The Social classes of feudalism Are the hierarchical social divisions characteristic of the political, military and social system that took place in the Middle Ages and whose class structure was based on the possession of lands called fiefs and on the resulting relationship between lord and vassal (Structure, 2012).
This political system prevailed in Europe between the 8th and 14th centuries. Centuries during which the majority of societies were agricultural and were supported by the feudal tradition. Within the feudal system most rights and privileges were given to the highest social classes (Gintis & Bowel, 1984).
Within the hierarchical structure of social classes of the feudal system kings occupied the highest and most important position, followed by barons and nobles, clergy and bishops, knights or vassals and villagers or peasants.
The division of classes within the hierarchy of the feudal system was quite marked between the noble classes and the villagers.
Although the majority of the population of the fiefs was of peasant origin, rights to the land could only be exercised by the upper classes.
Social classes of feudalism
1 - Kings or monarchs
Kings or monarchs were responsible for governing in the kingdom and were the owners of the land of each nation. The king had full control over all properties and decided on the amount of land that each of the barons could borrow.
The barons had to swear allegiance to the king before he could administer the lands lent by the king, thus ensuring his permanent allegiance to the king and his kingdom.
In case a Baron displayed an inappropriate behavior, the kings had the power to withdraw the right to the borrowed land and lend it to someone else who belonged to the class of barons. In other words, all judicial power was in the hands of kings and these were the legitimate landowners of each nation (Newman, 2012).
The royalty within the feudal system included different members, classified as follows:
- The King: He was the ultimate authority of the kingdom and owner of the land. On him lay the responsibility of creating laws, eradicating poverty and caring for the inhabitants of the kingdom.
- The Queen: Although she could not rule alone, the Queen of each kingdom played an important role in the medieval class system. He was usually second in command after the King and served as regents when the King was not in a position to govern. The Queen was also the host and in charge of planning social events.
- The Princes: Depending on the order at birth, a prince could be the next member of the royal family online to take the throne once the King died. The work of the princes consisted chiefly of attending meetings of the royal court.
- The Princesses: Only they could inherit the throne in case there was not a man to take it. Princesses used to marry princes in other kingdoms to secure friendly political and economic relations between nations.
2 - Barons and nobles
The barons and nobles received the land of the king as a loan, to this partial possession of the lands of the king was known as lordship. The barons in the hierarchy of social classes stipulated by the feudal system were the class with more power and wealth after the king.
These nobles were known as feudal lords and had the right to establish their own legal systems, allocate their own currency and implement their own tax regulations and taxes (Burstein & Shek, 2006).
In compensation for the allocation of land, the barons had the following obligations:
- Serve the royal council.
- Provide the King with Knights to deal with any form of war.
- Provide food and accommodation to the king during his travels.
- Pay the taxes and taxes required by the king.
Nobiliary titles could be inherited and thus the land ceded by the king could pass generations within the same family.
3 - The clergy
During the Middle Ages the church played a very important role. For this reason, if the clergy were considered as a social class within the feudal system, it was considered to be of a higher class than the nobles, knights and villagers. The Pope being over all members of the clericate.
Within the clergy and underneath the Pope were the Bishops, bearers of wealth and considered part of the nobility; The priests, who carried the mass inside the castles and were responsible for collecting the taxes of the church; And the monks in the lowest part of the hierarchy of the church, recognized for being scribes carrying coffee robes.
4 - Knights and Vassals
The barons were entitled to lend the land partly granted by the king to the knights. The gentlemen in consideration were to render military services to the king in the name of each baron. In the same way, knights were to protect the feudal lords and their families. (Reynolds, 1994)
The knights used to keep a portion of the land ceded by the barons and distributed the rest to the villagers. Just as the barons could establish a system of tribute and taxes on knights, they could do so on the villagers.
However, the main function of the knights was to protect the king and the kingdom, by such work their greatest source of income came from the payment of the king and not from the land (Bower & Lobdell, 1994).
5 - Villagers, peasants and serfs
The villagers received from the knights the land they could work. In return they were to provide food and serve the upper classes. No villager was allowed to leave the fiefdom without prior authorization from his superiors (Bloch, 1965).
The villagers had no rights and were allowed to marry without the prior consent of their masters. They were the poorest class within the hierarchy of the feudal system. Ninety percent of the people who were part of the feudal systems in Europe were villagers.
Within the lower social class are also serfs and free men, who were completely without political power, the latter being considered the poorest within the social hierarchy of the feudal system.
References
- BLOCH, M. (1965). The Growth of Ties of Dependence. In M. BLOCH, FEUDAL SOCIETY (pp. 59-71). London and New York: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd.
- Bower, B., & Lobdell, J. (1994). History Alive!: The Medieval World and Beyond. Mountain View, CA: Teachers Curriculum Institute (TCI).
- Burstein, S. M., & Shek, R. (2006). World History: Medieval to Early Modern Times (California Social Studies). California Social Studies.
- Gintis, H., & Bowel, S. (1984). The Concept Feudalism. In S. B. Herbert Gintis, Statemaking and Social Movements: Essays in History and Theory (pp. 19-45). Michigan: State and Class in European Feudalism.
- Newman, S. (2012). The finer times. Obtained from Social Classes in the Middle Ages: thefinertimes.com.
- Reynolds, S. (1994). Fiefs and Vassals: The Medieval Evidence Reinterpreted. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
- Structure, H. (29 of 10 of 2012). Hierarchy Structure. Obtained from Feudal System Social Hierarchy: hierarchystructure.com.