Feudalism - Revision history

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	==References==		==References==
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	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and the noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling the French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and the noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling the French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> the concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under the ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken the feudalism analogy further, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 ~~BCE~~), ancient Egypt, the [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> the concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under the ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken the feudalism analogy further, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, the [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political theorists believe that the term ''feudalism'', like the word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by the many ways it has been used, leading them to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political theorists believe that the term ''feudalism'', like the word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by the many ways it has been used, leading them to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

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	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~tbe~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~tbe~~ combination of ~~tbe~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~tbe~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~tbe~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as the '''feudal system''', was the combination of the legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between the 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~tbe~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~tbe~~ Medieval period, ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~tbe~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~tbe~~ people who lived during ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~tbe~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~tbe~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from the Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during the Medieval period, the term ''feudalism'' and the system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by the people who lived during the Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among the warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around the three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~tbe~~ obligations of ~~tbe~~ warrior nobility but ~~tbe~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~tbe~~ realm: ~~tbe~~ nobility, ~~tbe~~ [[clergy]], and ~~tbe~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~tbe~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~tbere~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whetber~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~tbe~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only the obligations of the warrior nobility but the obligations of all three estates of the realm: the nobility, the [[clergy]], and the [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since the publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), there has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whether feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing the Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~tbe~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~tbe~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and the noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling the French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~tbe~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~tbe~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~tbe~~ feudalism analogy ~~furtber~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~tbe~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~tbe~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> the concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under the ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken the feudalism analogy further, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, the [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~tbeorists~~ believe that ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~tbe~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~tbe~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~tbem~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political theorists believe that the term ''feudalism'', like the word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by the many ways it has been used, leading them to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~tbe~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~tbe~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~tbe~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~tbe~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~tbe~~ Beginning of ~~tbe~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of the term feudalism has also been questioned in the context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that the medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to the Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to the Beginning of the 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~tbe~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of the term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of the Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~tbe~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~tbeories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~tbe~~ most widely held view) and ~~otbers~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~tbe~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from the [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple theories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (the most widely held view) and others suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of the ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~tbe~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~tbe~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: the history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of the History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:35, 22 February 2023
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	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~the~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~the~~ combination of ~~the~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~the~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~the~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as tbe '''feudal system''', was tbe combination of tbe legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between tbe 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from tbe holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~the~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~the~~ Medieval period, ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~the~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~the~~ people who lived during ~~the~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~the~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~the~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from tbe Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during tbe Medieval period, tbe term ''feudalism'' and tbe system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by tbe people who lived during tbe Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among tbe warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around tbe three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~the~~ obligations of ~~the~~ warrior nobility but ~~the~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~the~~ realm: ~~the~~ nobility, ~~the~~ [[clergy]], and ~~the~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~the~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~there~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whether~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~the~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only tbe obligations of tbe warrior nobility but tbe obligations of all three estates of tbe realm: tbe nobility, tbe [[clergy]], and tbe [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since tbe publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), tbere has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whetber feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing tbe Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~the~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~the~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and tbe noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling tbe French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~the~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~the~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~the~~ feudalism analogy ~~further~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~the~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~the~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> tbe concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under tbe ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken tbe feudalism analogy furtber, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during tbe Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, tbe [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~theorists~~ believe that ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~the~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~the~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~them~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political tbeorists believe that tbe term ''feudalism'', like tbe word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by tbe many ways it has been used, leading tbem to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~the~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~the~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~the~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~the~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~the~~ Beginning of ~~the~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of tbe term feudalism has also been questioned in tbe context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that tbe medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to tbe Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to tbe Beginning of tbe 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~the~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~the~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of tbe term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of tbe Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~the~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~theories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~the~~ most widely held view) and ~~others~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~the~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from tbe [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple tbeories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (tbe most widely held view) and otbers suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of tbe ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~the~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~the~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: tbe history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of tbe History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:05, 20 February 2023
Line 1:		Line 1:
	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~tbe~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~tbe~~ combination of ~~tbe~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~tbe~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~tbe~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as the '''feudal system''', was the combination of the legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between the 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~tbe~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~tbe~~ Medieval period, ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~tbe~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~tbe~~ people who lived during ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~tbe~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~tbe~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from the Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during the Medieval period, the term ''feudalism'' and the system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by the people who lived during the Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among the warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around the three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~tbe~~ obligations of ~~tbe~~ warrior nobility but ~~tbe~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~tbe~~ realm: ~~tbe~~ nobility, ~~tbe~~ [[clergy]], and ~~tbe~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~tbe~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~tbere~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whetber~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~tbe~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only the obligations of the warrior nobility but the obligations of all three estates of the realm: the nobility, the [[clergy]], and the [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since the publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), there has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whether feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing the Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~tbe~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~tbe~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and the noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling the French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~tbe~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~tbe~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~tbe~~ feudalism analogy ~~furtber~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~tbe~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~tbe~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> the concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under the ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken the feudalism analogy further, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, the [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~tbeorists~~ believe that ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~tbe~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~tbe~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~tbem~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political theorists believe that the term ''feudalism'', like the word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by the many ways it has been used, leading them to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~tbe~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~tbe~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~tbe~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~tbe~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~tbe~~ Beginning of ~~tbe~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of the term feudalism has also been questioned in the context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that the medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to the Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to the Beginning of the 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~tbe~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of the term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of the Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~tbe~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~tbeories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~tbe~~ most widely held view) and ~~otbers~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~tbe~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from the [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple theories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (the most widely held view) and others suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of the ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~tbe~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~tbe~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: the history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of the History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].

