“Unveiling the Crown: The Surprising Truth Behind a Medieval Monarch’s Real Power!”
The barons then amassed the taxes, devolving a portion to the King. And just like their knights, the barons were expected to raise a certain number of troops, both skilled knights or part-time men-at-arms when the Kingdom was at war.
At the bottom of the ladder you had peasants, labourers and craftsmen, who just paid taxes to everybody, including the Church.
Through the feudal system, the monarch had thus access to a fairly reliable method to maintain law and order over his realm, to collect revenue, and to raise armies.
The ‘feudal contracts’, however, had to be respected by both parties. For example, when it came to military levies, the King could only ask for a certain number of troops, and for a set number of days in a given year.
A King could slam his fist on the table and angrily demand for more soldiers, sure. But barons could just as well refuse. What would the King do, send an army to impose his will? Not usually under this system as most of his army likely came from the barons themselves.
That said, he could hire mercenaries, right?!?! Well, it’s not so simple once again. No barons on the Crown’s side equaled no taxes, and no taxes meant empty coffers.
That is why European mediaeval monarchs were forced to cooperate with their aristocratic subjects. This cooperation had been a long-standing practice in England since the late 10th Century, since King Aethelstan had instituted the first ‘witan’ or ‘assembly of magnates’, which included bishops, archbishops and ‘thegns’, or landed gentry.
