Translated from medieval Latin, the word vassus means "servant." But does this mean that the vassal is the last person in the hierarchy of power? Not at all. The medieval feudal law, where this concept was born, does not at all consider the vassal to be a simple serf-serf or even free farmer on the lands of the lord. This is a knightly nobility, an aristocracy that itself had in the possession of land and people. But she was in vassal dependence on the overlords, her lords. The myth of a direct hierarchy of power in feudal society is quite common . Let's see who, to whom and to what extent obeyed in medieval Europe.
Passage of the vassals
We can say that the feudal system of relations developed in two ways. On the lands of the Roman Empire with the weakening of central authority, the main managers - governors of the provinces - entered the political arena. They ceased to submit to the mother country and proclaimed themselves the main overlords of the land. To manage the vast territory and collect taxes, these lords appointed their people - Parantella (distant relatives) and clients (free warriors, whom the lord patronized). The land at the same time passed into hereditary possession. In territories dominated by German law, vassalism evolved on the basis of conquest. The seized lands officially belonged to the lord. He granted part of the territory to his soldiers, provided that the latter would bear military service in his army and obey him. Thus, a vassal is a “man of the sword”, belonging to the knightly estate.
Ommage
Now consider the system of relations that linked the overlord with his subordinates. Since the right to own land and people was inherited, both the lords and the vassals were considered the aristocracy. The cartridge gave not only a part of its territory, but also the opportunity to administer a court, including the supreme one. Dependence on suzerain in the lands of Roman law was more conditional than in the north of Western Europe, where German customs dominated. But everywhere there was a ritual of taking a vassal oath - homage. We have enough written evidence to get an idea of how this ritual went. The overlord sat on a high chair, and the vassal stood in front of him with his head uncovered, bending one knee. He vowed to be faithful, to appear at the first call "horse, crowded and armed," to support the lord and even give money for ransom if he was captured. The overlord graciously held out his hands, where the vassal put his palms. This ritual action ended with a kiss of the world. In some lands, homage was performed each time a vassal offspring entered the knightly estate. But in some places there was enough “foie” - a documented homage to the ancestor of the clan.
Beneficiaries
If the meaning of the word “vassal” is more or less clear, then it is not so simple with its possessions. During homage, the seigneur transferred certain benefits to his subordinate “for faithful service”. It could be not only the land with the plowmen inhabiting it. Beneficiaries also included the right to administer haut justice - supreme justice. Sometimes the feud of the vassal included profit. For example, it could be the right to charge for crossing a bridge or for the right to organize fairs on its lands. Some vassals even minted their coin! Because of the many opportunities to derive income from the beneficiaries, they bore different names: feud, linen, fief.
Power vertical
It is a mistake to think that the seigneur gave land to his subordinate. He simply transferred it to indefinite use. Thus, the vassal's land ownership nominally remained the property of the suzerain. However, the fief passed from father to son by right of succession, and the peasants who inhabited this flax considered themselves subjects of a smaller feudal lord. Do not forget that the hierarchical system in the Middle Ages was very ramified. The king was a nominal ruler, but the dukes, counts and princes also took homage from their vassals - viscounts, marquises and barons. This intricate system of feudal relations led to the fact that some vassals took the oath of allegiance to various overlords, and the lower levels of submission did not obey the higher, because they did not bring them homage.
Transition to an absolute monarchy
Vassalism as such originated in Western Europe at the beginning of the Middle Ages and finally established itself in the kingdom of the Franks in the VIII-IX centuries. Louis the Pious by his decree only confirmed the hierarchical dependence of the feudal lords. At first, this system worked well. But later feudal fragmentation led to the fact that royal power weakened. The chief overlord became dependent on his vassals. The royal domain became one of the equal provinces of the country. To strengthen their power, the supreme overlords through wars and the destruction of the castles of the rebellious aristocrats introduced the practice, called mediation. Beginning with Philip II, the sovereigns of France fought to ensure that the entire aristocracy - from small knights to large landowners - swore allegiance to the king. Otherwise, the possession of the vassal was confiscated and controlled by the seneschal - an authorized official, and the rebellious noble became a faid (deprived of possessions).
Vassal countries
If the state conquered another country in a military dispute, the defeated territory was not always annexed. The feudal system of relations implies that the vassal is an independent principality or even a kingdom, recognizing the supreme power of a stronger kingdom. The Galician ruler Danilo performed a homage in the Golden Horde in the middle of the 13th century, and in 1478 the Crimean Khanate became a vassal of the Ottoman Empire.