inheritable.  Initially,
however, power was distributed via specific relationships between one vassal
and one lord, or one lord and one king.

·
Feudalism
is a military society.  The vassals
owe allegiance to their lords, to provide military defense, and to join others
and act as their lord’s personal army.

·
Feudal
society is informally organized.  No
legal or economic system created or sustained feudalism.  Rather, the informal bonds that
individuals formed between themselves, via custom and socially-sanctioned
expectations, are what gave it its strength and sustenance.  “A feudal society is a world where
oaths and obligations, vows and promises and established expectations and customs
provide the only stability possible.”[14]  This is a society where reciprocity
means that the loyalty oaths bind both parties, and the obligations go both
ways.

How did
Feudalism Develop?

Feudalism developed in the same way other political, social, and
economic systems develop: it worked!
It solved the immediate problems of how to feed one’s family, and
how to defend one’s community.
It provided protection to the lowly-born, and the
wealthily-endowed.  And it united
the entire society, enriching and safe-guarding the world that they knew.  Especially in times of trouble and in a
land of constant turmoil, feudalism offered a respite for the vassals, the
knights, and the lords – and their families!

Are there any other patterns of development?

The answer to this question is YES.
In Britain, feudalism
was installed by the invading Normans
after 1066 as a way to maintain control of the local population.[15] William
the Conqueror assumed ownership of all the lands (as the Franks had done
elsewhere), and then doled out parcels of land as a means of control and
administration.  “Many of the
Norman knights were given parcels of land that they held as fiefs from the new
English king.  William made all
nobles swear an oath of loyalty to him and insisted that all people owed
loyalty to the king rather than to their lords.”[16]

Where Else Was/Is
Feudalism Found?

Oops, that goes beyond the scope of this essay!

How important
was Feudalism?

Feudalism was a significant change in the way the world worked.  Compared to the Pax Romana or the Carolingian
Empire, it was a privatization of power that seemed significantly poorer and
less organized.  However, compared
to marauding invaders and cowered kings, it seemed like a solution made to order!  Furthermore, it provided the economic
success that many say led to the birth of capitalism towards the late Middle
Ages, and under which we are still living.
So – it can perhaps be viewed as the “economic training
wheels” of Western Civilization.

What Happened
to Feudalism?

Sorry, this is a tale I have yet to read!  But I look forward to the rest of the
class.  If it’s anything like
this first third, I’ll learn a lot!

[1] This
article is licensed under the GNU
Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia
article "Feudalism", accessed 1/25/06 from www.answers.com/topic/feudalism?gwp=19.

[2] The
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004, 2000 by Houghton
Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights
reserved. Accessed 1/25/06
from www.answers.com/topic/feudalism?gwp=19.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Wikipedia
article “Feudalism”, 1/25/06.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid.

[7]
Spielvogel, p. 135-145.

[8] Western Civilization, A Brief History, Volume
I To 1715 by: Spielvogel,
Jackson J, 1999; Thompson Learning, Inc, Belmont
CA, 2005. pp. 142-145 and 156-157

[9]
Spielvogel, p. 143.

[10] http://encarta.msn.com/text_761571217__0/Charlemagne.html.  Accessed 1/25/06.

[11]
Wikipedia, “Franks”.
Accessed 1/27/06

[12] THE
"MIDDLE" CENTURIES OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION FROM BYZANTIUM TO THE FRENCH REVOLUTION, http://www.omnibusol.com/medieval.html,
accessed often!

[13] http://www.hcc.hawaii.edu/distance/hist151/feudal.htm, accessed
1/20/06.

[14] Ibid.

[15]
“Medieval Life: Feudalism,” from http://www.historyonthenet.com/Medieval_Life/feudalism.htm.
Accessed 1/20/06.

[16]
Spielvogel, p. 171.