features of the Manor system in medieval Europe.
Discuss the features of the Manor system in medieval Europe.
Characteristics of Manor system in medieval Europe: -
In the Middle Ages, feudalism was fully developed in Europe from the ninth to the twelfth century. The manor system was the organizational basis of the feudal system. The manor system played an important role in keeping the feudal system active. This manor system was also called seigneurial system. In every feudal village the manor system maintained production, political, administrative and economic continuity. The features of the Manor system are -
1. Manor House: - Manor House was the main administrative center of each village. Here the Lord of Manor lived with his family. The manor houses were surrounded by high moats and security forces were deployed in each manor house for the purpose of getting rid of the enemy. From the Manor House the Manor Lord ruled his village and maintained dominance over the peasants and tenants.
2. Minor version of the state: - In the feudal system the villages were fairly self-sufficient and they were isolated from each other. Under the Manor system each village was able to produce its own necessities, so the Manor villages could be called a smaller version of the state. And Manor House was the director of the whole system.
3. Nature of Governorship of Manor Villages: - In each Manor village local government system was formed under the Lord of Manor. Manor Lord employed a large number of staff to manage all the villages. The administration, the control of the army, the collection of revenue, the development projects, the irrigation system, the judiciary, the medical, the development of the communication systems - all the work was done under the direction of the manor lord.
4. Various employees: - Manor Lord used to employ a large number of employees to maintain administrative continuity. Some of them were high-ranking employees. Such as - (i) The main responsibility of the employees named Steward was to manage the property of the feudal lord and to supervise the business. (ii) Employees called Bailiffs maintained the balance of production and recommended to the Lord to take necessary action. (iii) Rivi was also responsible for the development of the production system.
5. Nature of land: - In the manors, the land was divided into several parts, viz. For farming and agriculture , personal land for feudal lords , land for habitation for farmers and common land for everyone . Farmers and slaves were forced to provide unpaid labor in the feudal lord's lands. In addition to these, the process of production was also going on in the surplus lands.
6. Economic system: - Manor system was basically the economic structure of feudalism. It goes without saying that there was no diversity in the economic field and agriculture was the only basis of the economy. There were basically two types of farmers - independent farmers and land-slaves. Both had to work hard in the Lord's land. The economy was backward and the lives of the peasants became miserable due to the huge tax burden.
7. Social nature of manor: - Manor lords lived in manor houses. Manor houses were a symbol of luxury and splendor. On the other hand, the condition of the peasants and land slaves of the society was very poor. They lived in dilapidated cottages and could not afford the necessities of life. The condition of the common peasants and general people was deplorable due to the high level of exploitation.
8. Manor lord - omnipotent lord: - Manor lord was the only almighty lord of the whole system. All arrangements were made under his direction. On the one hand, they used to run the system of governance and on the other hand, they used to make the life of the people miserable by exploiting them to some extent. They had always maintained a strong military force. As a result, oppressed people could not lodge any complaint.
9. Self-sufficient village society: - Villages were self-sufficient in the manor system. The demand for people living in Manor was limited. As a result, they could produce the necessities of life themselves. As a result, each village was isolated from other villages. But the gradual development of trade increased the demand for human beings and this self-sufficiency was destroyed.
10. Security forces: - Every manor lord would build a skilled military force. It had three main objectives - (a) to protect the village of Manor from foreign aggression, (b) to suppress the internal rebellion and to maintain the process of forcible collection of revenue and (c) to provide troops to the king during the war.
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