Maria's Claim

Maria of Antioch had a stronger claim to the throne of Jerusalem in 1268 than the man who was crowned.

Born c.1220, she was a granddaughter of Queen Isabella I of Jerusalem. After the death of Conradin, who was young enough to need a regent and was never in Jerusalem itself, the throne went to Hugh III of Cyprus. Maria brought her claim to the High Court of Jerusalem, but their decision gave the title to Hugh.

Maria did not stop, however. At the coronation, she sent people to run into the church, make a protest, and run out. Maria herself pursued the claim elsewhere. In 1270 she was in Sicily where she made contact with Charles I of Anjou, the man (incidentally) who had killed Conradin. She gained some support from him, and historians believe she might have wanted his help to secure her title which she would then sell to him in exchange for wealth that would secure her for life (as we will see later).

She appealed to Pope Gregory X, who gave the bishops of Nazareth and Bethlehem the task of investigating her claim. She attended the Second Council of Lyons in 1272 (pictured) and presented her case there, but they were dealing with much weightier matters: Gregory was pushing the idea of a new Crusade.

Although everyone there understood that she had a better claim than Hugh, it was the cardinal St. Bonaventure who caused the papal curia to wash its hands of the matter, stating that only the High Court of Jerusalem had the authority to choose their king. Maria withdrew her case for lack of money to pursue it.

Meanwhile, Charles gave Maria a house in Naples in 1276, and a year later Maria "sold" (if that's possible) her claim to the throne to Charles in exchange for 4000 livres tournois annually and 10,000 bezants.

Although this sale meant nothing legally in Jerusalem, Charles intended to rule Jerusalem no matter the legality. I'll talk about that tomorrow.

Hugh's Rivals

When the title King of Jerusalem was up for grabs in 1268, there was more than one claimant. There had not been a king in situ for years because the title had been passed to children whose regents were involved elsewhere or to people who were kings elsewhere.

But there was a chance now to bring the king "home," as it were.

In recent years, a regency in Jerusalem was necessary because the rightful kings were either too young or too far away or both. Conrad III (called Conradin) and Hugh II of Cyprus needed regents, for instance.

Hugh of Brienne had claimed a role as regent in 1264 as the oldest relative of Alice of Jerusalem, one of the daughters of Queen Isabella I. The High Court, however, chose his cousin, Hugh of Antioch. Hugh of Brienne abandoned the Holy Land and Eastern Mediterranean and went to Europe to seek fame in Italy.

Hugh of Antioch became Hugh III of Cyprus and Hugh I of Jerusalem. (The illustration is the coat of arms quartered to show the king of the two states.) All seemed settled, but another claim arose from an unexpected area.

The mother of Hugh of Brienne and aunt of Hugh I of Jerusalem, Maria of Antioch, claimed starting in 1268 that she should be on the throne of Jerusalem. She was 48 years old at the time, a granddaughter of Isabella I of Jerusalem through Melisende of Cyprus, and was one degree closer to Conradin than Hugh of Antioch.

Considering genealogy tables, she was right. She had the support of the Knights Templar. She demanded to be crowned by the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, William of Agen.

She appeared before the High Court with her reasoning all laid out. Hugh of course brought military experience and the support of Cyprus to Jerusalem. Maria had nothing to offer except her status. (It is also believed by many that she did not want to have the title to rule so much as have it to sell to someone for money.) 

A remark from Hugh offended her so much that she left the Court. The Court used her absence to reason that she was abandoning her claim and Hugh should be crowned. During the coronation of Hugh at Tyre, however, Maria employed two people to run into the church, make a protest, and run out again.

She complained to Rome for years about the injustice, and was taken seriously. Pope Gregory X even started an investigation that found her claim to be true. Could they obtain justice for Maria? We'll find out tomorrow.

Conrad, King of Jerusalem?

Frederick II (1194 - 1250) was King of Germany, King of Italy, King of Sicily, and Holy Roman Emperor. He agreed to go on Crusade, but wanted to be King Jerusalem when he got to the Holy Land. It was arranged for him to marry Queen Isabella II, the most recent in line of succession. Isabella died after giving birth to a son, Conrad (1228 - 1254).

