The Hansa & Novgorod 151 Policing the Empire 175 Nonhumans in Novgorod Land 151 Military Policing 175 Onogur Khanate 151 Civilian Policing 175 The Bulgarian Military 152 The Secret Police 175 C Nonhumans in Old Great Bulgaria 152 Equipment 175 Altin Ordu/Ulus of Jochi/Golden Horde 152 The Imperial Military 176 Military of the Altin Ordu 153 Nonhumans in the Empire 179 O Nonhumans in the Altin Ordu 153 Constantinople 181 The Islamic West 153 Population 181 The Emirate of Iberia 153 Gazeteer of Constantinople 181 N Andalusian Armies 154 Map of (Medieval) Constantinople 182-3 Nonhumans in Islamic Iberia 154 Plan of the City before Justinian 187 The Emirate of the West 154 Eranshahr (Sassanid Persia) 199 Western Emirati Military 155 Sassanid Society 199 T Nonhumans in the Islamic West 155 Sassanid Government/Admin 200 The Forgotten Crusade 156 Sassanid Armed Forces 200 Norman Sicily 156 Overland to India 202 E The Emirate of Sicily 156 The Waystations 202 Muslim Sicilian Military 156 The Route 202 Nonhumans in Sicily 157 Nonhumans in Eranshahr 204 N The Sheikhdoms 157 The Princedom of Israel & Judah 206 Sheikdom of Saldigna 157 Society in the Princedom 206 The Saldignan Military 158 Govt/Admin in the Princedom 206 Nonhumans in Saldigna 158 Princedom Map 207 T Sheikdom of Seirinoussai 158 The Army of Israel & Judah 210 Military of Seirinoussai 159 Nonhumans in Israel & Judah 214 Nonhumans in Seirinoussai 159 The Arabian Caliphate 215 S Sheikdom of Gymnesia 159 Jerusalem 216 Balearic Military 159 Population 216 Nonhumans in Gymnesia 160 Jerusalem Gazeteer 216 The Italian Peninsula 160 Jerusalem Map & Key 217 The Exarchate of Italy 160 Government & Administration 227 The Capital: Neapolis 160 Army of the Caliphate 227 The Administration 161 Nonhumans in the Caliphate 231 Armed Forces of the Exarch 161 Via Glareatae 161 Fantasy Classes 233 Via Munitia 161 Fantasy Classes 234 Garrison of Neapolis 162 D&D3.5 Class Limitations 234 The Duchies 162 By Gender 234 The Duchy of Calabria 163 By Race 234 The Duchy of Campania 163 By Region 234 The Duchy of Tarentum 164 By Religion 234 Nonhumans in the Exarchate 164 Prestige & Epic Classes 235 The Munimentum Italica 164 Pathfinder1.0 Class Restrictions 235 Nonhumans in the Italian Marches 165 By Gender 235 Reaver’s Tower 165 By Race 235 The Kingdom of Savoy-Lombardy 166 By Region 235 The Republic of Florence 166 By Religion 236 The Apostolic Princedom of St Paul 167 Mythras Culture & Career Limitations 236 Papal Government 168 Career by Gender 236 The Principatum’s Military 168 Career by Region 237 The Venetian Republic 168 Culture by Region 237 Republican Government 169 Magic Discipline by Region 237 The Venetian Navy 169 Career by Religion 237 SampleThe Venetian Army 170 Magic Discipline by Religionfile 237 The Kingdom of Sicily 170 Women in Ancient & Medieval Combat 237 The Sicilo-Norman Military 170 Magdalan Archers 238 The Eastern Mediterranean 171 Modified D&D3.5/Pathfinder1.0 Class 238 The Basileía Rhomaíon 171 Class Features 238 