Feudalism was a social, political, and economic system established in England after the Norman conquest in 1066. William the Conqueror defeated the English at the Battle of Hastings and needed the support of nobles and knights, so he instituted a feudal system with himself at the top. Under feudalism, the king granted lands to lords in exchange for loyalty and military service. Lords then granted lands to knights who owed military service in return. Serfs, bound to the land, did most of the manual labor and had few rights. This feudal hierarchy and system of land-for-service defined political and social relations until the French and English revolutions began dismantling feudalism.