The political structure of medieval England.
The medieval period in English history – often termed the middle or dark ages - began c.400 AD and ended with the beginning of the Renaissance period in c.1400 AD (History.com). This period of English history is often defined as the dark ages due to a general lack of knowledge, due to the lack of writing from this period that survives and can be deciphered. The political and social structure of that time was that of feudalism. In this essay, I will discuss the development and eventual end of the feudal system, explain how the system operated, the links between the classes and what each classes role was. Finally, I will outline some of the advantages and disadvantages of the feudal system.
I would …show more content…
It worked on the basis of obligation, land, and trust. The land or ‘fief’ was the main prerogative, in which the landowner would bequeath the land to those of a lower standing than himself in return for goods, protection and other military services (Feudalism). For example, the King occupies the highest point of the pyramid as he is the principal landowner, as he cannot control all the land himself he divides the land up between individual nobles in the form of manors. In return for this the nobles swear an oath of loyalty to the king, agree to supply knights to fight the wars for him and to sit on the royal council (Feudal System Social Hierarchy). In this respect, the King did not possess any real power: every time he required an army or money he had to go to the barons for help. This ultimately left the barons in control of the King, if they did not agree with something, they simply refused the King’s …show more content…
As previously discussed the peasants had little to no freedom and many of the decisions of the state were made without them having a say. This means that the king has the ultimate power to raise taxes if he sees fit, this can lead to the alienation of the peasants and possible revolution. As happened in 1381. The Black Death had ravished the country and massively reduced the population – 1.5 million had been killed between 1348 and 1350 (historylearningsite). Alongside this, the king increased the taxes to fund the hundred year’s war; the peasants thus led a march on London led by Wat Tyler. The rebellion was a failure, however, as Wat Tyler was arrested early on and Richard II quashed the rebellion by promising a set of reform then going back on his word and ordering harsh punishments for those involved. Alongside this, another instance of the king abusing his feudal rights occurred under the rule of King John. King John ruled England from 1199-1216 and during this time he abused his feudal rights to excess (Magna Carta in Context - the British Library Shop). This began to anger the barons who led a revolt against him. The loss of this rebellion led to the creation of the Magna Carta in
The medieval period in English history – often termed the middle or dark ages - began c.400 AD and ended with the beginning of the Renaissance period in c.1400 AD (History.com). This period of English history is often defined as the dark ages due to a general lack of knowledge, due to the lack of writing from this period that survives and can be deciphered. The political and social structure of that time was that of feudalism. In this essay, I will discuss the development and eventual end of the feudal system, explain how the system operated, the links between the classes and what each classes role was. Finally, I will outline some of the advantages and disadvantages of the feudal system.
I would …show more content…
It worked on the basis of obligation, land, and trust. The land or ‘fief’ was the main prerogative, in which the landowner would bequeath the land to those of a lower standing than himself in return for goods, protection and other military services (Feudalism). For example, the King occupies the highest point of the pyramid as he is the principal landowner, as he cannot control all the land himself he divides the land up between individual nobles in the form of manors. In return for this the nobles swear an oath of loyalty to the king, agree to supply knights to fight the wars for him and to sit on the royal council (Feudal System Social Hierarchy). In this respect, the King did not possess any real power: every time he required an army or money he had to go to the barons for help. This ultimately left the barons in control of the King, if they did not agree with something, they simply refused the King’s …show more content…
As previously discussed the peasants had little to no freedom and many of the decisions of the state were made without them having a say. This means that the king has the ultimate power to raise taxes if he sees fit, this can lead to the alienation of the peasants and possible revolution. As happened in 1381. The Black Death had ravished the country and massively reduced the population – 1.5 million had been killed between 1348 and 1350 (historylearningsite). Alongside this, the king increased the taxes to fund the hundred year’s war; the peasants thus led a march on London led by Wat Tyler. The rebellion was a failure, however, as Wat Tyler was arrested early on and Richard II quashed the rebellion by promising a set of reform then going back on his word and ordering harsh punishments for those involved. Alongside this, another instance of the king abusing his feudal rights occurred under the rule of King John. King John ruled England from 1199-1216 and during this time he abused his feudal rights to excess (Magna Carta in Context - the British Library Shop). This began to anger the barons who led a revolt against him. The loss of this rebellion led to the creation of the Magna Carta in