How did medieval nobles maintain their power over the peasantry?

 During the medieval period in Europe, nobles were members of the nobility, a social class that held a higher social and economic status than the peasantry, or the common people who worked the land. Nobles were able to maintain their power over the peasantry through a variety of means, including:

Legal and economic systems: Nobles held a monopoly on the use of force and the administration of justice, and they used this power to maintain their control over the peasantry. They also had control over the economic systems that governed land ownership and the distribution of resources, which allowed them to extract wealth and labor from the peasantry.

Military power: Nobles maintained their power through their control of the military, which gave them the ability to defend their territories and interests against external threats.

Political influence: Nobles held a significant amount of political influence, both within their own domains and at the national level. They used this influence to shape laws and policies that favored their own interests and maintained their power over the peasantry.

Social status: The noble class enjoyed a higher social status than the peasantry, and this helped to reinforce the power dynamic between the two groups.

Overall, medieval nobles maintained their power over the peasantry through a combination of legal and economic systems, military power, political influence, and social status.