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feudalism
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Also known as: féodalité, feudal system, feudality
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feudalism
feudalism
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Category: History & Society
Also called:
feudal system or feudality
French:
féodalité
Key People:
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
Coloman
St. Oswald of York
Magnus I
Marc Bloch
Related Topics:
manorialism
vassal
thane
liege
homage and fealty
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feudalism, historiographic construct designating the social, economic, and political conditions in western Europe during the early Middle Ages, the long stretch of time between the 5th and 12th centuries. Feudalism and the related term feudal system are labels invented long after the period to which they were applied. They refer to what those who invented them perceived as the most significant and distinctive characteristics of the early and central Middle Ages. The expressions féodalité and feudal system were coined by the beginning of the 17th century, and the English words feudality and feudalism (as well as feudal pyramid) were in ...(100 of 2361 words)

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