What things about the Medieval period are hard to grok?

[silveroak]

@zahra

In medieval Europe, the extended family or clan was crucial as a political entity, more so than individual rulers. Instead of a ruler imposing power on people, clans functioned as the core unit. Leaders were chosen based on their ability to maintain clan consensus, and if they failed, they could be replaced by more competent relatives. Feuds and debts were typically clan-based, and clans managed land and wealth collectively. Nations were essentially networks of interconnected clans.

There were parts of medieval Europe for which this was true- Scotland and Ireland for example, or Spain, but there were also parts of Europe for which this was very much not true. Ruling families were certainly important, but leaders could not be changed so easily.