I've got some questions about hospitality...

Firstly is it against the rules of hospitality to leave without first having sough permission? Gorlois was accused of betraying Uther's hospitality when he did this, however that could just have been Uther ranting and the real error in not seeking permission was that Gorlois was Uther's vassal. However if after having accepted hospitality in a Lord's home you must seek permission to leave then what happens if that Lord denies it? Can the Lord in effect just keep a Knight a permanent prisoner of courtesy?

Furthermore what happens when the Lord who gave hospitality dies? Does the acceptance of hospitality that a visitor gave to the Lord automatically apply to the Lord's heir? Likewise is the heir bound to accept the hospitality of the Lord who came before him? Or could there be a tense stand off where both sides either offer or consider hospitality again?

Thanks in advance for any answers.

Can the Lord in effect just keep a Knight a permanent prisoner of courtesy?



William of Normandy seems to have done it with Harold Godwinson until Harold vowed to support William's claim to the English throne.

Firstly is it against the rules of hospitality to leave without first having sough permission?

Yes

However if after having accepted hospitality in a Lord's home you must seek permission to leave then what happens if that Lord denies it? Can the Lord in effect just keep a Knight a permanent prisoner of courtesy?

Yes. Merlin pointed out the best historical example.


Furthermore what happens when the Lord who gave hospitality dies? Does the acceptance of hospitality that a visitor gave to the Lord automatically apply to the Lord's heir? Likewise is the heir bound to accept the hospitality of the Lord who came before him? Or could there be a tense stand off where both sides either offer or consider hospitality again?

I would consider hospitality to be about the place, and both parties would consider it to be in place.
The heir does not take command until his liege lord passes authority over to him.
It is his liege lord's property until then.
During the Conquest and Romance Periods the king reclaims his land for EVERY heir's death and keeps it until his accountants have checked everything out. (No, that is not actually written down anywhere). But if the heir apparent attacked his father's guest in such circumstances, the heir is guilty of violating the King's law, the King's own hospitality, the king himself in fact.
This is an act of Treason.

However if after having accepted hospitality in a Lord's home you must seek permission to leave then what happens if that Lord denies it? Can the Lord in effect just keep a Knight a permanent prisoner of courtesy?

Yes. Merlin pointed out the best historical example.

I disagree. Accepting hospitality does not make you a prisoner if the Lord wishes so.

First thing to remember: Hospitality also applies to a peasant's cottage. Following the above reasoning would lead to very weird conclusions, IMHO...

Secondly, "seeking permission to leave" means exactly that. It's a matter of politeness. You can't just leave whenever you feel like, but if a Lord would *refuse* a knight to leave his castle, he should be giving a (valid) reason. Now, you can always find a more or less suitable excuse to keep someone for a week or even a month, but after a while things get Inhospitable. Indeed, in my book, refusing a guest to leave after a prolonged period would warrant a LOSS of Hospitality.