Imperial Government/Admin 172 Weapon Proficiency 238 V Armour Proficiency 238 Any Other 247 Bonus Feats 238 Abilities & Talents: Level 5 247 Greater Co-ordination (Adjunct) 238 Melee Weapon Mastery 247 Greater Attack (Bow Only) 238 Missile Weapon Mastery 247 Greater Co-ordination (Full) 239 Melee Weapon Specialisation 247 Magdalan Arcane Archers 240 Missile Weapon Specialisation 247 Arcane Archers & Pentads 240 Weapon Mastery 247 A Note on Magdalan Archers 240 Second Level Mastery 247 Third Level Mastery 247 Brotherhood of the Sword 240 Modified D&D3.5/Pathfinder1.0 Class 240 Brotherhood of the Sword 248 Class Features 240 Skills 248 Weapon Proficiency 240 Standard 248 Armour Proficiency 240 Professional 248 AC Bonus 240 Rank Requisites 248 Flurry of Strikes 240 Recruit 248 Unarmed Damage 240 Triad Commander 248 Bonus Feats 240 Platoon Commander 248 Lesser Co-ordination (Adjunct) 240 Company Commander 248 Lesser Co-ordination (Full) 241 Battalion Commander 248 (Mythras) Brotherhoods & Ranks 243 Brigade Commander 248 For Mythras & Runequest 243 Brotherhood Combat Style 248 Magdalan Archers 243 Brotherhood Spearman 248 Skills 243 Brotherhood Swordsman 248 Standard 243 Armour Proficiency 248 Professional 243 Abilities & Talents: Level 0 249 Rank Requisites 243 Lesser Co-ordinated Attack 249 Recruit 243 Anticipate (Melee Only) 249 Pentad Commander 243 Melee Defender 249 Platoon Commander 243 Melee Weapon Proficiency 249 Company Commander 243 Shield Wall 249 Battalion Commander 243 Steady Aim 249 Brigade Commander 243 Unarmed Combat 249 Magdalan Combat Style 243 Abilities & Talents: Level 1 249 Armour Proficiency 243 Lesser Co-ordinated Attack (Full) 249 Abilities & Talents: Level 0 244 Melee Weapon Specialisation 251 Co-Ordinated Attack (Adjunct) 244 Sword & Shield Attack 251 Missile Defender 244 Any Other 251 Missile Weapon Proficiency 244 Abilities & Talents: Level 2 251 Quick Aim 244 Advanced Anticipate (Melee Only) 251 Steady Aim 244 Melee Weapon Mastery 252 Abilities & Talents: Level 1 244 Melee Weapon Specialisation 252 Co-ordinated Attack (Full) 244 Any Other 252 Melee Defender 246 Abilities & Talents: Level 3 252 Missile Weapon Specialisation 246 Advanced Sword & Shield Attack 252 Any Other 246 Missile Weapon Mastery 252 Abilities & Talents: Level 2 246 Melee Weapon Specialisation 252 Missile Weapon Mastery 246 Any Other 252 Melee Weapon Specialisation 246 Abilities & Talents: Level 4 252 Missile Weapon Specialisation 246 Massive Strike 252 Any Other 246 Melee Weapon Mastery 252 Abilities & Talents: Level 3 246 Melee/Missile Weapon Specialisation 252 Missile Weapon Mastery 246 Any Other 252 Melee Weapon Specialisation 246 Abilities & Talents: Level 5 252 SampleMissile Weapon Specialisation 246 Advanced Massivefile Strike 252 Any Other 246 Melee Weapon Mastery 252 Abilities & Talents: Level 4 247 Melee Weapon Specialisation 252 Missile Weapon Mastery 247 Any Other 252 Melee Weapon Specialisation 247 Index 253 VI Missile Weapon Specialisation 247 F O R E W O R D

