Written and Research by: Jason Romstedt Living in the medieval time period was not as glamorous as it is often portrayed; peasants and serfs led hard lives, however, kings, lords, and knights lived lavishly and at the expense of those under them. In this paper you will read about all of these lifestyles, as well as the castles in which these lords and kings lived in. Mainly castle designs, fortifications, and siege tactics will be revealed to you; yet there are several sections, dealing with the lifestyles of the above mentioned, leading up to that.The Feudal SystemThe social structure of the Middle Ages was based on the practice of feudalism. Feudalism meant that the country was not governed directly by the king, but by individual lords that paid homage to him. These lords: administered their own estates, dispensed their own justice, minted their own currency, levied taxes and tolls, and demanded military service from their vassals. Technically the king was the chief feudal lord, however the individual lords reigned supreme in their territory, doing little more than paying the kings taxes. The idea of feudalism was built upon a mutual service between vassals and lords. As a vassal one was required to attend at the lords court, help administer justice, contribute money, and answer a summons to battle, as well as house and feed the lord when he traveled across his land. The lord was obliged to, protect the vassal, give military aid, and guard his children; this meant that if a daughter were to inherit the fief, the lord would arrange her marriage.Manors were the economic units of life in the early Middle Ages; manors consisted of a manor house, a few villages, and several thousand acres of land, which were divided into meadow, pasture, forest, and cultivated fields. This was shared out so each person had an equal share of good and poor land; at least half the week was spent working on the lords field, maintenance, and special projects....
