European feudalism, history homework help

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Identify and explain some of the key features/characteristics of European feudalism in the Middle Ages.

Here are some of the questions that you should consider as part of your assignment, it is most important that you really focus on the above assignment question. Here are other points that you might consider touching on in your group work:

  • In your group project, you should cite primary sources, i.e., surviving feudal documents, as much as possible.
  • It is best to focus on three or four characteristics, no more than that, so that you can cover each topic in some depth. One important feature of feudalism that you will want to treat is the relationship between lord and vassal.
  • Why did feudalism develop after the fall of the Roman empire?
  • How did the practice of feudalism vary across Europe?
  • Did the characteristics of feudalism change over time?
  • Yes, feudalism is complicated, but it is important to understand the feudal system as many scholars have seen feudalism as an important prerequisite for the development of western democracy.
  • Professor Evans notes that when he teaches the HIS 101 on campus, he always shows the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) because it has some of the best satirical (yet accurate) portrayals of some aspects of life in medieval England, for example, the trial by ordeal (weight of a duck scene), the French castle in England (remember William the Conqueror and his army were “Frenchmen”), the peasants mucking about in the muck (wondering how Arthur had become their king) and, of course, the quest for the Holy Grail.
  • a three-page paper (no longer than that), complete with footnotes (100 points). You will not need images, but you will need citations of quoted evidence. You do not need a works cited page. You should use as many sources as you can in the paper, which should:
    • be double-spaced with one-inch margins, font size 10 or 12
    • contain an introduction paragraph that directly responds to the assigned question and that indicates the specific points to follow in the group’s paper
    • use direct, quoted material to support your points (footnote the sources)
    • contain a last, conclusion paragraph
    • consider sending a draft of your assignment to your instructor for feedback before submitting the final assignment
    • Remember, you are writing this paper as if you were going to publish it online or in a journal, so you will want to do the best possible work here.