Killing nobles—especially massacring them on a large scale outside a battlefield—was almost unimaginable in a world with a social environment resembling medieval Europe.
That was because the privileges of the noble class rested upon comprehensive monopolistic control, from the economy and politics to military power and ideology.
Economically, this was reflected in their complete ownership of land—the most important means of production in a pre-industrial era—as well as the strong personal dependency that tenant farmers, serfs, and retainers had on their nobles under the manorial economic system.
Even transportation routes such as roads and bridges were likewise the property of nobles.
Merchant caravans had to pay considerable tolls when passing through noble territory.
In many noble domains located at transportation hubs, the economic returns generated by a single bridge or dock could account for an astonishing proportion of their income.
Politically, things were even more absolute. If a person did not possess noble blood, then they could basically say goodbye to power for the rest of their life.
Although the Holy See's church system and soldiers with exceptional military talent had a very small chance of crossing class boundaries, their paths of advancement had obvious ceilings and limits.
In other words, commoners had a tiny chance of becoming part of the ruling class, but at most they could reach the level of lower or middle-ranking bureaucrats.
As for the higher-level interest groups that held dominant power, without exception, they consisted of nobles and their descendants.
This was especially true of second, third, and fourth sons who could not inherit titles or territories. Having received education and strict training since childhood,
combined with the additional advantages brought by noble blood, they were often more likely than commoners to win the favor of kings and other great nobles, achieve military merit, and