Dec 20, 2009
A fief was a collection of several manors (large self-sufficient estates) that was governed and protected by a feudal lord under a political and economic system called feudalism that was practiced during the Middle Ages (A.D. c. 450–c. 1500). An individual manor could possibly be owned by a lord (seignior), who also owned the villages and all buildings on the land within the boundaries of the manor. Serfs (peasants) worked the land, served at court, or took up arms on behalf of lords. The feudal lord, with control over several manors, would secure the allegiance of manorial lords, the head of just one manor. In turn, the manorial lords would secure the allegiance of the peasants. Land was exchanged for loyalty; this arrangement was the origin of the term feudalism, from the German word feud, which means "fee." In repayment for the land they lived on and for the protection they received from the lord, serfs...
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