Feudal underlings (5)
I believe the answer is:
serfs
'feudal underlings' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for serfs that I've seen before include "Feudal labourers" , "Persons owned by a feudal lord of old" , "Those made to work" , "Farm labourers of Middle Ages" , "They were bound to work" .)