Inequalities In The Middle Ages

At first knights and soldiers in the armies were of little social status. “Many knights in fact possessed little more than peasants” (Spielvogel 244). War was looked as kind of a barbaric act in the beginning and many knights could be found fighting each other. While some of this was tolerated, as they were seen as “defenders of society”, the Catholic Church decided that there should be some ground rules. At the start of the eleventh century, the church urged knights to take an oath to protect churches, and to not harm noncombatants. These rules allowed for battles to follow a civil path and to be carried out in a noble way.

You would think the middle ages were a time where everyone had money and rode dragons. However, the middle ages were a time where you were either part of the rare rich life or down by the pigs. During the Middle Ages, Europeans social, economic and political life was defined by feudalism. Feudalism was the social system in medieval Europe, when knights would fight for nobles, lords, and kings in exchange for land (OI).

The Middle Age involves feudalism where there was an exchange of power and land for loyalty and service. The king dealt out large estates to Lords which divided power to Knights providing stability, order,

“In the early middle ages Knights were just common men who rode horses and fought in armor to protect the kings land(tlj2)”. They also trained on them, It helps the English army prepare for war, both men and women played in the hunting games. The rewards for hunting were really for the nobles to show off horses, hawks, clothing and weapons. They hunted bears, boars and other wild animals.

First of all, the trainees had to be the son of a knight to even start training. They would go to a retired Knight's manor or house. Then they would work for him, and in return he would train them to become a knight (Farman). Any knight in training thought that "handling weapons and horseback riding were often painful parts of training" (Stiefel). While they went through the the training to fight, the trainees also had to learn the rules or "Code of Chivalry" (Farman). These were rules they had to learn to become a knight. Knights can't tell a lie, Knights must defend the Catholic Church, and Knights must always defend the weak, suppress all wicked, and honor God. Knights must be brave and loyal. Knights must regard women highly and never cheat on another Knights wife or girlfriend. The object of battle is to capture the enemies, not kill them. Knights weren't allowed to fight during lent or Christmas, and if a knight captures an enemy them treat him by his rank. Knights had to follow these rules always even in battle. And after all of your training commenced you had to be dubbed by the knight and say prayers while taking a bath in Holy Water. But even after they survived training, it costs a fortune to play for armor and a strong warhorse. But clearly this training was one of, if not the most

through the 1500’s. Faithful knights dedicated themselves zealously to their lords, and their primary duty was as an elite soldier, who would (tenaciously) defend the landholdings of his master. These soldiers did not battle for honor alone, but rather but in exchange for land and wealth. Fortunately for the knights, they could put their wealth to good use, as their horses and armor could cost as much as a modern day small airplane. In battle, these warriors boasted a skill set which included jousting, archery, and hand to hand combat. Competing in tournaments served both to sharpen the skills of the soldiers as well as entertain the crowds of peasants, which served as a pleasant diversion from their troubles. When the knights weren’t battling for fame and glory, they served as the managers of their lords’ estates and provided law and order for the peasants and serfs. As the Age of Knights drew to a close at the end of the 1500’s, their duties were replaced by others, but their honor and mystique

Knights had many jobs within feudalism. One of the knights jobs was to fight when it was a time of war. Most of the knights only served in battle when they were called for war by their lord (Norman 122). If needed, all of a lord’s vassals got called to war (Norman 123).

The feudal society worked to give everyone a job and rules to follow so that there wasn’t any confusion on right and wrong, “If anyone shall wish to leave his lord (seniorem), and is able to prove against him one of these crimes, that is, in the first place, if the lord has wished to reduce him unjustly into servitude; in the second place, if he has taken counsel against his life; in the third place, if the lord has committed adultery with the wife of his vassal; in. the fourth place, if he has wilfully attacked him with a drawn sword; in the fifth place, if the lord has been able to bring defence to his vassal after he has commended his hands to him, and has not done so; it is allowed to the vassal to leave him” ("Feudal" Capitularies - 9th Cent). Monarchs lords and church officials all worked together to come up with or write down laws. Each social class had a set of laws looking out for their well-being. If a vassal could prove they were being mistreated they would be freed. If someone was suffering in feudal society efforts would be made to help them. Feudalism helped provide everyone with security by providing solutions to the problems they might find in their jobs and daily

In the 700s the first knights fought for Charlemagne, the King of the Franks. Charlemagne used soldiers and horseback to fight battles across the large empire. The soldiers were a very important factor in his army. A land called benefices is what Charlemagne used to reward his best knights. If these knights were given land they would then have to fight for Charlemagne whenever they were needed. This practice was caught on through all of Europe and was standard practice in the next 700 years for many different kings.

The king will usually grant what is known as a fief or portions of land to nobles or lords or barons in exchange for their loyalty, protection and their services. The king could and would also give fiefs to knights for their military service. Many knights were warriors who served in the lord's army. In return for their service, lords gave knights many riches such as food, armor, weapons, horses and money. Peasants farmed land and provided the lords with wealth in the form of food and products rather than money. Peasants were bound to the land because it’s where they worked therefore it was in the knights interest to protect them from invaders or any other type of harm. Fiefs usually were from passed down leadership from father to son throughout

In Western European feudal societies during the Middle Ages, the upper class obtained significant advantages over peasants through biased laws, representation in the government, and

The medieval time period survived on a system that provided order and good military, this system was called Feudalism. Serfs had a major role in the medieval time period, they were the ones, along with the freemen, who did the hard work in the manor, not only for themselves to survive on, but for the whole manor, the lord, and the king. Feudalism was a type of government, it was created not for fairness, but for organization. Without serfs, the feudal system would deteriorate, therefore, there needed to be a specific role for labor, or no drudgery would ever be done. Feudalism brought many things to everyone in this time period, some people got more freedom than others, some worked harder than others, everyone had a role, they may be treated differently for the role, but they all matter.

Knights had many effects in the Medieval Ages from their status to creating a functional feudal society. Knights had a major role in the Medieval Ages. Knights were warriors who fought on horseback ("People of the Middle Ages"), but beside from being fighters they were also part of noble class. They were soldiers and nobles, and each had an impact. Knights

Feudalism and manorialism gave people ranks, economy, and military that helped people live their lives in the dark times of medieval ages. The shepherds

After the fall of Rome, the Middle Ages were doleful, but as time progressed, they became more promising. For these reasons, the Middle Ages were both dark and light. The Feudal system was put into place by William the Conquerer and the Normans during the Middle Ages. The Feudal system ranked people by class.