Sample file

VII FOREWORD Well, this is it – the last of the four Books promised in I have some follow on projects that I’ve been kicking the Orbis Mundi2 Kickstarter. around in my head …

Now that it’s finished you have in your hands (maybe · Expanded Booklets either on a single (or several eHands) over 1200 pages of material (roughly TWICE closely related) aspects of topics from OM2 or The the promised count) chock full of Medieval goodness. Marketplace that can be valuably added to or containing a miscellany of expanded material on a FANTASY HISTORY variety of topics. Writing alternative History is harder than it looks – especially if you’re writing for an audience who has Or, possibly, on new topics not covered in OM2 or more than a passing familiarity with the topic and you The Marketplace. want to make sure the trigger and the follow on effects are at least somewhat believable. Really hard. · A Medieval Border Town – along the lines of Ithura & Porthaven, but a smaller, more militarised Town The trigger event for the the changes in Fantasy from a region subject to banditry and foreign Europe is the War of the Armenian Succession (AD raiding. Also covering surroundingVillages, Fortif- 61-62) which, historically, the Romans won. In this ications and general Points of Interest. case, however, a run of bad luck leads to a Carrhae style wipeout and victory by the Parthians. Probably not as long as I&P, but I don’t have a good track record of estimating page counts, do I? This, in turn, triggers an earlier Great Revolt (AD 63) by the Jews – which they win, and achieve independ- Much more tentative than the above two are the fol- ence, mostly by their own efforts, but with Parthian lowing – assistance, then and ongoing. · A Fantasy City – I think I have enough basic Historically, a Jewish defeat in the Great Revolt (AD information about at least one Medieval City to 66-73) seems, on the face of it, a foregone conclusion. form a basis on to which I can add lots of addition- al material to round it out, some historical, some It actually could have gone differently – for a start, the extrapolated. If the research pans out, it should be Jews picked some decent Generals, but then frittered at least as long as I&P. away all their best troops by attacking the Coastal Cities where Roman Cavalry forces (the Jews seem to have had · “Jus in Bello” (“The Laws of War”) – This is really none) destroyed the attackers – but the attack seems to tentative – a combat system (and, inevitably, a have been forced on them by the fractured and faction Character Creation and Game System) represent- ridden nature of the political groups manoeuvering to ing Ancient & Medieval Combat as it really was take control of the rebellion, many of whom were out and with Low and Medium Fantasy thrown in for good out fanatical terrorists even against their fellow Jews. measure. Better (or simply more) combat realism and real world society and commerce, integrating What if a more ruthless and competent General actually OM2/The Marketplace … if I can make it work. staged a successful purge of the fanatics? Think of Danton and The Directory during the French Revolution. D&D and Pathfinder game rules (all versions) repre- And, as in the Revolution, makes it stick by siezing the sent High Fantasy … and a Hollywood version of it, land of said (often wealthy) opponents and redistributing to boot. You can add in all the stuff from OM2 and it to his (commoner) supporters who, in all likelihood, The Marketplace you want and you’re not touching worshipped their land rather more than the Fanatics who the core at all. Mythras & Runequest are much were trying to impose their extremist beliefs on them (a better, representing Medium or even Low Fantasy … perennial problem in the Middle East, it seems). the problem is that they don’t really represent Med- ieval Fantasy – they really deal with Ancient Fantasy Historically, the Jews asked for Parthian assistance – but with medieval tacked on as an afterthought (and Sampledidn’t get it because the Parthians had lost the War of the make some game decisionsfile I’ve never really liked Armenian Succession. Now the Parthians have forces right from the get go with the very first edition way available to commit, and they had friendly(ish) relations back when, decisions they’ve never changed and with the Jews to boot – and the Romans are weakened. which make the game far too deadly).

VIII Everything flows from that … – Phil McGregor (May 28 2020) E U R Portugal

Al-Andalus O Leon Castile

Hibernia P Mahgreb 2 1 England Aragon Francia West

Francia E 7 3 Ile de France de Ile 5 6 Germania Germania

Kingdom of Kingdom E West Savoy Denmark

4 X 11

8 Sweden 9 10 Poland Hungary T Sápmelaš Germania East Rhomaion Basileia Arabian Caliphate E Šomal œnd N Muscovy

Palaiá Megál D Rhomaion Basileia E Israel ë Voulgaría D Arabian Caliphate Sassanid Sassanid Empire

