reswearing fealty

[jsrechts@imap.unc.edu]

Poster: jsrechts@imap.unc.edu

Diana asks, "Did a king ever have his vassals reswear fealty?  For what
reasons?

The short answer is Yes.  Various feudal magnates could require a vassal
to reswear fealty.  The reasons vary but reswearing fealty has been used
as a form of punishment for a vassal.
I remember reading about a case in Flanders (I think it was in the
1200's) about one vassal who made war on his lord.  The vassal lost and
as punishment, the vassal was heavily fined, gave up one of his castles
and
had to re-affirm his fealty. Reswearing fealty was also a preventative
measure if the relationship was beginning to fracture.

A good source on fealty is Marc Bloch's _Feudal Society_, you'll get
lots of info there.


Lyanna

=======================================================================
List Archives, FAQ, FTP:  http://merryrose.atlantia.sca.org/
            Submissions:  atlantia@atlantia.sca.org
        Admin. requests:  majordomo@atlantia.sca.org