A medieval feudal tax or payment levied in place of military service; a shield-tax paid by knights who did not serve in the king's army.
From Old French escuage, derived from Frankish scuto or Late Latin scutum (shield), as knights could pay money instead of providing shield-bearing soldiers.
Escuage is basically the origin of the military-industrial complex—kings realized they could raise armies faster and more reliably with cash payments than with feudal obligations, revolutionizing medieval warfare and finance.
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