What was feudalism?
Feudalism was a social and political system in medieval Europe in which kings granted land to nobles in exchange for military service, and peasants worked the land in return for protection.
At the top was the king, who owned the land. He gave large estates, called fiefs, to powerful nobles, such as dukes and barons, who swore loyalty and promised to provide knights. These lords, in turn, gave smaller pieces of land to lesser lords and knights, called vassals. The ceremony of swearing loyalty was called homage.
At the bottom were peasants, many of them serfs, who were tied to the land. They farmed the lord's fields, paid taxes and fees and could not leave without permission. In return, the lord offered protection and justice. Most people in medieval Europe were peasants.
Decline
Feudalism began to decline in the late Middle Ages. The Black Death killed so many workers that surviving peasants could demand better conditions. The growth of towns, trade, money and stronger central governments also weakened the system. Serfdom continued in parts of Eastern Europe much longer, until 1861 in Russia.
Did You Know?
Historians debate the word feudalism, because the system varied greatly from place to place and the term was invented long after the Middle Ages.