The lord, or noble, is the landowner,
and grants a fief to a vassal, or land to a recipient. The vassal is either a
knight who pledges to defend the lord’s lands, or landless peasants who work
the lands. The church official, or priest, collected a tithe (1/10 of peasants’
income) and did not work like peasants or fight like knights (an example of the
corruption of that era’s Catholic church).
