Fill in the Blanks During the Middle Ages, W__s__e__n European rulers often granted land to nobles. In exchange, the noble pledged his l__y__l__y and provided the king with trained horsemen called k__i__h__s. This system of loyalties and protections is called f__u__a__i__m. The noble and his family often lived in c__s__l__s that were built for p__o__e__t__on rather than c__m__o__t. The castles were constructed on raised mounds called m__tt__s. A vast estate called a M__n__r surrounded the castle. As L__r__s of the Manor, the n__bl__s provided p__a__a__t farmers with p__o__e__ti__n and land on which to grow food. The farmers r__p__id the noble by w__r__i__g in his p__r__o__al fields in addition to f__r__i__g their land. The feudal system ended in Western Europe by the end of the M__d__le Ages. Millions of p__a__a__ts lost their lives from a widespread *i__l__e__s called the Black D__a__h, so there were not enough workers to farm the M__n__rs. The cost of maintaining k__i__h__s became unnecessary once rulers learned of g__n__o__d__r and long-range c__n__o__s. Meanwhile, as European cities grew in p__p__l__ti__n for the first time since the fall of the R__m__n Empire, the feudal age gave way to the R__n__i__s__n__e, the rebirth of Europe.