Fealty

is a term for the obligations of a to his or hers. More precisely, an of fealty, from the Latin fidelitas, is a pledge of  of one person to another.

Definition
In, the swearing of fealty took the form of an oath made by a , or subordinate, to his. “Fealty” also referred to the duties incumbent upon a vassal that were owed to the lord, which consisted of service and aid.

One part of the oath of fealty included swearing to always remain faithful to the lord. The oath of fealty usually took place after the act of, when, by the symbolic act of kneeling before the lord and placing his hands between the hands of the lord, the vassal became the “man” of the lord. Usually, the lord also promised to provide for the vassal in some form, either through the granting of a or by some other manner of support. Typically, the oath took place upon a religious object such as a or , often contained within an , thus binding the oath-taker before God. Fealty and homage were key elements of European.

Fealty is distinct from other parts of the homage ceremony, and is usually used only to refer to that part of the ceremony where the vassal swore to be a good vassal to his lord.

History
In, an oath of fealty (: Lehnseid) was a fundamental element of the. It was sworn between two people, the feudal subject or liegeman (vassal) and his feudal superior (liege lord). The oath of allegiance was usually carried out as part of a traditional ceremony in which the liegeman or vassal gave his lord a pledge of loyalty and acceptance of the consequences of a breach of trust. In return the liege lord promised to protect and remain loyal to his vassal. This relationship formed the basis of landholding, known as feudal tenure, whereby the vested in the tenant (the vassal) was so similar to actual possession that it was considered a separate  described as utile domain ('), literally “beneficial ownership”, whereas the landlord’s estate was referred to as eminent domain or superiority (', lit. “direct ownership”).

In the, the investiture and oath of fealty were invariably recorded by a deed; in modern times this replaced the traditional ceremony. Where the geographical distance between the two parties was significant, the lord could name a representative before whom the oath was to be sworn.

The whole contract including the oath of fealty was part of a formal that created the feudal relationship.

The term is also used by English-speakers to refer to similar oaths of allegiance in other feudal cultures, as with, as well as in modern organized crime.

= =