 <unk> of Ludlow was contested not only by Stephen but also by Gilbert de Lacy , whose efforts to <unk> the castle from Josce are the background to the medieval romance Fouke le Fitz Waryn ; the extant prose version dates from the 14th century , but it was originally a 13th @-@ century poem , now lost . Gilbert claimed the castle through his familial link with Sybil , fitzJohn 's widow , who was a member of the de Lacy family . Others trying to take Ludlow were Hugh de Mortimer and Gilbert de Lacy . According to the Chronicle of Wigmore Abbey , some time after September <unk> Mortimer and Josce became embroiled in a private war , during which Josce seized Mortimer while the latter was travelling . Josce imprisoned his captive in Ludlow and demanded a ransom of 3 @,@ 000 silver marks , as well as , according to the Chronicle , Mortimer 's " plate , his horses , and his birds " . <unk> , Mortimer met the ransom , as he is later known to have been a free man . 
