feudalism
n. uncountablen. a system of government and land ownership that existed in the Middle Ages. In this system, a king gave land to powerful lords, who in turn gave it to knights in exchange for military service.
n. a hierarchical system of land ownership and political power that characterized medieval Europe. It is defined by the reciprocal obligations between a lord and his vassals, where land was granted in exchange for military or administrative service.
The king granted land to the lords under the feudal system.
Historians study how feudalism eventually collapsed as trade and centralized monarchies grew in power during the late Middle Ages.
The transition from feudalism to a more modern capitalist economy was marked by the gradual erosion of serfdom and the rise of a mobile, wage-earning labor force.
From feudal + -ism.