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social class. capitanei. vassal, in feudal society, one invested with a fief in return for services to an overlord. Some vassals did not have fiefs and lived at their lord’s court as his household knights. Certain vassals who held their fiefs directly from the crown were tenants in chief and formed the most important feudal group, the barons.
A vassal[ 1 ] or liege subject[ 2 ] is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain. The rights and obligations of a vassal are called vassalage, while the rights and ...
The vassal-lord bond reminds us of the delicate balance between rights and responsibilities, freedom and servitude, and power and accountability. As we journey forward in the modern era, understanding the nuances of vassalage from the Middle Ages can guide our perceptions of duty, loyalty, and the essence of human connections.
The vassal-lord relationship was established through the act of commendation, in which a free man pledged loyalty and service to a lord in exchange for protection and the grant of land. This agreement was formalized through an oath of fealty, in which the vassal pledged to serve the lord with “faith, loyalty and courage”, while the lord committed to provide protection and support.
The lord then granted the fief, and the vassal became bound by various obligations. One of the most critical laws was the hereditary right, where a vassal’s heir could inherit the land and its responsibilities. This ensured continuity in the service to a lord and perpetuated the hierarchical structure.
Vassals can also be referred to as “feudal tenants”. Medieval vassals were free men given authority to handle some of a King’s or the Lord’s estates, which were called a ‘fief’. The term vassal originally emerged during the medieval era of the middle ages as the feudal system was established in England in 1066 after the rest of the ...
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homage and fealty,, in European society, solemn acts of ritual by which a person became a vassal of a lord in feudal society. Homage was essentially the acknowledgment of the bond of tenure that existed between the two. It consisted of the vassal surrendering himself to the lord, symbolized by his kneeling and giving his joined hands to the ...
