villeinage
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In Scotland they had just been emancipated from the status of villeinage.
From Recent Developments in European Thought by Various
A plea had been set up that villeinage had never been abolished by law in England; ergo, the possession of slaves was not illegal.
From Toronto of Old by Scadding, Henry
Their inhabitants, in spite of ascetic regulations, found that life was none so hard—at least in comparison with that of serfdom or villeinage; luxuries were not less available than to the laity.
From England under the Tudors by Innes, Arthur D. (Arthur Donald)
It is not necessary for us further to notice the existence of villeinage or slavery in these kingdoms.
From Knowledge is Power: A View of the Productive Forces of Modern Society and the Results of Labor, Capital and Skill. by Knight, Charles
Once elected, whether by the actual ceremony or by a survival of it, he assumed control over the tenants in villeinage and over the waste lands of the tribe.
From The Fijians A Study of the Decay of Custom by Thomson, Basil