Page:The history of medieval Europe.djvu/282

 238 THE HISTORY OF MEDIEVAL EUROPE the ninth and tenth centuries, for instance, there must have been more universal serfdom and more arbitrary exactions by the lords. It must also be kept in mind, however, that at all times there were some peasants who did not live on a villa nor under the control of a lord, but were independent freemen with farms of their own. We have depicted the position of the peasantry as it was before and during the feudal regime, but we have as yet said The asant notnm g °f the bonds between the owners of the was the basis estates, which constitute feudalism in the strict sense of the word. Yet, without the peasants and their useful toil, feudalism, with its tournaments and trou- badours and chivalry, could not have existed for a moment. They fed feudal society. Feudalism was based largely upon land, and without serfs the land was of no use to its lords. It is perhaps also true that without feudalism the peasants could not have existed. They needed protection in a world where policemen were scarce and pirates were plentiful. This protection against invaders and criminals the lords were supposed to give, and although they often failed to do so, it was evidently to their interest to preserve the laborers and the harvests from which they themselves drew their incomes. Besides the serfs and peasants upon their estates, the lords had personally bound to them men who had "com- Commen- mended" themselves to their protection. Those who could not make an independent living would commend themselves for the rest of their lives to some great man on the understanding that he should support them and that they should serve him in ways befitting a freeman. This might mean that he would employ them as fighting men, but it left problematical the fate of their chil- dren, who might sink to a servile status. This practice of commendation was mentioned by Salvian in the fifth cen- tury, had been in vogue among the Franks long before Charlemagne, and was also a custom among the Anglo- Saxons. It somewhat resembled the Roman institution of clientage, in which the poorer and weaker citizens had made