Feudalism was the political and military system of the Middle Ages.

1. Feudalism was the political and military system of the Middle Ages.

2. In the feudal system, the king was weak. He needed soldiers. He exchanged land for soldiers.

3. To increase the size of his army, he gave land to lords. In turn, the lords provided the king with soldiers.

4. Of course, lords could now give some of their land to lesser lords to increase the size of their armies.

5. In feudalism, land was power!

6. Without a strong central government, local leaders made decisions. Lords were very powerful.

7. Oh, and don’t forget the poor serf. In dangerous times, he needed protection. He agreed to give up his freedom, to never leave his lord’s land, and work for the lord in exchange for protection.

8. Yes, land and soldiers are key characteristics of a feudal system. In These dangerous times, people live on the lord’s land.

9. A fief is all of the lord’s land and the manor is part of a fief. A manor is the land where the people lived and worked.

10. A manor is self-sufficient. It produces all that the people need. In dangerous times, people are afraid to travel and trade.

11. While feudalism offered people protection in dangerous times, it also restricted people. The feudal system was a fixed class system.

12. Birth determined social class. A person was born a serf or a lord. Social mobility did not exist.