Upon his mother's death, Conrad became Conrad II, King of Jerusalem, and Frederick took on the regency for his son. Frederick made him Duke of Swabia when Conrad was seven years old (because Frederick's eldest son from a previous marriage, Henry VII, had rebelled against Frederick). At nine years old Conrad was made King of Germany, and at 11 he was King Conrad IV of Italy. In 1250 on Frederick's death the young man also became King Conrad I of Sicily.

With so many other lands to rule, Conrad neglected Jerusalem. He grew up in Southern Italy until he became Duke of Swabia, when he traveled to Germany. In the year he was also betrothed to a daughter of the Duke of Bavaria who died young, but a second betrothal to another daughter, Elizabeth of Bavaria, would lead to marriage.

He became involved in German politics, and was part of the attempt to repel the Mongol invasions of 1241.

Problems with Frederick led to Pope Innocent IV excommunicating Frederick and declaring Conrad deposed. Conrad fought against the newly elected king of Germany, Henry Raspe (whom Frederick had once selected as regent for Conrad in Germany), and lost in 1246. When Raspe died months later he was succeeded by William of Holland.

Conrad married Elizabeth in 1246. They had a son, called Conradin, who would succeed to several of his father's titles.

Not only did the neglect of Jerusalem lead to civil unrest there, rebellions in Germany and Sicily continued throughout Conrad's life. When Conrad died in 1254 an Interregnum took place in Germany when no one managed to take complete control of the country of several years.

Jerusalem passed to Conradin, who died at 16, never having visited the Holy Land. The succession passed back into the Lusignan dynasty through a cousin named Hugh. There were challenges, however, from other family members, including some with whom he was close. Even once he was established, however, there were issues caused by the years that no king was present, when barons managed things on their own. No one really wanted a king to come back and expect to be obeyed or even consulted. We'll see what Hugh was dealing with tomorrow.

The Assize on Liege-homage

We think of the Magna Carta as an important moment in legislative history, when laws forced a king to relinquish some power to others of lesser rank. Something similar took place several years before, in the Latin East of the Holy Land.

The Assise sur la ligece ("Assize on liege-homage") was established by the High Court of Jerusalem under King Amalric I. His initial purpose was to gain control of the vassals of his vassals, so that they could appeal directly to the king.

It also claimed that a lord could not legally seize a vassal's fief, and if any lord did so then all the king's vassals should turn against him. Vassals could also withdraw their support from any liege lord who acted illegally.

In 1198, Ralph of Saint-Omer, seneschal to the King of Jerusalem Aimery of Lusignan, defended himself against Aimery when Aimery accused him of orchestrating the king's assassination attempt. He used the Assize. The High Court considered that Aimery had acted against Ralph improperly, and they as Aimery's vassals withdrew their support of the king in accordance with the Assize. It set a daring precedent, that a king could be affected by the law.

Thirty years later, this precedent was applied again against a king and emperor.

Frederick II (1194 - 1250) was Holy Roman Emperor in 1220. He agreed to the Sixth Crusade, but he wanted to become King of Jerusalem if he did so. To become king, he would have to marry the current successor to the throne, Isabella II (1212 - 1228). She was a child at the time, but the betrothal was made and the marriage took place by proxy in 1225. Frederick sent a flotilla to bring her to Italy, where they were wed in person.

Frederick arrived in Jerusalem in 1228. Isabella died that year giving birth to a son, Conrad, for which Frederick held the regency. (At this point, Conrad was king, not Frederick.)

One year later, Frederick and his forces successfully regained control of the city of Jerusalem, that had been lost in 1187 to Saladin's forces. (The illustration shows Frederick meeting with the sultan who controlled Jerusalem, al-Kamil.) Feeling full of himself, he claimed the lands held by several nobles, including Jaffa, Haifa, and Beirut.

Those nobles knew the law of the land, and they challenged his land grab. They were successful, and Frederick, Holy Roman Emperor and acting as King of Jerusalem, had to relinquish those lands.

Did young Conrad ever get to be king in his own right? Let's find out next.

Aimery versus Ralph

The King of Jerusalem, Aimery of Lusignan, had a problem with his seneschal, Ralph of Saint-Omer: he accused the seneschal (who had hopes of becoming King of Jerusalem before the election went to Aimery) of being behind a foiled assassination attempt in 1198.

