Manorialism

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/manorialism

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the system type?A socio-economic and land tenure system prevalent in medieval Europe
2. What is the geographical origin?Evolved from the Roman villa system in late antiquity
3. Who worked on a manor and what did they give to the lord?Serfs, the peasants who lived on the manor, worked the lord’s land and gave him labor and food like grain or animals. In return they could use a small piece of land for their own food and were protected by the lord.
4. How did manorialism start in Europe?It began after the Roman Empire, when big Roman farms called villas were left behind. Later rulers used the same idea to build their own estates and keep people organized.

Manorialism: The medieval system of landholding and agricultural organization centered on a manor and lord.
Lord of the Manor: The proprietor of a manor, possessing land rights and exercising authority over its inhabitants.
Serf: A peasant farmer legally bound to a lord's land, owing labor and dues in exchange for protection and land use.
Demesne: The portion of a manor directly managed by the lord, worked by serfs.