Hi :)

It is a simple question, but my English is poor... :(
When a knight is going to surrender, what should he do? :?:

Please teach a method to convey surrender into by a voice. What should he say?
Does he shout with "I surrender" or "Mercy"?
Are there "the words of the surrender" that are famous for the history of the medieval Ages?

Please teach a method to convey surrender into by action/gesture.
Does he throw away a sword/dagger?
Does he raise both hands highly?
Does he kneel?
Are there "the gesture of the surrender" that are famous for the history of the medieval Ages?

Apparently, yelling "RANSOM" at the top of ones lungs was sometimes used if you looked rich enough for it to be plausible

In a dueling type situation, you might say: "I am satisfied, sir...", which essentially means you quit - equavalent to hitting the mat three times.

Hi :)

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Nat Lamb wrote: Apparently, yelling "RANSOM" at the top of ones lungs was sometimes used if you looked rich enough for it to be plausible

Quote:

JE Sarge wrote: In a dueling type situation, you might say: "I am satisfied, sir...", which essentially means you quit - equavalent to hitting the mat three times.

Thanks :)

I have another question...
When an enemy refused it after a knight cried with "RANSOM".
In chivalry, can the knight counterattack it again? :?:
or
In chivalry, does the knight admit that himself is murdered? (The knight do not resist...) :?:

Without any historical evidence, but answering with my opinion, I would say that he could counterattack and continue fighting. But I suppose it is possible (The Battle of Agincourt comes to mind, where Henry V had numerous French knights killed after they surrendered.)

Any other thoughts or sources on this? I too am interested.

If there are any other "surrendering phrases", I would be interested to know those as well. :)

I always assumed they'd just cry: "Hold! I surrender!" or something like that.

In viking age/medevial scandinavia, the word was "Grid", meaning roughly the same as honourable surender. This could be offered or asked, and was used quite commonly.
In english, "Quarter" would have roughly the same meaning, or "Pardon" in English OR french. However, I am not certian what was used.

In any case, there is a differnece between an honorable surender and giving up. You ask for quarter while still on your feet, but when further fighting is pointless.

Elling,
pardon, in french, has more the meaning of forgiveness and not surrender....Quarter in english, as in Give no Quarter (leave none alive) is '' Pas de QUARTIER! '', so the english quarter most probably comes from the french, or at least the same root word. A person begging to live could cry out '' Quartier!!..''.
The other common word to both french and english is MERCI (french), MERCY (english), and again a person surrendering could make such a request in the hope that he would survive the day.
The french chronicler Froissart writes about Crécy :'' Nul n'était pris à rançon ni à merci''. This would translate as: None were taken for ransom and none received mercy ( or none were allowed to surrender) (or none were taken alive)...
Eustache de Ribaumont, a renowned knight, surrendered to the king of England adressing him as ''Sir Knight'' (''Chevalier, je me rends votre prisonnier.'') Which is quite simply I surrender myself to you as your prisoner.....and the king, a real fan of Eustache's , let him go a couple of days later. The king even gave him some money for the road home, but held on to some twenty other french prisoners of rank whom he brought back with him to England, awaiting the proper ransom...
So as the English nobles still spoke the same language as the norther french nobles at that time, I would surmise that the cries from a man wishing to surrender in the midst of a bloody battle would be something like '' Merci!Merci!...Quartier! Rançon! '' in a fairly loud voice, while adopting a submissive attitude such as offering up his sword on bended knee....''Je me rends! ''( I surrender) would also do the trick...,it is just so modern that one doesn't associate it to medieval speech, but from Froissart's text, one can see that they spoke a lot like us...only in a more formal class conscient tone, with proper syntax..JC

http://www.murtenpanorama.ch/spezial/zoomify/index_en.php
check the zoom view, you can clearly see who surrenders;)

Thank you for all of you! :) :) :)
Now, I translate your replies into Japanese and read. (It takes too long time :cry: )

Thanks Mr. Hendrik De Coster :)

Quote:

http://www.murtenpanorama.ch/spezial/zoomify/index_en.php check the zoom view, you can clearly see who surrenders;)

It's very interesting!!! :lol: :lol: (but I cannot find it...)

Well, "surrender" comes from the French "sur rendre" or "to give up". The French for "I surrender!" is "Je me rend!", "I give myself". But of course I imagine they would also say things like: Pitie! (pity), quartier! (quarter) or Parole! French was the language of court and most European nobility spoke it.

Most images I've seen of knights yielding shows them on one or both knees with arms held out, either in front or tot he sides, and palms open and empty.

Thank you for all of your replies! :)

I watcked at the scene of the knight to surrender to by a movie named "Ivanhoe(1982)".

Ivanhoe (1982) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084157/
Ivanhoe: Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivanhoe
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Scene: De Bracy is defeated by Black knight....
Characters: Black knight(= King Richard), De Bracy: A Norman knight.

Black knight: Yield! :evil:
De Bracy: I will not Yield to unknown. Tell me your name. :mad:
***Black knight whispers it to De Bracy***
De Bracy: I yield! :eek: :wtf:
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capture images: http://zeruge.hp.infoseek.co.jp//images/ivanhoe_yield.jpg

I note that no one has yet said anything about the custom of a warrior who yields to another, of giving up one of his gauntlets in token of surrender. I have run across many instances of this in my historical reading.

Sirs-I agree with Mr Gillaspe. I can think of many situations where it would be safest ( at least in a melee) to stay on your feet and hold out your glove.

Thanks Mr. James Arlen Gillaspie :)

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the custom of a warrior who yields to another, of giving up one of his gauntlets in token of surrender.

Thanks... However, I cannot translate it well... I cannot imagine the scene.... :(
(Of course it is a thing by the lack of my English comprehension.)
What would the knight do to one of his gauntlets?
Please give me some specific examples.

Sir he would eheathe his sword,pull off his right gauntlet, and hand it to the knighr he was surrendering to.