SampleGolden Horde file

1 MEDIEVAL GERMANY The Holy Roman Empire (HRE) at its greatest territ- This was because the position was not hereditary – it orial extent in the 12th and 13th centuries included was elective and there were a number of aristocratic over thousand minor and major states varying in size, lineages who competed for the title during the culture, their degree of autonomy and the nature of medieval period – the Habsburgs, Luxemburgers, their political administration. Some member states Nassaus, Staufers, Wittelsbachs. consisted of with just a handful settlements, some were city-states, but there were also larger states such When an Emperor died, a new ruler was then elected as the Duchy of Austria and the Kingdom of Bohemia. by the seven Kurfürsten (electoral princes) – there were three religious electors, the Archbishops of Mainz, As well as Royal and Aristocratic structures there were Köln (Cologne) and Trier, and four secular ones, the Republics (usually oligarchic) like Florence or Genoa King of Bohemia, the Count Palatine of the Rhine, the in Italy, Free Cities in the centre of the empire (also Duke of Saxony and the Margrave of Brandenburg. largely oligarchic) and a number of Ecclesiastical Dominions. The (elective) Emperor was the uniting It was unusual for the election to be decided at the element – at least in name and theory. actual balloting as bribes of various types used to buy the votes of the Kurfürsten – of course, the dynasty to which the recently deceased Emperor belonged usual- POLITICS & GOVERNMENT ly had an advantage in such manoeuverings. The Holy Roman Empire (HRE) and its judicial system did not work like a modern state with a constit- However, the Electors didn’t actually elect an Emper- ution where every citizen has equal rights. There were or before 1356 – they only elected the Rex Romanor- several legal traditions and there were considerable um (King of the Romans) which was only the first step. distinctions as to how they applied to the different The newly elected King then had to convince the Pope social classes and how these applied differed from to crown him as the Rex Romanorum semper Augustus locality to locality and region to region. (King of the Romans, Always Emperor) and some Popes could be quite recalcitrant. Often the definition of the relation and order between the actors was more important than the words in a legal Pope Gregory VII excommunicated the Emperor Henry document. IV three times during their prolonged struggle and his successors excommunicated him twice more! THE ELECTIVE EMPEROR The Emperor’s actual position was much weaker and IMPERIAL POWERS much more uncertain than those of the Kings of less The Emperor was, theoretically, supreme – the overall extensive realms such as those of England and ruler of the HRE, commander-in-chief of the Imperial France. armies (such as might exist) and chief Judge. Practical- ly, he had supreme rights only in the Royal Demesne – and, even there, there were some limits.

The reality was that different territorial rulers (and not just the seven Electors) had many privileges and judicial functions that overrode the Emperor’s theo- retical power – and, as such, were often quite auton- omous and could often act largely independently, even in opposition to the Emperor’s will.

This autonomy increased over time – the would-be candidates for election to the post offering bribes in the form of more lands (ripped from their, or the imperial, estates) and ever greater privileges, and each Samplesuch step decreased their file effective power while inc- reasing that of the constituent states of the HRE.

Increasingly the power of the Office relied more on the The HRE at its greatest extent c. 1268 will of (and political skill in inspiring personal loyalty of 2 major regional rulers to) the holder of the Office than on its increasingly circumscribed and limited ‘formal’ or Kaiser/König – ‘constitutional’ powers. Emperor/King Geistliche Fürsten (Bischöfe und Äbte) –Ecclesiastical The other problem facing the Emperor was that even Princes (Bishops and Abbots) G the limited powers he possessed only related to his Weltliche Reichsfürsten – Secular Imperial Tenants-in-Chief (that is, the rulers of the States which Princes owed direct fealty to him), but not to their vassals. E Freie Herren – Free Lords (barons, counts, princes) LAW & ORDER Schöffenbare Freie, Lehensmannen freier Herren und Ministeriale, höhere As implied above, the different states comprising the Ritter – Liege Men of Free Lords, Ministry Officials, High Knights R HRE almost always had considerable differences in Lehensleute des 5. Heerschildes wie z.B. niedere Ritter – Liege Men of 5. Order like for their legal systems and applicable laws – Imperial Example Low Knights Laws really only applied to the Tenants-in-Chief, for example. However, this fragmentation applied even That said, as was the case with Anglo-French feudalism, M as you went down the Feudal Pyramid – Vassals would the system was never consistent – for every ‘clearly have some commonality with the overall law codes defined’ aspect taken for granted by generations of applicable in the domain of their Tenant-in-Chief, but writers of coffee table history books (and RPGs) and A there could be considerable local variation as well. regarded as ‘received wisdom’ by most people there are many exceptions, partial or complete, varying within Often the owner of a particular fief was the highest (and, regions of a Kingdom, but also within regions within a N in small fiefs, the only) judge of his area and could Kingdom – and even from Manor to Manor in the same interpret important parts of the local laws. Barony, County or Duchy!

