Subject: Re: Hostages in Byzantium Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2000 12:03:35 -0500 From: "Marc Carrier"Reply-To: BYZANS-L@lists.missouri.edu To: BYZANS-L@lists.missouri.edu Although Liutprand of Cremona in the 10th century was technically not an *hostage* (diplomatic prisonner might be more precise), his account of his stay in Constantinople is not only first-hand, but also quite vivid and interesting. In it, he explains his accomodations (an old house with no roof, exposed to the elements), the food he was given, his treatment by the guards, etc. Also, he had no freedom of movement in the city, except when invited somewhere by the emperor. At one point, he boasts that he evaded his Greek guards and managed to wander a bit on his own. But his stay still remained, according to him, a horrible experience. For a foreign high ranking hostage in Constantinople, however, I would imagine that his treatment would be according to the situation in which this hostage was taken. In most cases, the hostage would be very well treated and the emperor would probably pay for his expenses (for, I presume, the hostage would remain under guard in the palace). Even in a worst case scenario, the hostage would not be put in a cell, but probably in a well-furnished room of the palace under tight guard (the Byzantines always treated someone according to their station in life). As for education, I doubt there would be any. First of all, an hostage would stay a few weeks or a few months at most, not long enough to start educating him. Any hostage kept for longer than that is no longer an hostage but a quasi-permanent prisonner. Second, if he did not speak Greek, I doubt the emperor would bother teaching it to him. Besides, the hostage (if he was not under complete house arrest) could probably benefit from most of the palace commodities. Hope this helps a little. Best wishes to all, Marc Carrier ******************************* Marc Carrier Étudiant 2e cycle Université de Sherbrooke ******************************* "L'histoire est un mensonge sur lequel on s'est mis d'accord." - Napoléon Bonaparte (1769-1821)