Seigneurial system of New France
The manorial system of New France, known as the seigneurial system, was the semi-feudal system of land tenure used in the North American French colonial empire. Economic historians have attributed the wealth gap between Quebec and other parts of Canada in the 19th and early 20th century to the persistent adverse impact of the seigneurial system.
Boundaries of fiefs, including sub-fiefs, in Lower Canada (as charted in 1923).
St. Lawrence River by SPOT Satellite. "Long lots" can be discerned at the riverside
Ribbon farms along the Detroit River in 1796, where modern Detroit and Windsor, Ontario now stand. Fort Detroit is on the north side of the river at center left, and Belle Isle is to the right.
Manorialism, also known as seigneurialism, the manor system or manorial system, was the method of land ownership in parts of Europe, notably France and later England, during the Middle Ages. Its defining features included a large, sometimes fortified manor house in which the lord of the manor and his dependants lived and administered a rural estate, and a population of labourers or serfs who worked the surrounding land to support themselves and the lord. These labourers fulfilled their obligations with labour time or in-kind produce at first, and later by cash payment as commercial activity increased. Manorialism was part of the feudal system.
Ploughing on a French ducal manor in March from the manuscript, Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, c.1410
The great hall at Penshurst Place, Kent, built in the mid 14th century. A manor house hall was where the lord and his family ate, received guests, and conferred with dependents
Reconstruction of a medieval castle, Bachritterburg, Baden-Württemberg
