Question

How would you describe the social class and ruling system in western Europe in the fifteenth

Answer 1

During the 15th Century, Western Europe’s social class system comprised the  

1. King: The king was the absolute head of the ruling system. The king was in charge of divide the land among the monarchy and the church. Also, he was the one that named lords and knights. Moreover, all the members of the kingdom had to pay the king for the right to use the land through money or goods.    

2. Lords: This class was made of powerful landowners and the heads of the church. On the one hand, the king was in charge of providing financial aid to the members of this class. On the other hand, both lords and church members rewarded this help to the king by keeping the population under control and ensuring the loyalty towards him.  

3. Knights: They were the last link in the chain of nobility. Basically, they were in charge of ensuring the land control of the lords and of providing military aid to the monarchy.      

4. Bourgeoisie: During the 15th Century, a new social class appeared in Europe: the bourgeoisie. This class was neither part of the monarchy nor the church. In fact, the bourgeoisie comprised merchants and agricultural industrials.  

5. Peasants: They were the last part of the social class system. Most of the peasants were farmers and worked on the lands that were the property of the king or the lords, for that reason they had to pay for the use of it. Therefore, they lived in extreme poverty.