Is there a functional difference between the Middle Ages feudal Lords and a warlord?

In the early Middle Ages, basically nothing. You look at the behavior of a Raoul of Cambrai, caring for nothing but strength of arms, totally dismissive of all forms of authority whether secular or religious, and you see someone whose way of life has not changed that much since the Franks rode into Gaul.

But over the years, culture accretes – you get the Peace of God and the Truce of God, the emergence of chivalric romance down in Acquitaine, the cultural impact of the Crusades, and so on and so forth. And by the time that you get to the 14th or 15th centuries, you’re dealing with people who their ancestors would not recognize.