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How did a person become a tenant in chief?

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feudalism Detail from the *Heidelberger Sachsenspiegel* showing the homage ceremony, in which the vassals put themselves under the protection of their lords by placing their hands between his hands, 14th century; in the Universitatsbibliothek, Heidelberg, Germany.

In feudal society, a person became a tenant in chief by holding a fief directly from the crown. These individuals, who formed the most significant feudal group known as the barons, occupied the highest level of land tenure beneath the king, who served as the lord paramount.123

The relationship was defined by the feudal contract, wherein the tenant in chief owed fealty and specific services—such as military, judicial, or administrative duties—to the monarch in exchange for the land. Over time, these holdings often became hereditary, allowing the status to pass to an heir who was willing to perform the required homage. While the king granted these lands, the tenant in chief could further grant portions of their own fiefs to lesser vassals through a process called subinfeudation, thereby becoming a lord themselves.2