The Zamindarana Nizam or Feudal system is a phenomenon that has affected Pakistan’s history time and again; sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. There are many salient features of the Feudal system in Pakistan. They are large landholdings by joint families; Lambardari of the local landlord family, work done by peasants or mazeras, complete rule of the landlord in the vicinity and often its surroundings too, debt bondage and sometimes absentee landlordism. The Pakistani feudal system is compatible with the European medieval feudal system where a large proportion of the production of the subsistence farmer would go to the landlord as homage. The Indian caste system is also similar to the hierarchy of the medieval European feudal pyramid expect for the fact there a person from a lower rank could be promoted to a higher rank by proving his worth unlike India where a Pandit’s son will grow up to be a Pandit and a Shudra’s son is deemed to be a servant for the rest of his life. There are also some similarities with the Japanese feudal system. In this research we will delve into the intricacies of the matter and will ascertain the reason for the phenomenon of feudalism and its effects on Pakistani society in general.
The European Feudal Model:-
We have to see the similarities between the Indian Feudal Model and the European feudal model because a lot of people confuse one with another. It will also be easier to study the Indian feudal system because it was a forerunner of the modern Pakistani feudal system. The European feudal system was based on homage to one’s feudal lord because of the fact that he protects the plebian from external threat by serving in the military.
If we want to study the European feudal model we have to grasp the idea of the King, the Lord, the vassal and the peasant. The King was the sovereign barring exceptions in some cases, all the feudal barons and others were knighted by the King so that they