feudalism: References & Edit History
More Articles On This Topic
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Additional Reading
Elizabeth A.R. Brown, “The Tyranny of a Construct: Feudalism and Historians of Medieval Europe,” The American Historical Review, 79(4): 1063–88 (October 1974), is a foundational work. F.L. Ganshof, Feudalism, 3rd ed. (1964, reissued 1996; originally published in French, 2nd ed., 1947), is a traditional treatment. Marc Bloch, Feudal Society, 2 vol. (1961, reprinted 2014; originally published in French, 2 vol., 1939–40), is a classic study that defines feudalism as encompassing all aspects of society. Susan Reynolds, Fiefs and Vassals: The Medieval Evidence (1994, reprinted 2001), provides the most-complete critique of the concept. Thomas N. Bisson (ed.), Cultures of Power: Lordship, Status, and Process in Twelfth-Century Europe (1995); Otto Brunner, Land and Lordship: Structures of Governance in Medieval Austria (1992; originally published in German, 4th rev. ed., 1959); and Guy Fourquin, Lordship and Feudalism in the Middle Ages (1976; originally published in French, 1970), are important studies of lordship and the relations between lords and their subjects that employ the traditional constructs. Useful considerations of “bastard feudalism” are P.R. Cross, “Bastard Feudalism Revised,” Past and Present, 125: 27–64 (November 1989); and Michael Hicks, Bastard Feudalism (1995). Other informative studies include Jean Dunbabin, France in the Making, 843–1180, 2nd ed. (2000); Malcolm Todd, The Early Germans, 2nd ed. (2004); and Emilie Amt (ed.), Medieval England, 1000–1500: A Reader, 2nd ed. (2008).
Article Contributors
Primary Contributors
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Elizabeth A.R. Brown
Emerita Professor of History, Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York.
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The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
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Article History
| Type | Description | Contributor | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invalidated site: Dallas Baptist University - Medieval Resources - The "Feudalism" Model: Its Limits. | Nov 10, 2026 | ||
| Add new Web site: Heritage History - The Feudal System. | May 01, 2026 | ||
| Add new Web site: Pressbooks.ccconline.org - PPSC HUM 1021: Early Civilizations - Feudalism. | Jan 12, 2026 | ||
| Add new Web site: Brigham Young University - ScholarsArchive - What is Feudalism?Definition, Complex, Civilization (PDF). | Aug 29, 2025 | ||
| Add new Web site: History Learning Site - Feudalism. | Sep 10, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: UEN Digital Press with Pressbooks - World History: Cultures, States, and Societies to 1500 - The emergence of a feudal order in Western Europe. | Jul 29, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: CORE - The Idea of Feudalism. | May 27, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: Dallas Baptist University - Medieval Resources - The "Feudalism" Model: Its Limits. | Apr 19, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: Academia - Feudalism. | Jan 25, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: Academia - Feudalism: the history of an idea. | Aug 09, 2023 | ||
| Add new Web site: Internet Encyclopedia of Ukraine - Feudalism. | Jun 30, 2023 | ||
| Add new Web site: Chemistry LibreTexts - Feudalism. | May 16, 2023 | ||
| Add new Web site: Khan Academy - Feudal system during the Middle Ages. | Apr 06, 2023 | ||
| Corrected display issue. | Feb 12, 2021 | ||
| Media added. | Oct 29, 2020 | ||
| Add new Web site: BBC Sounds - Horrible Histories Podcast - Series 1 - William the Conqueror. | Dec 13, 2019 | ||
| Add new Web site: BBC Sounds - Horrible Histories Podcast - Series 1 - William the Conqueror. | Dec 13, 2019 | ||
| Media added. | Aug 20, 2019 | ||
| Add new Web site: World History Encyclopedia - Feudalism. | Jan 10, 2019 | ||
| Corrected display issue. | Dec 15, 2017 | ||
| Add new Web site: Kids Past.com - Feudalism Develops in Europe. | Oct 11, 2017 | ||
| Add new Web site: History World - History of Feudalism. | Nov 11, 2016 | ||
| Media added. | Feb 05, 2016 | ||
| Bibliography revised. | Feb 05, 2016 | ||
| Add new Web site: The History Learning Site - Feudalism. | Feb 14, 2014 | ||
| Add new Web site: Buzzle.com - Feudalism and Manorialism. | Feb 14, 2014 | ||
| Add new Web site: Quatr.us Study Guides - What is Feudalism? | Feb 14, 2014 | ||
| Add new Web site: World History International - Feudal System. | Jul 24, 2012 | ||
| Add new Web site: Middle Ages for Kids - Feudalism Pyramid. | Aug 09, 2010 | ||
| Add new Web site: ThinkQuest - The Feudal Structure of The Medieval World. | Aug 09, 2010 | ||
| Added new Web site: How Stuff Works - History - Feudalism. | Nov 05, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: Dr. L. Kip Wheeler - Feudalism. | Oct 24, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: Learner.org - Feudal Life. | Oct 24, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: History on the net - Medieval Life Feudalism. | Oct 20, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: The Catholic Encyclopedia - Feudalism. | Jul 18, 2008 | ||
| New bibliography added. | Jul 20, 2007 | ||
| New article added. | Jul 20, 2007 | ||
| Media added. | Jan 25, 2007 | ||
| Article revised. | Apr 05, 2002 | ||
| Article added to new online database. | Jul 20, 1998 |