[309] The county of Champagne lay to the east of Paris. It was established by Charlemagne and, while at first insignificant, grew until by the twelfth and thirteenth centuries it was one of the most important in France.
[310] Beauvais was about sixty miles northwest of Paris.
[311] That is, the bishop of Beauvais was bound to furnish his lord, the count of Champagne, the service of one knight for his army, besides ordinary feudal obligations.
[312] The county of Troyes centered about the city of that name on the upper Seine. It was eventually absorbed by Champagne.
[313] As a fief.
[314] A manor, in the general sense, was a feudal estate.
[315] A castellanerie was a feudal holding centering about a castle.
[316] That is, Count Thiebault promises Jocelyn not to deprive him of the services of men who rightfully belong on the manor which is being granted.
[317] Here is an illustration of the complexity of the feudal system. Count Thiebault is Jocelyn's fourth lord, and loyalty and service are owed to all of the four at the same time. Accordingly, Thiebault must be content with only such allegiance of his new vassal as will not involve a breach of the contracts which Jocelyn has already entered into with his other lords. For example, Thiebault could not expect Jocelyn to aid him in war against the duke of Burgundy, for Jocelyn is pledged to fidelity to that duke. In general, when a man had only one lord he owed him full and unconditional allegiance (liege homage), but when he became vassal to other lords he could promise them allegiance only so far as would not conflict with contracts already entered into. It was by no means unusual for a man to have several lords, and it often happened that A was B's vassal for a certain piece of land while at the same time B was A's vassal for another piece. Not infrequently the king himself was thus a vassal of one or more of his own vassals.
[318] The Bible. Sometimes only the Gospels were used.