Overall, however, there were three basic ‘flavours’ of TENANTS IN CHIEF Y law to be found in the HRE – and often a As in the France and Germany and most of Western heterogeneous mix of all three might apply with a Europe lands granted at the beginning of the period given area. were nominally only granted for the lifetime of the recipient (Allodialgüter) – but, as \elsewhere, this grad- Customary Law, based on pre-medieval tribal law and ually changed in Germany to a system where, though had little in common with the Civil Law (Corpus Iuris estates were nominally held at the will of the overlord E Civilis – often referred to as Mos Italicus, ‘Italian granting them they became the effective heritable Custom’, in Germany) which was used elsewhere in property of the family to which they had been granted. western Europe though, as the period progressed, more and more of the latter custom was included in, In the HRE the Lehensrecht (feudal law) developed in X modified, or superseded the older Customary Laws. different directions over time through local and indiv- idual decisions, agreements and contracts. Early on in the period, German laws were similar in T some ways to those of Anglo-Saxon England – but even Norman England didn’t adopt as much of the Civil Law At this event the emperor Frederick II assigned the processes and concepts as the German states did. economic rights of coinage, tariffs, market-right and E convoy; judicial rights of High Justice (the Death The third ‘flavour’ was Ecclesiastical Law, based on sentence) and the right to build and erect City Civil Law, which influenced (even override) laws on and Town Walls to the lords – rights which had mostly marriage and inheritance and made some religious been imperial rights before that date. Even they received N acts criminal (such as heresy and witchcraft). from the emperor the high justice in their territories. The consequence were that several regions had marked- D GERMAN FEUDALISM ly different legal traditions and penalties even though While seeming, on the face of it, to be very similar to they were all nominally based on Roman Law (with an the Anglo-French system which most readers will be admixture of traditional pre-medieval Germanic law of E familiar with, and which most medieval RPGs base the late Roman period). their version of feudalism on the similarities can be misleading and, in many case, deeply so. As a result something that was illegal in your homeland could be legal in the neighbouring state even though D Yes, thereSamplewere Serfs, Knights, Barons and Lords on both places were a part of the Holy Romanfile Empire. the civil side and Priests, Nuns, Monks, Bishops and Archbishops on the religious side and with the great Additionally, this change allowed every Tenant in Chief Lords (‘Tenants in Chief’) making grants of land to (prior to this some Lords had some or all of these rights) lesser Lords who, in turn, made grants to their vassals, to have their own Army, (Royal) Court and even their right down to the Serfs who tilled the land. own coinage (though not all did, especially for coinage). 3 VASSALS Nobles had an entire, ‘noble culture’ which disting- From the Tenants-in-Chief on down there was a web uished them from the common folk – specialised of mutual obligation between lords and their vassals – customs, language and behaviours. basically ensuring a peaceful and orderly system of laws and administration so that all those involved Clothing & Fashion. Nobles wore the most elaborate could benefit. This meant that the lower level land- and expensive clothes they could afford, made from holders owed taxes or service (or both) to higher levels expensive cloth and other materials, dyed with the who had granted them their lands and estates. most expensive dyes, decorated with all sorts of high- lights and, generally, styled to be as far removed from common workday clothing worn by commoners (even At the very lowest levels these roles were often filled by wealthy ones) as much as possible – sometimes to the Ministeriales (aka Dienstmanner) – commoners who point of extreme impracticality. had been raised to a higher, non-noble, status something like that of Anglo-French Knighthood. Food & Dining. Their dining customs were also some- thing that set them apart – not only did they use more, At the beginning of the period these were simply com- and better quality, utensils, they ate more expensive moners who had been given specific administrative or foods, often imported over long distances. military duties and remained unfree serfs. By the 11th century their services had become so important they At the very least they would have eaten wheaten bread, began to be granted non-heritable fiefs – and by the 13th and at the highest level this would have been made century there was little difference between them and from the finest white milled flour. actual (free) Knights – both having the status of Miles (the common Latin term used for Anglo-French Knights). They also ate a lot of meat – most commonly Beef, but also Poultry (including eggs) and Venison. At the Some became so powerful and came to possess so much tables of the wealthiest Lords you might also find land that they actually had their own vassals! In fact, by Peacock, Partridge and assorted Game Birds. the 14th century, at least in some jurisdictions within the Empire, Ministeriales were regarded as being of a higher Vegetables (‘Herbs’) were common, especially in status of mere Knights … and only Tenants in Chief such season, and delicacies such as Almonds, Citrus Fruits, as Kings or Princes were allowed to create new ones. Dates, Figs, Raisins, Rice, Sugar and other Spices from the Orient and India were widely used.

