#ganshof

Feudalism, F.L. Ganshof

Harper Torchbooks, 1964, New York

Paperback

    "In the first half of the eleventh century there was at least one man alive who was well acquainted with feudal relations in practice and whose intellectual development rendered him capable of expressing them in abstract terms. Bishop Fulbert of Chartres gives a remarkable definition of the obligations created by the contract of vassalage in a letter addressed to Duke William V of Aquitaine in 1020. It is so important that it is worth wile reproducing the passage in its entirety. 'He who swears fealty to his lord should always have these six words present to his memory: "safe and sound", sure, honest, useful, easy, possible. Safe and sound, because he must cause no injury to the body of his lord. Sure, because he must not injure his lord by giving up his secrets or his castles, which are the guarantees of his security. Honest, because he must do nothing to injure the rights of justice of his lord or such other prerogatives as belong to his well-being. Useful because he must do no wrong to the possessions of his lord. Easy and possible, because he must not make difficult for his lord anything which the latter may wish to do, and because he must not make impossible to his lord that which the lord might otherwise accomplish. It is only right that that the vassal should abstain from injuring his lord in any of these ways. But it is not because of such abstention that he deserves to hold his fief. It is not sufficient to abstain from doing wrong, it is necessary to do right. It is therefore necessary in the six matters aforesaid, the vassal shall faithfully give to his lord his counsel and support; if he wishes to appear worthy of his benefice and carry out faithfully the fealty which he has sworn. The lord must also in all things do similarly to the vassal who has sworn fealty to him. If he fails to do this, he will be rightly accused of bad faith, just as a vassal who will have been discovered to have been lacking in his duties, whether by positive action or simply by consent, is guilty of perfidy and perjury.'"