ABSTRACT
Hierarchy was the foundation of a feudal society, a fact of which both bureaucrats and ministers were fully aware; therefore they did everything in their power to promote and uphold the system. The ruling class always equivocated when it came to the yawning social gap; they justified the social system in the name of feudal etiquette and custom, and therefore formed a school of thought from that. The king was at the very top of the feudal hierarchy. Only the force of heaven reigned over him. The management of military and state affairs was inseparable in a feudal society. At the bottom rung of the feudal hierarchy were commoners, who had the lowest social status and contributed their services to the upper class. Slaves were important to productive labour in a feudal society. Both men and women slaves were captured by enemy states. In a feudal society, punishing and killing slaves was a common practice.
