MCQs on Feudalism – Medieval World History
Q1. What was the primary purpose of the feudal system in Medieval Europe?
a) To promote trade
b) To spread Christianity
c) To provide education
d) To establish a social and political hierarchy
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Correct Answer: d) To establish a social and political hierarchy
Explanation: The primary purpose of the feudal system in Medieval Europe was to establish a social and political hierarchy, with the king at the top and various levels of nobility, clergy, and peasants below.
Q2. Which social class was responsible for providing military service to their lord in the feudal system?
a) Serfs
b) Knights
c) Clergy
d) Merchants
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Correct Answer: b) Knights
Explanation: Knights were responsible for providing military service to their lord in the feudal system, in exchange for land and protection.
Q3. What was the name of the land granted to a vassal by their lord in the feudal system?
a) Manor
b) Fief
c) Demesne
d) Bailiwick
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Correct Answer: b) Fief
Explanation: A fief was the land granted to a vassal by their lord in the feudal system, in exchange for loyalty and military service.
Q4. Which term refers to the ceremony in which a vassal pledged loyalty to their lord in the feudal system?
a) Investiture
b) Homage
c) Fealty
d) Coronation
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Correct Answer: b) Homage
Explanation: Homage was the ceremony in which a vassal pledged loyalty to their lord in the feudal system, often involving the vassal kneeling before the lord and placing their hands between the lord’s hands.
Q5. What was the primary responsibility of serfs in the feudal system?
a) Military service
b) Trade and commerce
c) Agricultural labor
d) Religious duties
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Correct Answer: c) Agricultural labor
Explanation: The primary responsibility of serfs in the feudal system was to provide agricultural labor on their lord’s land, in exchange for protection and a place to live.
Q6. Which term refers to the lord’s land reserved for his personal use in the feudal system?
a) Manor
b) Fief
c) Demesne
d) Bailiwick
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Correct Answer: c) Demesne
Explanation: The demesne was the lord’s land reserved for his personal use in the feudal system, with the remaining land divided among his vassals as fiefs.
Q7. What was the primary role of the clergy in the feudal system?
a) Military service
b) Trade and commerce
c) Agricultural labor
d) Religious and spiritual guidance
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Correct Answer: d) Religious and spiritual guidance
Explanation: The primary role of the clergy in the feudal system was to provide religious and spiritual guidance to the community, as well as to perform various religious ceremonies and rites.
Q8. Which term refers to the economic system that supported the feudal system in Medieval Europe?
a) Capitalism
b) Mercantilism
c) Manorialism
d) Guild system
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Correct Answer: c) Manorialism
Explanation: Manorialism was the economic system that supported the feudal system in Medieval Europe, with the manor serving as the basic unit of production and organization.
Q9. What was the primary source of wealth for lords in the feudal system?
a) Trade and commerce
b) Taxation
c) Agricultural production
d) Mining and industry
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Correct Answer: c) Agricultural production
Explanation: The primary source of wealth for lords in the feudal system was agricultural production, as they controlled the land and relied on the labor of serfs to cultivate it.
Q10. Which term refers to the legal and social status of serfs in the feudal system?
a) Vassalage
b) Villeinage
c) Knighthood
d) Clergy
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Correct Answer: b) Villeinage
Explanation: Villeinage was the legal and social status of serfs in the feudal system, which bound them to the land and required them to provide labor and services to their lord.
Q11. Which social class in the feudal system was responsible for governing and administering justice within their territories?
a) Serfs
b) Knights
c) Clergy
d) Nobility
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Correct Answer: d) Nobility
Explanation: The nobility was responsible for governing and administering justice within their territories in the feudal system, often through the use of local courts and officials.
Q12. Which term refers to the practice of dividing a lord’s land among his heirs in the feudal system?
a) Primogeniture
b) Gavelkind
c) Partible inheritance
d) Entail
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Correct Answer: c) Partible inheritance
Explanation: Partible inheritance was the practice of dividing a lord’s land among his heirs in the feudal system, which could lead to the fragmentation of landholdings and a decline in the lord’s power.
Q13. Which term refers to the practice of granting all of a lord’s land to his eldest son in the feudal system?
a) Primogeniture
b) Gavelkind
c) Partible inheritance
d) Entail
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Correct Answer: a) Primogeniture
Explanation: Primogeniture was the practice of granting all of a lord’s land to his eldest son in the feudal system, which helped to maintain the continuity of landholdings and the lord’s power.
Q14. Which term refers to a lord’s right to approve or reject the marriage of his serfs in the feudal system?
a) Merchet
b) Heriot
c) Tallage
d) Mortmain
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Correct Answer: a) Merchet
Explanation: Merchet was the lord’s right to approve or reject the marriage of his serfs in the feudal system, often requiring the payment of a fee by the serf’s family.
Q15. Which term refers to the payment made by a serf to their lord upon the death of the serf’s father in the feudal system?
a) Merchet
b) Heriot
c) Tallage
d) Mortmain
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Correct Answer: b) Heriot
Explanation: Heriot was the payment made by a serf to their lord upon the death of the serf’s father in the feudal system, often consisting of the serf’s best animal or piece of equipment.
Q16. Which term refers to the tax levied by a lord on his serfs in the feudal system?
a) Merchet
b) Heriot
c) Tallage
d) Mortmain
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Correct Answer: c) Tallage
Explanation: Tallage was the tax levied by a lord on his serfs in the feudal system, which could be imposed at the lord’s discretion and was often used to raise.
Q17. Which term refers to the right of a lord to claim certain goods or property from a serf’s estate upon their death in the feudal system?
a) Escheat
b) Heriot
c) Tallage
d) Mortmain
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Correct Answer: a) Escheat
Explanation: Escheat was the right of a lord to claim certain goods or property from a serf’s estate upon their death in the feudal system, often when the serf had no direct heirs or had committed a crime.
Q18. Which term refers to the practice of serfs being bound to the land they worked on in the feudal system?
a) Villeinage
b) Serfdom
c) Vassalage
d) Tenure
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Correct Answer: b) Serfdom
Explanation: Serfdom was the practice of serfs being bound to the land they worked on in the feudal system, which meant that they could not leave the land without their lord’s permission.
Q19. Which term refers to the legal protection granted to serfs by their lord in the feudal system?
a) Sanctuary
b) Wardship
c) Frankpledge
d) Surety
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Correct Answer: c) Frankpledge
Explanation: Frankpledge was the legal protection granted to serfs by their lord in the feudal system, which required the lord to ensure the safety and security of his serfs and their property.
Q20. Which term refers to the practice of granting land to a vassal in exchange for military service in the feudal system?
a) Commendation
b) Enfeoffment
c) Subinfeudation
d) Investiture
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Correct Answer: b) Enfeoffment
Explanation: Enfeoffment was the practice of granting land to a vassal in exchange for military service in the feudal system, which established the relationship between the lord and the vassal and defined their mutual obligations.