Slavic society
The Slavic society was initially probably organised in a tribal form. The development continued towards larger tribal unions, whose government organisation already contained germs of polities antecedent to states. From the 9th century, when Great Moravia has flourished, we know a whole series of archaeological as well as written sources concerning the organisation of this early medieval polity. In the 8th century, Chotěbuz-Podobora probably also was built up as a part of a system of settlements around the centre at Lubom.
Did you know that:
In Slavic languages, the words for a duke and a priest have the same root, and they have probably once been synonyms. This confirms the importance of the ruler in the Old Slavic world perception. The duke is not only a military leader and lord, but also a guarantee of sacred world order.
The highest position was occupied by the ruler – duke, who was the supreme military leader of all warriors. Lower-ranked were the magnates, who may have been blood-related with the ruler, and from whom the elite warrior class was recruited. From the Great Moravian territory we have finds of large palace-like buildings, most probably the residences of supreme rulers, as well as fortified manors, which may have belonged to magnates. The magnates also administered individual strongholds. Relatively numerous has been the mass of free people, from whom were probably recruited the main military forces who have defended the country or went to war with their ruler.
The bearded axe and the spear
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Sword was a symbol of power as well as a true weapon but swords were far more valuable than people usually think. The ownership of a sword represented a considerable wealth and therefore it was destined for the richest people only.
The elite warriors, in fact professional soldiers from among the noble classes, were always perfectly armed – we know finds of swords of extraordinarily high quality, often of western origin, helmets and chain mails. However, the warriors mainly owned horses, with which has often been associated a luxurious equestrian equipment. Free warriors were maybe a little worse equipped, they usually were foot soldiers without armour, only with a shield; their main weapons were a massive spear and above all an axe. The bearded axe represents one of the characteristic objects associated with Great Moravia and from our hillfort we already know three finds of such battle axes.
Iron arrow tips
Production of a chain mail
Special groups within the society were represented by merchants, who have mediated long-distance contacts, and by specialised craftsmen. It was above all in Great Moravia that the jewellery making, smithery and metal hammering reached such a high level that the masters in these crafts may have counted among privileged classes.
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Slaves became property of warriors who usually captured them as spoils of war during incursions. In the early medieval society, slave trade has played an important economic role. One of historic interpretations even claims that the expansion of the early Přemyslid state was mainly funded in this way.
Lowest on social ladder were slaves. Worth mentioning in this regard is the find of an iron handcuff at the site of Chotěbuz-Podobora.