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The Reigns of King Richard I and King John, 1189–1216

The feudal system, 1189–1216

  • 3 things to know
  • Paper 2 booklet B

Overview

The king at the top of the feudal hierarchy, tenants-in-chief, homage, knight service, labour service, forfeiture and why rebellion was dangerous, the parish priest, the tithe, and the power of bishops and abbots in royal government.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

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Key term

What was forfeiture, and when was it used?

Key term

What happened in the ceremony of homage?

Key term

What was knight service?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    Who stood at the top of the feudal hierarchy, and what did that mean for the land of England?

    Model answer

    The king, who was held to own all the land in the kingdom, so that everyone else held their land from him rather than owning it outright.

  2. 2

    Who were the tenants-in-chief?

    Model answer

    The greatest barons, bishops and abbots, who held large estates directly from the king and granted parts of them out to knights beneath them.

  3. 3

    What happened in the ceremony of homage?

    Model answer

    A man knelt bareheaded before his lord, placed his hands between the lord’s hands and swore to be his man, and in return was granted land.

  4. 4

    What was knight service?

    Model answer

    The duty of a tenant-in-chief to provide the king with an agreed number of armed knights, normally for forty days of unpaid service each year.

  5. 5

    What was labour service?

    Model answer

    The work an unfree peasant owed on his lord’s own fields, such as ploughing and harvesting, given instead of rent for the strips he farmed himself.

  6. 6

    What was forfeiture, and when was it used?

    Model answer

    The taking back of a man’s lands by the lord who granted them, used when a tenant rebelled, betrayed his oath or was convicted of a serious crime.

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