Can a lord be a lord and a vassal at the same time?

Answer 1

A noble was the lord ( landlord) of his lands and people but he was a vassal to the king who gave him those lands. The lands could be taken away at any time along with any titles and even his life if the king so choose to do so.

Answer 2

yes they could. Because Henry II and his family were the Dukes of Normandy, Anjou, Aquitaine and several others they actually were the vassals of the King of France.

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Answer 3

In the medieval period, certainly. Every lord at every level was a vassal of someone else - and ultimately a vassal of the king.

In 1166, for example, Hervey Bagot held land from Robert of Stafford, who held all his lands directly from the king. Both Hervey and Robert were vassals of the king; Hervey was a vassal of Robert and all three were "lords" in legal terms. Hervey's land holdings were assessed at 3 knight's fees, so in theory he had 3 knights who were his own vassals - but in practice they did not need to exist, only be paid for if called upon to serve the king.

Answer 4

To understand this, we need to look at the definition of both:

A vassal is a holder of land by feudal tenure on conditions of homage and allegiance, or person or country in a subordinate position to another, typically a king in both cases.

A lord is a titled nobleman or peer; a person whose ordinary appellation contains by courtesy the title Lord or some higher title usually conveyed upon that person by a king.

See where this is going?

Lords were typically granted land or property and paid a tax or homage to the king who titled them for the honor of the title. Both of these terms are under the feudal form of government, a "fecal matter runs downhill" sort of condition. In this sort of scenario, anyone who is not the king or queen is a vassal or lower.

Answer 5

In medieval times Lords were wealthy land owners. Vassals were the people who worked that land and otherwise served the Lords.