Feudalism is an important part of the history of social organizations in the West As such, these organizations are made up of political and economic elements that are complexly and closely related to the social structure. That is, there is a hierarchy where one or more modes of production are related to social superstructures such as politics or the State.
In the case of the feudal system, what is at its core is the intention to ensure the survival of the warrior caste. For this, it will be the peasants or serfs who cover the expenses of those who fight. In medieval Europe, the latter occurs through a manorial system that organizes a complex network of loyalties and obligations in a production chain, whose highest link is the crown and the lowest the serf.
In this article We will see what feudalism is, what are its background and development as well as some of the main features.
feudalism is the social system that dominated Western Europe and its colonies during the Middle Ages specifically from the 8th to the 15th century, and was expanded by the Carolingian dynasty.
Broadly speaking, its organization consists of the following: in exchange for the oath of fidelity and military service, the king cedes a part of land to a vassal, who is part of the nobility.
Without having ownership rights and without the commitment to inherit said land, vassals acquire the possibility of using and managing it. This contractual relationship is known as “vassalage.” and the tribute that is granted in exchange for the right over the land is called “feudal tenure.” The person in charge of managing said tenure and representing feudal relations is called “tenente”.
The territory in question is worked by peasants (called serfs), who were forced to live on the same land and paid tribute to the owner by giving him a part of the worked product. In exchange they received the promise of military protection.
Brief history: from the Roman Empire to the final crisis
Like all social systems, feudalism followed a historical trajectory, both at the economic and political and social levels. In the economic dimension, this trajectory began with taxes and advanced to trade; In politics it was developed through a centralized monarchy, and in social it was structured by castes that ranged from the clergy and the army until finally the bourgeoisie.
Considering that the latter developed in different ways in each territory, we will see below a review of what happened in Western Europe.
Background and development
In the 5th century, the empire that had dominated Western Europe since the 1st century fell: the Roman Empire. The territory is no longer unified and It is divided into the Eastern Roman Empire and the Western Roman Empire The first advances culturally and intellectually alongside the institutionalization of Christianity, and ends until the fall of Constantinople in the 15th century.
The second was destroyed several centuries earlier, as a consequence of the barbarian invasions that allowed the final transition to the Middle Ages. This happened after numerous wars that took place in the 5th and 6th centuries, which among other things generated an increase in the number of slaves.
Far from joining the traditional slave estates that were characteristic of Roman antiquity, many of these slaves became free tenants. However, due to the collapse of the estates, many of them were dispersed into different holdings, giving rise to servitude This represents one of the beginnings of feudalism.
But already in Ancient Rome, production relations were beginning to be generated based on the tribute or tax imposed by the owners of a subject field. The analysis of the most classic feudalism shows that the latter emerged from a relationship based on servitude and the coercive political authority exercised by the tenants and the lordship inaugurated in the Middle Ages as a consequence of the expansion of slavery.
However, other perspectives add that in the late period of the Roman Empire there was already a society that was beginning to be dominated by the feudal mode of production, based on payment in kind of a land tax which later became an income.
It was the representative of the Carolingian dynasty, Charles Martel, who at the end of the 8th century gave his nobles some rights over the land, so that he could ensure the income necessary to maintain the army
In exchange for this, the noble or vassal would have to pay tribute and gratitude. This exchange is called a “fief”, and the owner is called a “feudal lord” This allows for the development of a relationship between lord and vassal, as well as the expansion of the feudal pyramid.
Feudalism finally took hold around the 10th century, while the aristocracy found itself in close relationship with Christianity. In this context, the pope has special powers and privileges as God’s representative on earth, and it is precisely the papacy that at the end of the 12th century has the largest number of feudal vassals.
Crisis and decline
Over the centuries, feudalism became an abusive, rigid and very complex system. Its original structure, where a chain of loyalties and personal relationships used to be generated, begins to become a centralized monarchy
Among other things, fiefs begin to be inherited, which causes the ties between vassal and lord to be lost. Religious institutions and the high clergy take administrative, economic and military power; The kings use the feudal organization to stay at the top of the pyramid.
Furthermore, the military protection that was previously granted, begins to be replaced by monetary exchange ; which opened the door to commerce. The development of infantry weapons and agricultural techniques made it no longer essential to establish relations based on war, and made it possible to establish relations more based on economic development.
Finally, feudalism as a social, political and economic system declines due to armed conflicts such as the crusades; and health conflicts such as the appearance of serious diseases such as plagues. Added to this was the erosion of farmland, along with the increase in the possibilities of renting land that They gave more independence to the peasantry as well as the opening of new routes that generate migration and population growth.
In the era of feudalism there is a relatively low accumulation of capital, because in many social strata the subsistence economy prevails. Therefore, agriculture is the basis of production, and there is no manufactured product with a very high level of sophistication or specialization (compared to current standards).
2. No surplus is produced
Another characteristic of feudalism is that, since there is a subsistence economy, there is no surplus left in the hands of the common people. The little that is left is confiscated by the masters of the earth and that is why there is little trade between distant territories.
Compared to the modern era, in which the development of technology allows many tasks to be automated, this accumulation of capital does not produce an extremely large level of inequality, and social asymmetries are more political and coercive than economic.
3. Wealth is the possession of land
In feudalism, The main means of generating wealth is the possession of land, since this allows production centers to be generated from what is produced in that territory. For this reason, the economy revolves around the possession of land, with which there is still no speculation.
4. There is no social elevator
Something typical of feudalism is that each family belongs to a social class or estate, and Their chances of moving to another social level are practically non-existent since the rights are assigned depending on the family in which one was born.
This means that even if a family did very well economically, it would never compete with other higher levels in terms of power.
5. The king and the nobility need each other
In feudalism, political power is distributed between the king and the nobles, and neither of these two institutions has absolute power. The king represents sovereignty and territorial union, and under his reign the nobles who are loyal to him are organized; but at the same time the king depends militarily and economically on the nobles. These two levels need each other.
