Issue M003 of 12 July 2000

N.B.
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Hostages in Byzantium

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)


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