He who swears fealty to his lord ought always to have these six things in mind: what is harmless, safe, honourable, useful easy, practicable. Harmless, that is to say, that he should not injure his lord in his body; safe, that he should not injure him by betraying his secrets or the defenses on which he relies for his sagety; honourable, that he should not injure him in his justice or in other matters that pertain to his honour; useful, that he should not injure him in his possessions; easy, that he should not make difficult that which his lord can do easily; and practicable, that he should not make impossible for the lord that which is possible.

That the faithful vassal should avoid these injuries is proper, it is not for this alone that he deserves his holding; for it is not enough to abstain from evil, unless what is good is done also. He should faithfully aid and counsel his lord, if he wishes to be looked on as worthy of his benefice and to be safe concerning the fealty he has sworn.

The lord out also to act toward his faithful vassal reciprocally in all these things for if he does not do these things he shall rightly be considered guilty of bad faith.

Those who had land transferred (enfeoffed) previously to them by the most pious Count Charles did homage to the new count, taking up now again their fiefs and offices and whatever they had before rightfully obtained.

First, they did their homage thus. The lord asked the vassal if he were willing to become completely his man, and the other replied "I am willing"; and with hands clasped, placed between the hands of the count, they were bound together by a kiss. Secondly, he who had done homage gave his fealty to a representative of the count in these words: "I promise on my faith that I will be faithful to Count William, and will observe my homage to him completely against all persons, in good faith and without deceit." He took his oath on the relics of the saints.

A man became a vassal of the lord in a ceremony called homage. The future vassal promised to be loyal, fight for the lord, and become his man (homo in Latin). The lord promised to treat the vassal with honour. 

After performing homage, the new vassal was invested with (given the rights to) his fief. This was done in an investiture ceremony. At the ceremony, the lord often gave his vassal a clod of dirt, a stick, or some other such object as a symbol of the fief. 

The vassal received only the use or possession of the fief (a unit of land held by a vassal from a lord in return for military service). Fiefs were conferred in an original grant, a grant which stipulated the conditions under which it could be transferred by marriage, inheritance, or under what conditions it would fall into default. ), not ownership of it. He held the fief in return for services he had promised. As long as the vassal held the fief, he received what the land--and the peasants--produced, collected taxes, held court, administered justice, and managed the peasants' labor. When the vassal died, his son usually took over the fief. The son provided the same services as his father. 

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OR How did homage work in a feudal society?