Corvée

Corvée, or corvée labor, is an administrative practice primarily found in feudal societies: it is a type of annual tax that is payable as labor by the serf or villein for the monarch, vassal, overlord or lord of the manor. It was used to complete royal projects, to maintain roads and other public facilities, and to provide labour to maintain the feudal estate. It is however, still a daily practice in the French Foreign Legion, and focuses on the cleaning of the living quarters.