Encounter between Enemies: Captivity and Ransom in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem / / Yvonne Friedman.

• Superior document: Cultures, Beliefs and Traditions: Medieval and Early Modern Peoples ; 10
• VerfasserIn: Friedman, Yvonne
• Place / Publishing House: Leiden; , Boston : : BRILL,, 2002.
• Year of Publication: 2002
• Edition: 1st ed.
• Language: English
• Series: Cultures, Beliefs and Traditions: Medieval and Early Modern Peoples ; 10.
• Physical Description: 1 online resource.

This fascinating study examines the customs, legal codes, and socioeconomic mechanisms that evolved from the initial Christian-Muslim encounter on Crusader battlefields. It pinpoints changes in European mentality, and conduct of war, tracing acculturation processes in Frankish society in the Levant. These changes emerged from the need to redeem captives, making payment of ransom to the infidel conceivable and acceptable. The book pays special attention to the story of the vanquished, to the situation of women, to the behavior of the Military Orders toward captives, and to the image of the captive in Crusader literature, in the context of making war and peace.

Table of Contents

Tables and Illustrations -- Preface -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1. The First Encounters - Crusaders Face Captivity -- 2. Prisoners of War in the Levant -- 3. The Western Legacy -- 4. Later Encounters -- 5. Life in Captivity -- 6. The Way out of Captivity -- 7. Weak and Violated? The Experience of Women -- 8. Charity and Prestige - The Military Orders and the Ransom of Captives -- 9. Shameful Failure or Romantic Hero - Images of Captivity -- 10. Ransom on Both Sides of the Mediterranean -- Bibliography -- Index.