Legal Definitions - corvée seigneuriale

The term corvée seigneuriale refers to a historical practice, predominantly found in feudal systems, where tenants or serfs were obligated to provide unpaid labor or services to their lord of the manor. These services were a form of duty or rent, often in addition to other payments, and were crucial for the upkeep of the lord's estate, infrastructure, and personal needs.

Here are some examples illustrating the concept of corvée seigneuriale:

• Imagine a peasant family in medieval France living on land owned by a local baron. During the crucial harvest season, the family might be required to spend two days each week working in the baron's personal fields, gathering his crops, before they could attend to their own small plot. This unpaid agricultural labor, performed for the benefit of the lord, exemplifies a corvée seigneuriale.

• Consider a village situated within a lord's domain. The lord's castle walls require constant maintenance, and the roads leading to his market town need repair after heavy rains. The villagers, as tenants of the lord, could be summoned to dedicate several days annually to these tasks, such as hauling stones for the castle or clearing debris from the roads, without receiving wages. This compulsory infrastructure work is another clear instance of corvée seigneuriale.

• A skilled carpenter living on a lord's estate might be granted the right to build homes for other villagers in exchange for a portion of his earnings. However, as part of his obligations to the lord, he could also be required to spend a certain number of days each year constructing or repairing structures exclusively for the lord's use, such as a new stable for the lord's horses or furniture for his manor house, without direct payment. This specialized labor provided to the lord illustrates a form of corvée seigneuriale.