during the European Middle Ages, the dwelling of the lord of the manor or his residential bailiff and administrative centre of the feudal estate. The medieval manor was generally fortified in proportion to the degree of peaceful settlement of the country or region in which it was located. The manor house was the centre of secular village life, and its great hall was the scene of the manorial court and the place of assembly of the tenantry. The particular character of the manor house is most clearly represented in England and France, but under different names similar dwellings of feudal overlords existed in all countries wherein the manorial system developed