There was no ‘Noble Identity Card’ in Germany (or Wine was widely drunk – but much of it had to be anywhere else, for that matter), so nobles had display imported as the colder climate of the Germanies their noble status by a mix of behaviour (manners – meant that wine growing areas (and the wine growing showing one was ‘gently’ or ‘nobly’ born) and clothing season) were limited. (including personal jewellery). HOMAGE & FEALTY This was one of the reasons that various jurisdictions attempted, from time to time, to institute ‘Sumptuary A Lehnsnehmer or Vasall (Vassal) held a Lehen (Fief) Laws’ relating to the style of clothing various social from his Lehnsherr (Lord) in return for some sort of classes could wear and the type of food they could eat. service obligation. Such laws were invariably failures and virtually unen- forceable from the get go – as there wasn’t a ‘Noble ID In Germany Fiefs were not always landed estates as card’ as much as anything else. such – they could, occasionally, be other things, such as a house (either on a rural estate or in a town), or it could be a Court Office with a set level of income provided either directly or as the right to collect cert- ain tolls, taxes or other incomes that did not originate from the ownership of land.

The bestowal of the Lehen was a very formal process involving a formal investiture in which the Lehensver- Samplehältnis (Fief Relation ) wasfile spelled out. It involved homage of the vassal, in which he swore an oath fealty and loyalty to the Lehnsherr.

The oath was accompanied by formal gestures. First, the 4 vassal put his folded hands in the hands of the Lehn- sherr, thereby he entering symbolically into his protect- ion. Sometimes a loyalty kiss followed. The Lehnsherr then handed over a symbol of the conferral of the Fief – which might be Banner, Staff of Office or a Scepter. G