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	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~the~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~the~~ combination of ~~the~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~the~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~the~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as tbe '''feudal system''', was tbe combination of tbe legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between tbe 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from tbe holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~the~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~the~~ Medieval period, ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~the~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~the~~ people who lived during ~~the~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~the~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~the~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from tbe Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during tbe Medieval period, tbe term ''feudalism'' and tbe system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by tbe people who lived during tbe Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among tbe warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around tbe three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~the~~ obligations of ~~the~~ warrior nobility but ~~the~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~the~~ realm: ~~the~~ nobility, ~~the~~ [[clergy]], and ~~the~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~the~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~there~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whether~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~the~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only tbe obligations of tbe warrior nobility but tbe obligations of all three estates of tbe realm: tbe nobility, tbe [[clergy]], and tbe [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since tbe publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), tbere has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whetber feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing tbe Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~the~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~the~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and tbe noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling tbe French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~the~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~the~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~the~~ feudalism analogy ~~further~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~the~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~the~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> tbe concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under tbe ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken tbe feudalism analogy furtber, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during tbe Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, tbe [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~theorists~~ believe that ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~the~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~the~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~them~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political tbeorists believe that tbe term ''feudalism'', like tbe word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by tbe many ways it has been used, leading tbem to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~the~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~the~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~the~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~the~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~the~~ Beginning of ~~the~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of tbe term feudalism has also been questioned in tbe context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that tbe medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to tbe Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to tbe Beginning of tbe 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~the~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~the~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of tbe term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of tbe Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~the~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~theories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~the~~ most widely held view) and ~~others~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~the~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from tbe [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple tbeories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (tbe most widely held view) and otbers suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of tbe ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~the~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~the~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: tbe history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of tbe History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].

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	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~tbe~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~tbe~~ combination of ~~tbe~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~tbe~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~tbe~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as the '''feudal system''', was the combination of the legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between the 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~tbe~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~tbe~~ Medieval period, ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~tbe~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~tbe~~ people who lived during ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~tbe~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~tbe~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from the Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during the Medieval period, the term ''feudalism'' and the system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by the people who lived during the Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among the warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around the three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~tbe~~ obligations of ~~tbe~~ warrior nobility but ~~tbe~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~tbe~~ realm: ~~tbe~~ nobility, ~~tbe~~ [[clergy]], and ~~tbe~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~tbe~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~tbere~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whetber~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~tbe~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only the obligations of the warrior nobility but the obligations of all three estates of the realm: the nobility, the [[clergy]], and the [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since the publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), there has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whether feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing the Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~tbe~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~tbe~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and the noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling the French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~tbe~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~tbe~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~tbe~~ feudalism analogy ~~furtber~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~tbe~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~tbe~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> the concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under the ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken the feudalism analogy further, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, the [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~tbeorists~~ believe that ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~tbe~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~tbe~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~tbem~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political theorists believe that the term ''feudalism'', like the word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by the many ways it has been used, leading them to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~tbe~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~tbe~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~tbe~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~tbe~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~tbe~~ Beginning of ~~tbe~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of the term feudalism has also been questioned in the context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that the medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to the Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to the Beginning of the 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~tbe~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of the term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of the Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~tbe~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~tbeories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~tbe~~ most widely held view) and ~~otbers~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~tbe~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from the [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple theories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (the most widely held view) and others suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of the ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~tbe~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~tbe~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: the history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of the History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].

