Which statement correctly describes the seigneurial system?

• A. It is a feudal arrangement where seigneurs grant land to habitants and provide a mill and church
• B. It is a capitalist market-based system with no feudal obligations
• C. It is a system of communal farming with no landlords
• D. It is an alliance network with indigenous groups

Answer: (A)

The seigneurial system is a feudal landholding arrangement in which a seigneur holds land from the crown and parcelizes it to habitants. In return for the grant, habitants farm the land and pay rents or provide labor, while the seigneur supplies essential community services like a mill and a church and offers protection. This setup creates a clear lord-and-vassal relationship and helps organize settlement along long, narrow blocks of land along waterways. That combination—land granted by seigneurs to habitants plus the provision of a mill and a church—is what this system is describing. It isn’t a capitalist market with no feudal duties, nor a communal farming arrangement without landlords, nor primarily an alliance network with Indigenous groups.