As the period progressed there would be written docu- Reichsturmfahne mentation – the Lehnsbrief (‘Deed of Enfeoffment’), E The War Flag of the Lehnsprotokoll (‘Feudal Protocol’) and the Lehenskon- Holy Roman Em- trakt (‘Lease’). These verified the investiture, docu- pire during the 12th- mented and certified the conditions and duties of the 14th centuries R Lehensverhältnis and also listed the elements and prop- erty of the fief, ultimately defining and legalising the relationship between the Lord and the Vassal. and chief justice in a fief – but the relations between him and the occupants of the Fief varied. M At the start of the period it was more common for a Lord to lend a Fief to a Vassal – reverting to the Lord Most of the residents of a Manor were either Serfs or on the Vassal’s death whence it could be granted to ‘Half-free’ (who owed greater or lesser amounts of A the Vassal’s heir, be granted to a new Vassal, or Frondienste, aka socage or corvée, or labour service – returned to the direct ownership of the Lord. as was the case in the rest of western Europe). All of the residents also owed rents, taxes and other charges th N By the middle of the period (certainly by the mid 13 (nominally for some form of service) – though, again, century) most Lehen were granted outright or had Serfs owed the most, Half-free farmers a lesser am- been converted to outright ownership, and the Fief ount and the Freemen of the Manor the least. became heritable under rules very similar to those Y which applied elsewhere in Western Europe. By the 14th century socage or corvée was becoming less common in some areas (mainly those where serfdom was becoming less common – often because of improvements The Vassal. The core duty was auxilium et consilium in farming technology which enabled the smarter Serfs (Help and counsel). to ‘buy’ their way out of that status – again, as was common in the rest of Western Europe) and was being E ‘Help’ meant he had to assist his lord by providing replaced with rents or fees instead. troops in war and support him at Court and in Admin- istration. ‘Counsel’ meant the vassal was supposed to provide their Lord with advice in Councils called for A TYPICAL GERMAN X administrative, military or political purposes. After the Diet of Worms (1232) widely granted German lords the right to build castles, the castle-form of the They were also obliged to pay Levies (Taxes, in effect. Manorial Estate (Burgen) came to dominate – there T often annual) to his Lord – this could be money or it were around 10,000 such by the beginning of the 14th could be in the form of goods or services. century, though most would be more what would be called a fortified Manor House in England and France. E There were also Aids (special levies) paid when the lord went to war, needed a Dowry for his daughter(s) ARCHITECTURE & LAYOUT or to celebrate his son(s) being knighted. Those Burgen closest to the ideal of a castle (as opposed to a fortified Manor) had a (), N The Lord. The Lord’s duties were rarely so detailed. though this was often just a larger than normal tower The main obligations were to protect his vassals, to be as part of the overall . At least at the loyal to them and to assist them at tribunals and, of beginning of the period, the Keep was also the D course, provide them with advice when they had im- location of the Lord’s main living quarters. portant decisions to make. If there were other towers, and if those towers were E large enough, they would also have living quarters for Grundherrschaft (Manoralism) – the relation between important members of the castle staff and garrison. the Lord of a fief and its people varied widely (surely you’re not surprised by now?) from region to region Gradually more comfortable quarters for the Lord, his D and evenSample from locality to locality within a region. family and the important staff membersfile were built in the – most frequently a Palas (Palace or Great Normally a Grundherr administered a rural area and Hall) which was also the public face of the Lord’s was the Herr (Owner, Lord or Master) of the Grund power and where he (or his Deputy) openly conducted (Land, property) and, therefore, also of the people and any of their required public judicial and administrat- things on his land. He was the proprietor, custodian ive functions. 5 Often the hall was decorated with tapestries (on the wall, Gesinde (servants) who, just as they did on a Manor, remember), paintings (frescoes) or other adornments, cooked, cleaned and did all the work. which showed the wealth and status of its owner. The typical fortified Manor House was often home to The Hall was usually too big to be heated in the the Lord, his family, a handful of soldiers and a small winter so a Kemenate (‘Chimney room’) was attached number of servants – perhaps 10-20 people all up. and this was used as living and working room in cold months – or you could use portable Braziers. A TYPICAL GERMAN MANOR Also located within the Castle walls (the Bailey) would As in most of Western Europe, there was really no be workshops, forges, stables, kennels, kitchens, bake such thing as a ‘typical’ Manor – local and regional houses and stockrooms. Wells had to be dug or Cist- conditions and customs (and there were a plethora of erns used to collect rainwater from the rooftops. these in the various States which made up the Holy Roman Empire) meant that even directly adjacent As in the villages, Privies over Cesspits might be used manorial estates could be organised quite differently. to collect human waste but an Aborterker (Garderobe) protruding from the wall over the or over a chute TYPES OF MANORIAL ESTATE down to the cesspit might also be found. A Manor could, even more so than elsewhere, be held by a Lord of any status – from a Knight through to Most Castles had a Chapel (often with a burial crypt) Barons, Counts and Dukes … and even Manors be- – often in Gate House or so this weak point longing directly to the Emperor. The main difference was symbolically protected and so travellers could her was that, at least at the beginning of the period, some rest and thank God for a successful journey. such estates might be held by Ministeriales of non- noble status (see previous). STAFF & GARRISON Even in the biggest castles there were relatively few In its poorest form they could be little more than an full time residents. Besides the Lord’s family there affluent farmstead but you could also find (Fronhof) was usually a Ministeriale acting as the castellan and Manor Houses (fortified or otherwise) or fortifications a small number of Burgmannen (noble) or Kriegs- from simple Towers through to massive Castles (Burg). knechte (non-noble) soldiers acting as the garrison, especially as Torwächter (Gate Guards). A castle also At the beginning of the period it was common for the fief owner to have a separate ‘Home Farm’ with a Manor House of varying degrees of opulence (depend- ing on how wealthy the estate was, or how wealthy the Lord himself may have been) – in many case this Demesne land may have been divided into several geographically separate farms, only one of which would serve as the centre of the estate.