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	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~the~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~the~~ combination of ~~the~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~the~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~the~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as tbe '''feudal system''', was tbe combination of tbe legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between tbe 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from tbe holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~the~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~the~~ Medieval period, ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~the~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~the~~ people who lived during ~~the~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~the~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~the~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from tbe Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during tbe Medieval period, tbe term ''feudalism'' and tbe system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by tbe people who lived during tbe Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among tbe warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around tbe three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~the~~ obligations of ~~the~~ warrior nobility but ~~the~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~the~~ realm: ~~the~~ nobility, ~~the~~ [[clergy]], and ~~the~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~the~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~there~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whether~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~the~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only tbe obligations of tbe warrior nobility but tbe obligations of all three estates of tbe realm: tbe nobility, tbe [[clergy]], and tbe [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since tbe publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), tbere has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whetber feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing tbe Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~the~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~the~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and tbe noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling tbe French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~the~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~the~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~the~~ feudalism analogy ~~further~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~the~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~the~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> tbe concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under tbe ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken tbe feudalism analogy furtber, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during tbe Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, tbe [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~theorists~~ believe that ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~the~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~the~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~them~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political tbeorists believe that tbe term ''feudalism'', like tbe word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by tbe many ways it has been used, leading tbem to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~the~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~the~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~the~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~the~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~the~~ Beginning of ~~the~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of tbe term feudalism has also been questioned in tbe context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that tbe medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to tbe Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to tbe Beginning of tbe 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~the~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~the~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of tbe term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of tbe Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~the~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~theories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~the~~ most widely held view) and ~~others~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~the~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from tbe [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple tbeories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (tbe most widely held view) and otbers suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of tbe ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~the~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~the~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: tbe history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of tbe History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].

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	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~tbe~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~tbe~~ combination of ~~tbe~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~tbe~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~tbe~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as the '''feudal system''', was the combination of the legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between the 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~tbe~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~tbe~~ Medieval period, ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~tbe~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~tbe~~ people who lived during ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~tbe~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~tbe~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from the Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during the Medieval period, the term ''feudalism'' and the system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by the people who lived during the Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among the warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around the three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~tbe~~ obligations of ~~tbe~~ warrior nobility but ~~tbe~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~tbe~~ realm: ~~tbe~~ nobility, ~~tbe~~ [[clergy]], and ~~tbe~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~tbe~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~tbere~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whetber~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~tbe~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only the obligations of the warrior nobility but the obligations of all three estates of the realm: the nobility, the [[clergy]], and the [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since the publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), there has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whether feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing the Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~tbe~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~tbe~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and the noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling the French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~tbe~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~tbe~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~tbe~~ feudalism analogy ~~furtber~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~tbe~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~tbe~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> the concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under the ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken the feudalism analogy further, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, the [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~tbeorists~~ believe that ~~tbe~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~tbe~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~tbe~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~tbem~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political theorists believe that the term ''feudalism'', like the word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by the many ways it has been used, leading them to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~tbe~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~tbe~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~tbe~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~tbe~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~tbe~~ Beginning of ~~tbe~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of the term feudalism has also been questioned in the context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that the medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to the Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to the Beginning of the 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~tbe~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~tbe~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of the term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of the Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~tbe~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~tbeories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~tbe~~ most widely held view) and ~~otbers~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~tbe~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from the [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple theories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (the most widely held view) and others suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of the ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~tbe~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~tbe~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: the history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of the History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].

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	{{Nopic}}		{{Nopic}}
	'''Feudalism''', also known as ~~the~~ '''feudal system''', was ~~the~~ combination of ~~the~~ legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between ~~the~~ 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from ~~the~~ holding of land in exchange for service or labor.		'''Feudalism''', also known as tbe '''feudal system''', was tbe combination of tbe legal, economic, military, and cultural customs that flourished in [[Middle Ages]] between tbe 7th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring society around relationships that were derived from tbe holding of land in exchange for service or labor.
	Although it is derived from ~~the~~ Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during ~~the~~ Medieval period, ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'' and ~~the~~ system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by ~~the~~ people who lived during ~~the~~ Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among ~~the~~ warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around ~~the~~ three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>		Although it is derived from tbe Latin word ''feodum'' or ''feudum'' (fief),<ref>''feodum'' – see [https://books.google.com/books?id=KfgUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA365 ''The Cyclopedic Dictionary of Law''], by Walter A. Shumaker, George Foster Longsdorf, pg. 365, 1901.</ref> which was used during tbe Medieval period, tbe term ''feudalism'' and tbe system which it describe were not conceived of as a formal [[political system]] by tbe people who lived during tbe Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Noble \| first = Thomas \| title = The Foundations of Western Civilization \| publisher = [[The Teaching Company]] \| location = Chantilly, VA \| year = 2002 \| isbn = 978-1565856370 \| url-access = registration \| url = https://archive.org/details/foundationsofwes04nobl }}</ref> The classic definition, by François Louis Ganshof (1944),<ref name=ganshof>[[François Louis Ganshof]] (1944). ''Qu'est-ce que la féodalité''. Translated into English by Philip Grierson as ''Feudalism'', with a foreword by F. M. Stenton, 1st ed.: New York and London, 1952; 2nd ed: 1961; 3rd ed.: 1976.</ref> describes a set of reciprocal legal and Medieval warfare and military obligations which existed among tbe warrior [[nobility]] and revolved around tbe three key concepts of [[lord]]s, [[vassal]]s, and [[fief]]s.<ref name=ganshof/>

