unit 2 the castle
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Vocabulary Serf Vassal Fief Demesne Tenure Knight Tournament Page Squire
Nun Bishop Priest Abbot Shell Sword Helm Tithe
Culture Harvest
The Vikings came from Scandinavia. They conquered the Bri6sh Isles, northern France and southern Italy, and they founded kingdoms.
2 The feudal society and its origins The word Feudalism comes from feud (or fief). This is the extension of land which belonged to a king or a noble (the feudal lord), who could cede it to another less powerful noble who then became his vassal. During a commenda6on ceremony the vassal swore loyalty to his lord. He then owed him advice, military service and some6mes financial aid. The vassals could become lord. At the top of the feudal social pyramid, there was the king, considered primus inter pares (first among equals)
tollvillage
forest
crops
lord’s castle
millvillage
The Fief The basic unit of land holding was the manor (or seignury). A lord could hold one many manors. The land of the manor was divided into the demesne, held by the lord for his own use, and the tenures held by the peasants in return for rents or feudal du6es. To maintain order and to defend themselves from enemies, lords relied on the military service of their vassals.
True or false? Correct the false informaHon A fief or manor was a castle Everything grown on a demesne belonged to the lord. The lord gave the land to the peasants so that they could grow their own food. The lords allowed merchants to cross their land and bridges free of charge
Match the words and the definiHons Serf fief vassal a. Land granted to a noble by the king or a higher noble. b. A person who received land from the king or a higher noble in return for homage and allegiance. c. A member of the lowest feudal class obliged to work for a noble.
Noblewomen The most important func6on of noblewomen was to marry and have children. Marriage was arranged by parents. Noblewomen organised the servants, educated children and did sewing and weaving. Women who did not marry went into convents
Feudal society was divided into three orders: Nobles or lords: these were privileged members of society. They controlled the lands. They were the knights and their families. Their duty was to defend the popula6on. They fought on horseback, and their weapons were the lance, the shield and the mace. Nobles sons started their military training when they were eight years old. They served as pages to an important noble and learned to fight. At the age of fiNeen, they became squires and served a knight. If they proved their worth, about five years later they were made knights at a special ceremony
The clergy. The Pope in Rome was the head of the Church and he had great influence, and he could excommunicate a king. Below the Pope the Church was divided into two groups: -‐ the secular clergy ( bishops, priests,…) who lived in the secular world and ministered to ordinary people. -‐ the regular clergy ( abbots, monks,…) who lived in communi6es in monasteries or abbeys and followed the rules of a religious order. Nuns and monks lived in convents and monasteries. They spent most of their 6me in prayer and medita6on. They also worked in the garden and looked aNer the poor and sick. Some monks worked in the library, where they copied manuscripts by hand.
PopeSECULAR CLERGY
bishops abbots
priests superiors of convents and monasteries
friars, monks and nuns
REGULAR CLERGY
refectory: dining room
church
cloister
chapter house: a meeting room
library
guest house
kitchen storeroom
dormitory
garden
infirmary
Peasants: they made up 90 percent of society. They oNen lived on the manor. They could be free (villain or freemen) or not (serf).
Serf: had a very hard life, they could not leave the fief or get married without permission. They worked in the tenures, paid rent, worked for free on the land ( labour or corvées). They had to pay the lords to use the bakery oven, the mill, the bridge or the wine press. They prac6sed two-‐field crop rota6on and used rudimentary tools to farm. Freemen: They could leave the fief and worked on the lord’s land and paid rent but they kept some of the harvest. They paid a 6the of the harvest to the Church
Peasants
Serfs or freemen? Read the statements and decided who they refer to They could not get married without permission__________ They could make personal decisions___________ They owed a 6the to the Church_____________ They were not paid for their work__________ They could leave the fief__________________
Freeman Serfs