What is a lord in medieval times?
A Lord could marry, his wife would be a Lady. A Lord may have 1.)conquered the land himself, may have 2.) inherited it from his father IF he was the oldest surviving son when his father died or stepped down to enter a monastery. The idea that only the oldest surviving male could inherit in a kind of winner takes all set up is called “primogeniture” ( I may have misspelled that) 3.) A lord may have been granted (given) his title by the next lord up the pecking order or the king as a reward for battle/service/a financial favor or loan. Which situation applies depends on the status of the lord (poor country knight up through ArchDuke), the country under discussion, and the year (title for $/favors being more common later, title for conquest more common earlier).
