Serfdom
Also called: Serf · Topic: Medieval Europe: Feudalism and the Three Orders · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 3 "Changing Traditions"; Class 11, Ch 4 "The Three Orders"
Meaning
Serfdom was the condition of unfree peasants in medieval Europe. The word "serf" comes from "to serve". A serf farmed plots that belonged to the lord. He gave the lord much of his produce and worked on the lord's own land without wages. He could not leave the estate without the lord's permission. Serfs also had to use the lord's mill, oven and wine-press, and they needed the lord's consent, or had to pay a fee, to marry.
Example
Serfs found one way out through towns. Medieval Europe had a rule that "town air makes free". A serf who stayed hidden in a town for one year and one day became a free person.
Don't confuse with
- Free peasants: they held farms as tenants of the lord. They owed military service of at least 40 days a year and labour of usually three days a week. Unlike serfs, they were not tied to the lord's land.