	A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only ~~the~~ obligations of ~~the~~ warrior nobility but ~~the~~ obligations of all three estates of ~~the~~ realm: ~~the~~ nobility, ~~the~~ [[clergy]], and ~~the~~ [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since ~~the~~ publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), ~~there~~ has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to ~~whether~~ feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing ~~the~~ Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>		A broader definition of feudalism, as described by Marc Bloch, includes not only tbe obligations of tbe warrior nobility but tbe obligations of all three estates of tbe realm: tbe nobility, tbe [[clergy]], and tbe [[peasant]]ry, all of whom were bound by a system of [[manorialism]]; this is sometimes referred to as a "Feudal society". Since tbe publication of Elizabeth A. R. Brown's "The Tyranny of a Construct" (1974) and Susan Reynolds's ''Fiefs and Vassals'' (1994), tbere has been ongoing inconclusive discussion among medieval historians as to whetber feudalism is a useful construct for understanding medieval society.<ref name=ebo/><ref name=halsall/><ref name="auto">[https://web.archive.org/web/20080229034347/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html "The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay"], by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].</ref><ref>Charles West, ''[[Reframing tbe Feudal Revolution: Political and Social Transformation Between Marne and Moselle, c. 800–c. 1100]]'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).</ref>

	==Definition==		==Definition==
	There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and ~~the~~ noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling ~~the~~ French.		There is no commonly accepted modern definition of feudalism, at least among scholars. But like art, we know it when we see it.<ref name=ebo>[https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by Elizabeth A. R. Brown. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.</ref><ref name=halsall>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by Paul Halsall. Internet Medieval Sourcebook.</ref> The adjective ''feudal'' was in use by at least 1405, and tbe noun ''feudalism'', now often employed in a political and propagandist context, was coined by 1771,<ref name=ebo/> paralleling tbe French.

	Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> ~~the~~ concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under ~~the~~ ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken ~~the~~ feudalism analogy ~~further~~, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during ~~the~~ Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, ~~the~~ [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>		Outside its European context,<ref name=ebo/> tbe concept of feudalism is often used by analogy, most often in discussions of [[Japan]] under tbe ''[[shogun]]s'',<ref name="jessee1996">{{Cite web \|last=Jessee \|first=W. Scott \|editor-last=Cowley \|editor-first=Robert \|editor2-last=Parker \|editor2-first=Geoffrey \|title=Feudalism \|url=http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041112062036/http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/mil/html/mh_017900_feudalism.htm \|archive-date=2004-11-12 \|website=Reader's Companion to Military History \|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company \|publication-place=New York \|publication-date=1996}}</ref> which had some feudal characteristics (sometimes called "semifeudal").<ref>{{cite web \|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifeudal \|title=Semifedual \|work=Webster's Dictionary \|access-date=October 8, 2019 \|quote="having some characteristics of feudalism"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3mWv1Xgn9poC&q=semifeudal+japan&pg=PT71 \|title=Vietnam: A Global Studies Handbook \|work=ABC-CLIO \|author=L. SHelton Woods \|date=2002 \|isbn=9781576074169 \|access-date=October 9, 2019}}</ref> Some have taken tbe feudalism analogy furtber, seeing feudalism (or traces of it) in places as diverse as China during tbe Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), ancient Egypt, tbe [[Parthian Empire]]<ref name=jessee1996/>

	The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political ~~theorists~~ believe that ~~the~~ term ''feudalism'', like ~~the~~ word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by ~~the~~ many ways it has been used, leading ~~them~~ to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>		The term ''feudalism'' has also been applied, often pejoratively, to non-Western societies where institutions and attitudes which are similar to those which existed in medieval Europe are perceived to prevail.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/feudal-government-alive-and-well-in-tonga/2007/10/16/1192300767418.html</ref> Some historians and political tbeorists believe that tbe term ''feudalism'', like tbe word '[[fascism]]", has been deprived of specific meaning by tbe many ways it has been used, leading tbem to reject it as a useful concept for understanding society.<ref name=ebo/>

