The origins of feudalism

1. THE ORIGINS OF FEUDALISM THE INVASION OF THE 9TH CENTURY

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After the fall of the Carolingian Empire, Europe was divided into many small kingdoms.

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In he 9 th century Europe was an insecure place as a result of a new wage of invasions: 1.

The Vikings: - They were from Scandinavia.

- They conquered territories in Britain, France, and southern Italy.

- There were Viking expeditions to Russia, Sicily and in other parts of Europe.

2. The Normans: - They established in north-west France - They were descendants of the Scandinavian Vikings.

3. The Hungarians or The Magyars: - They came from western Asia.

- They settled in Eastern Europe 4. The Muslims: - From the North of Africa - They were a threat along the Mediterranean coast.

1. THE ORIGINS OF FEUDALISM -

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THE RISE OF FEUDAL LORDS These invasions weakened Royal authority.

The kings could not guarantee the security because of that they turned to nobles and church leaders for support.

They gave feudal lords great estates (latifundios = grandes fincas) Feudal lords had their own castles and armies.

At first these Royal grants of land were for a limited time, but they rapidly became permanent and hereditary.

Feudal lords could offer military protection to the peasants which had to work for noblemen in exhcange of protection.

A new type of rural society had developed: the coloni became serfs and worked for a single lord and were tied to the same piece of land.

1. THE ORIGINS OF FEUDALISM -

THE NATURE OF FEUDALISM DEFINITION OF FEUDALISM: - It was the social, economic and political system that emerged in Europe in he 9 th century.

- In this system, a lord granted a fief (feudo) or land to his vassals (vasallos) in return for services and loyalty. People who accepted these obligations were called vassals.

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The king was a great feudal lord (se単or feudal)who granted fiefs to leading nobles. In return, these lords paid homage (homenaje) to the king and promise him loyalty and military assistance.

But these nobles also granted smaller fiefs to the knights (caballeros) who became their vassals.

So vassalage (vasallaje) became a network of strong personal ties across society.

A knight could receive fiefs from various lords.

Many feudal lords were totally independent of Royal authority and ruled their fiefs as if they were monarchs.

1. THE ORIGINS OF FEUDALISM FEUDAL MONARCHIES - As a result of the feudalism, kings had little authority because most of their territories were granted to feudal lords.

- Kings: - They received income from heir own lands - They collected taxes from a few towns - They had not direct power in the fiefs that were held by their vassals.

- In wartime, the king asked nobles to fight with their private armies.

- In theory, the kings and their vassals were united by their feudal allegiances , but in practice, there was continuous fighting between kings and their vassals, as well as between nobles.