European+Feudalism+(Part+Deaux)

=Feudalism Introduction= European Feudalism was the social organization created during the Middle Ages by exchanging grants of land or fiefs in return for formal oaths of allegiance and promises of loyal service; greater lords provided protection and aid to lesser lords in return for military service. Feudal relationships linked military elites, mostly landlords, who could afford the horses and iron weaponry necessary to fight. The lesser lords, protected by the greater lords were called vassals. The vassals in turn owed their greater lords military service, goods, payments, or advice. Feudalism provided a new way of social organization and in general society became more posperous and unified.

Manorialism was like a base for feudalism. Manorialism was a system that described economic and political relations between landlords and their pesant laborers during the Middle Ages; involved a hierarchy or reciprocal obligations that exchanged labor or rents for access to land. Most people were serfs living on self-sufficient agricultural estates called manors. If a lord gave a serf land, he automatically owed his lord military service in turn for protection. This system became a strong economic base for feudalism. =Development Of Fuedalism= The absence of a government and central authority after the decline of the Western Roman Empire rquired people to make personal arrangements for their safety. The need for such arrangements became acute because of raids by Germanic tribes, Vikings and Saracens. The chaos created by the raids helped the practices of precarium, vassalage, immunity and commendation to evolve into Fuedalism.

Fuedalism allowed for europe to recover from the decline of the Western Roman Empire. Fuedalism also set a political and social order, and safety for all the people, it also allowed military personnel to become in charge.

Women were mainly used in the fuedal periods as ties between families, to become allies. Women were left to run the farms, mills, breweries and defenses on the home front. The legal status of a woman also depended on where she lived. Although women weren't really affected during the fuedal period.

=Major Contributors/Lasting Effects= Charlemange or Charles the Great was a major supporter of Feudalsim. He liked the system because he could not afford to pay his bureaucracy. Instead of money, he paid his military leaders with estates. These leaders then converted these estates into family property in return for pledges of loyalty. these feudal relationships extended to cover larger regions, which helped to build a more stable version of Feudalism. Kings supported this system because they could use it to build their own power. They used marriage alliances and vassal relationships to bring more territory under their control. Kings gaining power upset many peasants. This influenced the transition fro Feudalism to a constitutional monarchy, a form of government where the ruler's power is kept in check by laws. Constitutional monarchies are still popular in and around Europe today.

=Why is European Feudalism Unique?= European Feudalism shares main characteristics with other forms that have existed, but it is also unique. In European Feudalism, the political economy of the system was local and agricultural. This is because of its manorialism base.

=Contibuting To The Fall= Multiple events during the Feudalism area were direct effects of the system itself. Feudalism created a limitation for the aristocracy.The gaining of power from the monarchy cut into the power they upheld, seen in the "Three Orders", or the main social classes. This didn't go over well considering they were at the top of the "Three Order" pyrimad. After the aristocracy's dissatisfaction with the King the Magna Carta was created to set limitations on the kingship. When the Magna Carta was signed it confirmed feudal rights against monarchial rights. The document weakened the power of the king and strengthened the lords power. As seen in the Hundred Years War, which demonstrated the futility of some of the military and organization methods attatched to feudalism exposed the holes and flukes in the system. The move out of feudalism, because of The Hundred Years War, in order to move towards a more centralized government. The Feudalism System didn't work because of everyone's thirst for power. With everyone trying to get ahead only arguments were the outcome, which left no room for compromise or productive functioning.