explain the condition of serfs in Medieval Europe under the feudal system.
Answers
Serfdom is the state of many laborers under feudalism, especially relating to manorialism. It was a circumstance of debt servitude, which emerged originally during the High Middle Ages in Europe and continued in some countries until the mid-19th century.
Serfs had a definite place in feudal society, as did nobles and knights: in return for security, a serf would live upon and work for the piece of land inside the estate of his master. Thus the manorial system displayed a degree of the interchange. As the Romans had the right to sell their slaves but the lord of the manor could not sell.
However, serfs could not marry nor they can change their profession, or dispose of his land without his lord's consent. He was assigned to his allocated plot of land and could be shifted along with that land to a new master. Serfs were often brutally treated and had little or no judicial remedy against the actions of their lords.
Serfs in the middle ages were mostly farmers, peasants and slaves.
They had to pay a fixed rate which they could pay in either money or by giving away their produce.
There was also a third way where they can sell or barter their land for the rent money.
Many Serfs worked inside their lord's homes too.