Term
| What was a vassal? What was a lord? What constituted a knight? |
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Definition
The holder of a fief was bound to his lord by an act of homage and an oath of loyalty. He was called the "vassal" or "faithful" (fidelis) or often simply the "man" (homo) of his lord. A lord has aristocratic rank, control over a portion of the land and the produce and labor of the vassals thereof. A knight was a soldier most in demand called the armored calvaryman. |
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Term
| What was the key or heart to the vassal/lord relationship? |
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Definition
| The basic purpose of the feudal relationship was cooperation in war. Next to military service, the most important duties that a vassal owed his lord were counsel and aid. |
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Term
| Where can we detect the origins of feudalism? |
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Definition
| It can be trace back to the time of the barbarian invasions of the Western empire and it seems likely that some came from the Romans, some of them Germans. |
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Term
| What type of impact did the rise of feudalism have on society? |
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Definition
| There was a lot of civil war between lords. |
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