Feudalism: The Manor System

The Manor System is the economical side of Feudalism. It was based on a set of rights between a lord and his serfs. The Manor System was happening during the time of Feudalism and was a way of earning money and having power. The system was very one sided money wise. Between the lord and the serfs, the lord would benefit the most. The Manor System was a way to compromise all the “lands, buildings, and individuals” that belonged to a lord (Streissguth). The system worked by a lord giving out “housing, farmland, and protection from bandits” to serfs (Beck 360). In return, the serfs would maintain the land, care for the lord’s animals, and do other tasks that were needed to be done. All peasants had to do work for the lord, even if they were not a serf. For all of these tasks to be done, it would take at least “a few days of labor each week” and portions of the peasant’s grain (Beck 360). The manor they lived on was not very big, being only …show more content…
Peasants and serfs would not have “traveled more than 25 miles” from the manor they lived on (Beck 360). The peasants and serfs would be near their manor at all times working. The community was very self-sufficient, everything was done within the manor without the help of outsiders. The peasants and serfs would make everything on the manor with the exception of being able to buy “salt, iron, and a few unusual objects such as millstones” outside of the manor (Beck 362). The way the lords would earn money was by having the peasants and serfs pay a tax. They would have a tax for all the grain that was ground and marriages would have to be paid for and could only happen with the approval of the lord. The serfs and peasants were expected to be extremely loyal to their lord. If one decided to “avoid taxes by baking bread elsewhere” they would be committing a crime (Beck 362). The peasants and serfs were seen as very loyal people who devoted their lives into helping out their