villenage

Villenage was a form of tenure in feudalism where land was held at the will of a lord by services owed by a villein, or serf. This system was a fundamental part of manorialism, the economic and social system of medieval Europe where peasants were dependent on their land and lord. Villeins were unfree tenants who owed rent, labor, and produce to their lord. While they could not leave the manor without permission, they were protected by the custom of the manor and were not slaves. The manorial system, with its associated villenage, declined in western Europe with the revival of commerce and the introduction of a money economy, while it strengthened in eastern Europe after the 15th century.12