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A fief (/ f iː f /; Latin: feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal , who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal allegiance, services or payments.
Feb 29, 2024 · Fief, in European feudal society, a vassal’s source of income, held from his lord in exchange for services. The fief constituted the central institution of feudal society. It normally consisted of land to which a number of unfree peasants were attached and was supposed to be sufficient to support the vassal.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
A fief ( / fiːf /; Latin: feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal allegiance, services, and/or payments.
Feb 15, 2024 · A fief is a land held of a superior by homage, fealty, and personal service, especially military service. The word comes from Old French fief and has doublet of fee and feud. It has different meanings in French, German, Romanian, and other languages. See etymology, pronunciation, synonyms, translations, and examples.
Ecclesiastical fief. In the feudal system of the European Middle Ages, an ecclesiastical fief, held from the Catholic Church, followed all the laws laid down for temporal fiefs. The suzerain, e.g. bishop, abbot, or other possessor, granted an estate in perpetuity to a person, who thereby became his vassal.
Le fief, appelé également tenure noble ou terre de noble tenure (car, contrairement à une simple tenure, elle exigeait un hommage au suzerain ), désigne, durant les époques médiévale et moderne, un bien ou un revenu immobilier, confié en rétribution d'un service.
May 11, 2018 · 1. hist. an estate of land, esp. one held on condition of feudal service.2. a person's sphere of operation or control. The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. fief. views 1,830,499 updated May 29 2018. fief feudal estate. XVII. — (O)F. fief FEE. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD. *fief (or *fee*).*