10-13 Century German Nobles To Study

After Charles Martel enforced the Fief Reform, the fief became the most importantexistent forms of the land in the medieval Western Europe. Except fief, there were many otherforms existing, such as the allod, the royal land and the ecclesiastical estate. The allod isspecial, which originated from the chief bestowed during the conquest of the Teuton. Whenthe Feudalization carried on, the allod didn’t change into the fief. The tradition of the ancientTeuton, the development of feudalism, the intrinsic governing structure and the policy of therulers may be the factors which caused the allod existing in the medieval Germany. Becauseof the inheritance and immunity, the noble usually enlarged allod in some ways, such asreclaiming wasteland, presented by freemen and purchasing. The allod existing in themedieval Germany for long time was one of the reasons for the incomplete feudalism. Theextending of the allod accelerated the transformation of the medieval German aristocraticgovernance. Meanwhile, the allod which was the foundation for the aristocracy, as well as thefief, maintained and strengthened the dominant position of the aristocracy. The history of medieval Germany is not the focus in the internal academia, and thescholars hardly pay attention to the study of the allod in medieval Germany. The Purpose ofthis thesis is to give a preliminary study of the German aristocratic allod during the ten tothirteen century, and to analyze the influences of the allod on medieval Germany.More specifically, the thesis consists of four chapters:Chapter Ⅰ discusses the existent forms of the land in medieval Germany, including thefief, the allod, the royal land and the ecclesiastical estate, then summarizes the ways of thenoble gaining land.Chapter Ⅱ expounds the origin of the allod, then analyses the reasons for existing in themedieval Germany, and points out the methods of the noble extending the allod.Chapter Ⅲ expatiates the real allod and the allodial land in the medieval Germany, theninterprets the distinctions between the real allod and the allodial land, reveals the obligationsand the restrictions of the allod, and compares the differences of the privileges between theallod and the fief.Chapter Ⅳ explores the influences of the allod on medieval German history by analyzingthe relation between the allod and German feudalism the dominant position of the Germanaristocracy.