As elsewhere, the ‘Manor House’ could vary in type and construction from something not much more elaborate than that which a wealthy (commoner) farmer might possess – or it could be an actual Mansion or Palace.

Here the Lord or his Deputy (Meier in German, Villi- cus in Latin) resided and some part of the Manor House (or other building in the Home Farm) acted as the law court and administrative centre of the fief.

The Farmers owed not only direct rental (sharecropp- ing, in effect) but also Frondienste (Socage – Feudal Dues or Corvée) – cultivating the Lord’s fields and completing other forms of labour service for him. SampleSome of the tenants were fileactual Serfs (i.e. of unfree status) but others were Freemen – the former typically owing much greater rents and socage than the latter.

The Lord’s Demesne was staffed by Gesinde (Servants) 6 who varied from high status, well paid, specialists (such as the Meier) down to low status, poorly paid, Forest Village Farmhouse household or field workers (still better off than the average Serf). G However, over time this was replaced by a more com- mercially structured system – the Home Farm(s) often rented to better off Farmers rather than being operat- E ed directly by the Lord or his Deputy. This change was also accompanied by a move away R from Socage (Corvée) labour and to a more rational shaped) and mostly with either a pond or a stream system of rents and fees instead – though this was only flowing through. The main road through such villages beginning at the very end of the period. often split to run around either side of the common land but might, occasionally, run through the middle M or even just along one side. As the period progressed The most common manor type in Germany was the the Village Church might be built on it as well. Burg (castle) especially after the Diet of Worms (1232) A giving Lords the right to build castles – by 1300 there Rundling (Circular Village). These were most com- were over 10,000 castles of various sizes throughout monly found in border areas or areas subject to raid- the HRE and many of these were as much civilian ing or military threat. The farmhouses were built N dwellings as they were fortified structures. around a roughly round central common/green. In times of trouble the farmers would herd their cattle Most Burgen did not reach the size of the big English and other livestock and valuables into this space to and French castles but there were some exceptions such defend it together. Y as the Burg zu Burghausen in Bavaria which is over 1,200 meters long. Most were fairly small (as castles go) Straßendorf (Street Village). Here the farmhouses and, after 1232, most were substantially stone built. were erected consecutive along a road – depending on the local geography they might even be confined to only one side of the street (for example, if the road ran A TYPICAL GERMAN VILLAGE along a riverbank in a narrow valley). E The vast majority of the population of the Holy Roman Empire lived in rural villages. In size, they Waldhufendorf (Forest Village). Similar to a Street ranged from a handful of people to 200 individuals Village, being built along a forest road – but often with and more – and we know from contemporary sources something like an Angerdorf’s village common’s in the X that medieval people couldn’t always distinguish the centre (and, if so, usually much larger and including difference between such large villages and Towns and housing for Cottars). The Farmer’s houses face the in some cases applicable municipal law was the only street while the farmlands are behind them and cut T definitive characteristic. into the forest proper. TYPES OF VILLAGE Marschhufendorf (Marsh village). Similarly organised E There were two basic types – ‘natural’ villages (those to the Forest Village but less frequently with a central which had grown organically over a long period of Green (or, if there is one, it is more like the narrow time) and ‘planned’ villages (those which had been lenticular one of the Angerdorf) with the farmlands more recently, and more systematically, created). (often reclaimed) behind the Farmhouses. N

VILLAGE LAYOUT The were the more common of the two and, generally, D the oldest, dating back to before the period covered by The central part of any village was the area where OM2 or at the very beginning for the most part. They farmhouses (and their outbuildings, gardens etc) and had no real arrangement of where houses, streets and other buildings were found (see Types of Village, E important structures such as the Church, Bakehouse, opposite). These were all fenced as the property lines Mill, Smithy and the like might be found. (what would be Croft & Toft in England) were legal boundaries of the lehen they held – and the combined outer border formed by the collective fences formed D TheseSample don’t really start to appear in any numbers the formal boundary of the Village properfile. until the 13th century and later. A number of different basic varieties have been identified – Apart from the fields there was almost always an area Angerdorf (Village & Green). These were built around of common land where those with the appropriate a central open space, usually roughly lenticular (lens Lehen could run livestock. Some of this might actually 7