(单词翻译:单击)
Feudalism
封建主义
Feudalism was a type of political system that was common in Europe during the Middle Ages.
封建主义是中世纪欧洲常见的一种政治制度。
The system evolved after the governments in many European countries began to decentralize.
在许多欧洲国家的政府开始分权后，封建制度逐渐发展起来。
This meant that monarchs gave more power and responsibilities to local lords.
这意味着君主将更多的权力和责任交给了地方领主。
Under feudalism, people worked for their lords, and their lords paid them with land.
在封建主义下，人们为领主工作，领主给他们土地。
People living in feudal systems also had to pay taxes.
生活在封建制度下的人也要交税。
They owed their lords a percentage of the crops they grew on their land.
他们在自己土地上种植的庄稼，其中有一部分是给领主的。
This system was naturally hierarchical.
这一体系自然是分等级的。
The monarch, who controlled all of the land, had the most wealth and power.
君主控制着所有的土地，拥有最多的财富和权力。
The peasants, who worked on the land, had the least.
而在土地上劳作的农民拥有的最少。
Feudalism began to decline around the 15th century, when it became more common to buy land and goods with money.
在15世纪左右，用钱购买土地和商品变得更加普遍，于是封建主义开始衰落。
