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 .

Vassal, one invested with a fief in return for services to an overlord in a feudal society. Under the feudal contract, the lord had the duty to provide the fief for his vassal, to protect him, and to do him justice in his court.

Feudalism describes a combination of legal, military and social customs that flourished in Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.

Nov 22, 2018 · A simple definition of feudalism is the system where a landowner (the lord) gave a fief (a piece of land) in return for a payment or promise of service from the person who received it (the vassal). The lord also promised to protect the vassal.

In the feudal system, Medieval Vassals by definition were people granted the use of a King’s land in return for their services, which included homage, fealty, and military services equivalent to that of a lord. Vassals can also be referred to as “feudal tenants”.

Feudalism flourished between the tenth and thirteenth centuries in western Europe. At its core, it was an agreement between a lord and a vassal. A person became a vassal by pledging political allegiance and providing military, political, and financial service to a lord.

Jan 15, 2025 · Understanding the role of vassals is essential to unraveling the complexities of feudalism and its impact on history. The feudal system can be visualized as a pyramid, with the monarch or king at the apex, wielding absolute power and authority.

In England, the feudal pyramid was made up of the king at the top with the nobles, knights, and vassals below him. Before a lord could grant land to a tenant he would have to make him a vassal at a formal ceremony. This ceremony bound the lord and vassal in a contract.

May 11, 2018 · vassal a holder of land by feudal tenure on conditions of homage and allegiance; the word comes (in late Middle English, via Old French) from medieval Latin vassalius ‘retainer’, of Celtic origin.

Feudal practices varied from place to place and developed and altered with the passage of time. Nonetheless, certain general conceptions were accepted almost everywhere. One of the most significant was that of a feudal contract. The lord owed something to the vassal, just as the vassal owed something to the lord.