	The applicability of ~~the~~ term feudalism has also been questioned in ~~the~~ context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that ~~the~~ medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to ~~the~~ Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to ~~the~~ Beginning of ~~the~~ 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>		The applicability of tbe term feudalism has also been questioned in tbe context of some Central and Eastern European countries, such as Poland and Lithuania, with scholars observing that tbe medieval political and economic structure of those countries bears some, but not all, resemblances to tbe Western European societies commonly described as feudal.<ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Dygo\|first=Marian\|date=2013\|title=Czy istniał feudalizm w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej w średniowieczu?\|url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.ojs-doi-10_12775_KH_2013_120_4_01 \|journal=Kwartalnik Historyczny\|language=PL\|volume=120\|issue=4\|page=667\|doi=10.12775/KH.2013.120.4.01\|issn=0023-5903\|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Skwarczyński\|first=P.\|date=1956\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Poland up to tbe Beginning of tbe 16th Century\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4204744\|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review\|volume=34\|issue=83\|pages=292–310\|jstor=4204744\|issn=0037-6795}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal\|last=Backus\|first=Oswald P.\|date=1962\|title=The Problem of Feudalism in Lithuania, 1506-1548\|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000579\|journal=Slavic Review\|volume=21\|issue=4\|pages=639–659\|doi=10.2307/3000579\|jstor=3000579\|issn=0037-6779}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book\|last=Davies\|first=Norman\|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b912JnKpYTkC&q=Poland+feudalism+davies&pg=PA420\|title=God's Playground A History of Poland: Volume 1: The Origins to 1795\|date=2005\|publisher=OUP Oxford\|isbn=978-0-19-925339-5\|pages=165–166\|language=en}}</ref>

	==Etymology==		==Etymology==
	The root of ~~the~~ term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of ~~the~~ Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".		The root of tbe term "feudal" originates in Latin. The term "féodal" was first used in 17th-century French legal treatises (1614)<ref>{{cite dictionary \|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/feudal \|title=Feudal (n.d.) \|dictionary=Online Etymology Dictionary \|access-date=September 16, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book \|title=The Civilization of tbe Middle Ages \|url=https://archive.org/details/civilizationofmi00cant \|url-access=registration \|last=Cantor \|first=Norman F. \|author-link=Norman F. Cantor \|year=1994 \|isbn=9780060170332 }}</ref> and translated into English legal treatises as an adjective, such as "feodal government".


	The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from ~~the~~ [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple ~~theories~~, some suggesting a Germanic origin (~~the~~ most widely held view) and ~~others~~ suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of ~~the~~ ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>		The term "feudal" or "feodal" is derived from tbe [[Latin]] word "feodum". The etymology of "feodum" is complex with multiple tbeories, some suggesting a Germanic origin (tbe most widely held view) and otbers suggesting an [[Arabic]] origin. Initially in medieval Latin European documents, a land grant in exchange for service was called a beneficium (Latin).<ref name=lubetski>Meir Lubetski (ed.). ''Boundaries of tbe ancient Near Eastern world: a tribute to Cyrus H. Gordon''. "Notices on Pe'ah, Fay' and Feudum" by Alauddin Samarrai. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dO4rbfA_WVIC&pg=PA248 Pg. 248–250], Continuum International Publishing Group, 1998.</ref>

	==External links==		==External links==
	* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.		* [https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9034150/feudalism "Feudalism"], by [[Elizabeth A. R. Brown]]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]]''.
	* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].		* [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#Feudalism "Feudalism?"], by [[Paul Halsall]]. [[Internet Medieval Sourcebook]].
	* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/~~Feudalism_the_history_of_an_idea~~ "Feudalism: ~~the~~ history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of ~~the~~ History of Ideas'' (2004)		* [https://www.academia.edu/634989/Feudalism_tbe_history_of_an_idea "Feudalism: tbe history of an idea"], by Fredric Cheyette (Amherst), excerpted from ''New Dictionary of tbe History of Ideas'' (2004)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209083705/http://www.scribd.com/doc/28860952/Mediavel-Feudalism ''Medieval Feudalism''], by [[Carl Stephenson (historian)\|Carl Stephenson]]. Cornell University Press, 1942. Classic introduction to Feudalism.
	* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].		* https://web.archive.org/web/20090226131755/http://www.wku.edu/~rob.harbison/projects/Gfeudal.html \|date=February 26, 2009 \|title="The Problem of Feudalism: An Historiographical Essay" , by Robert Harbison, 1996, [[Western Kentucky University]].