fiefs
Vassal-held territories
Fiefs is the plural of fief—land granted by a lord to a vassal in exchange for loyalty and service under the feudal system.
The term now appears mostly in historical contexts or metaphorically for domains of control: Each vice president guards their corporate fiefs jealously.
The related word fiefdom is more common in figurative use.
Medieval estate labor system
- serfdomFeudal bound labor
- vassalageSubordination to a lord
- fealtyPledged devotion to authority
- liegeFeudal superior or subject
suzerain · homage · demesne · knight · chivalry · nobility · aristocracy · peerage
Nobleman or ruler
- vassalLand-holding sworn subordinate
- serfBonded agricultural laborer
- peasantLow-status agricultural laborer
- baronLow-ranking peer
count · duke · earl · marquis · seigneur · overlord · suzerain · liege
manorialism
Medieval estate labor system
liege · suzerain · homage · demesne · knight · chivalry · nobility · aristocracy · peerage · barony
lord
Nobleman or ruler
- vassalLand-holding sworn subordinate
- serfBonded agricultural laborer
- peasantLow-status agricultural laborer
baron · count · duke · earl · marquis · seigneur · overlord · suzerain · liege · noble
estate
Property and grounds
demesne · acreage · tract · parcel · holding · grounds · farmland · arable · pasture · vineyard
territory
Land under jurisdiction
bailiwick · stronghold · power base · empire · kingdom · realm · monopoly · patronage · influence · control
- medievalknights, castles, cathedral, kings, queens
- Medieval Europekings, queens, knights, castles, castle
- medieval societyserfs, noble lineage, peasants, serf, heir
- Middle AgesMiddle Ages, medieval period, castles, knights, Dark Ages
- feudalismvassal, fealty, homage, lord, manor
- medieval economymanors, serfs, vassals, lords, peasants
fiefsfreehold
Permanent property title
freeholds · private property · sovereign territory · commons · public lands
fiefsnation-states
Self-governing territorial polities
republics · sovereign nations · democracies · federal territories · free cities
fiefsfree markets
Commerce without state intervention
wage labor · communes · collective farms · cooperatives · corporations