Regional leaders are very concerned that Congo could be descending into another period of heavy warfare and widespread displacement similar to what it suffered in the mid- to late-1990s when rebel groups and foreign armies carved this vast country into fiefs.
He then received as papal fiefs the vast estates of Matilda of Tuscany.
Israel is wary of many of the rebel groups challenging the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, because of their affiliations with Al Qaeda and jihadists, and worries that its vast neighbor will break up into fiefs far more likely to launch attacks than a centralized state.
IN 1890, King Leopold II of Belgium wrote to one of his colonial officials and asked him to set up orphanages in the vast African territory he ruled as his personal fief, the Congo.
Nevertheless, whatever the timing or reason, the outcome of Nest's declaration was that Sibyl (whom Nest acknowledged as Bernard's child) became the sole lawful heiress to the vast Lordship of Brecon, one of the most important and substantial fiefs in the Welsh Marches.
During his pontificate (1417 31), Martin obtained the grant of fiefs for his family in southern Italy and enriched them with vast estates in papal territory, including Frascati, Paliano, Genazzano, and many other places.
They have ruled out a ceasefire until agreement is reached on the other issues.As for the government, it is already fiercely criticised for having made too many concessions, not least by clearing the vast demilitarised zone of troops and, in effect, handing it to the rebels to run as their fief.
By obtaining the grant of fiefs for his influential family in southern Italy, he increased the Colonnas' power and enriched them with vast estates in papal territory.
And the rise of vast, globe-spanning corporate empires with hundreds of thousands of employees has left many folk isolated in small work groups run by managers who care only about their particular fiefs.
