Residency, loyalty, and identity in the medieval Mediterranean

George's diplomatic assignment to Fatimid Egypt compresses his remarkable career across Antioch, Byzantium, Zirid North Africa, and Norman Sicily. The interpretation offered here is that medieval people possessed strong identities, while political allegiance could follow the ruler who provided safety, work, and a secure home for one's family. Residence could therefore become part of identity and create an expectation of loyalty to a new state. George's service cautions against reading modern national boundaries backward into the mobile personnel networks that supported medieval courts and fleets.