In the medieval feudal system, the nobility were generally those who held a fief, often land or office under vassalage in exchange for military allegiance to their sovereign. Living alongside serfs, it was their duty to ensure that the peasants, craftsmen and clergymen were defended so that they could live in peace and act as judges to handle disputes.

To explore the often ostentatious and gluttonous lifestyles of the nobility, Eleanor Janega visits Hedingham Castle, perhaps the best preserved Norman keep in Essex, England.