Aimery declared Ralph should be exiled, and gave him eight days to depart the kingdom. Aimery's plan ran into a snag.

You see, Ralph knew the laws of the land better than anybody, and he brought up a rule laid down a couple decades earlier.

In the 1170s, King Amalric of Jerusalem proposed a new law, which was heartily approved by the High Court. The law stated that 1) all lords were vassals of the king, even if they were vassals of someone who was himself a vassal of the king; and 2) therefore anyone could take their case before the king if they felt their immediate lord were unfair to them. Amalric wanted to be able to control any disputes in his vassals and their vassals. It also claimed that vassals were right to withdraw their support from their liege if the liege did not abide by the ruling of the High Court, the collection of barons and prelates and other nobles brought together when important matters needed to be discussed or adjudicated.

This was called the Assise sur la ligece (basically, an "Assize on liege-homage"). 

Ralph appealed to the High Court that he needed to be judged by his peers at the Court, not by the king. Aimery might have thought that, since he was king and the nobles had already decided that Aimery was preferable to Ralph as king, this would be smooth sailing. But Aimery wanted Ralph exiled, the High Court didn't, Aimery refused to accept the High Court's verdict, whereupon the barons declared that they were withdrawing their support from the king.

Aimery's vassals withdrew their service from Aimery, but Ralph took himself away to Tripoli anyway  (since clearly he could not work under this king) and then to Constantinople in 1204. He returned after Aimery's death in 1207.

The barons returned their support to Aimery in 1200.

This was an important legal precedent, applying the force of law to the king himself. It was used a couple more times, which I'll share tomorrow.

The Next King of Jerusalem

With the unexpected death of Henry II of Champagne by falling out a window, Jerusalem's Queen Isabella (the real ruler) needed a new husband to help lead the kingdom. The Prince of Galilee and Tiberias, Hugh II of Saint-Omer, suggested his brother Ralph. Ralph was the seneschal of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. The nobles rejected him due to his lack of wealth (Henry had brought revenues from Champagne which helped the kingdom's finances), and his lack of stature.

Instead they chose none other than Aimery of Lusignan, who had just recently been reconciled to Henry. Aimery had once been opposed to Henry because Aimery's brother Guy had been King of Jerusalem by marriage to Isabella's older sister, Sibylla. When Sibylla died and Guy's status as king through marriage ended, he refused to give up the title. Even after Isabella was married to Henry, Aimery was part of a plot to take Acre away from Henry and grant it to Guy.

Now, however, Aimery was the most prominent "free agent," his wife Eschiva (of the prominent Jerusalem Ibelin clan) having died not long before. Aimery would bring the resources of Cyprus to Jerusalem, and in October of 1197 Henry and Isabella were betrothed. (The illustration is Aimery's seal as King of Cyprus.)

Although Aimery did use Cypriot troops on the mainland, he was very careful to keep the two kingdoms separate. After all, he had no real claim to Jerusalem as a dynasty, and Isabella's children were the proper line of succession. Cyprus, on the other hand, would be passed on to his own children. The fact that he and Henry had promised to marry Isabella's three daughters to Aimery's three sons would mean that no one could see how the two kingdoms would relate to each other in the future, but for now they had only Aimery in common.

Aimery did not make any radical changes to Jerusalem or its royal advisors or offices. He did not like Ralph of Saint-Omer, but he approved of Ralph's competence as seneschal. When he asked Ralph to be part of a commission to codify all the laws of the kingdom because Ralph knew and understood them so well, however, Ralph would not participate.

In March of 1198, while riding from Acre to Tyre, Aimery and his small escort were attacked by four Germans. Aimery was saved by his escort. The four would not admit who hired them to attack, but Aimery came to believe that Ralph was behind it.

Aimery called the High Court of barons and nobles together to accuse and punish Ralph, but Ralph had a defense based on a law from a generation earlier that actually turned the High Court against Aimery.

I'll explain how quickly things turned against Aimery next time.

Aimery and Henry

So we have Henry II of Champagne, elevated to the position of King of Jerusalem even if he doesn't use the title, and Aimery of Lusignan, who became King of Cyprus after he needed to flee the mainland when he was discovered by Henry to be part of a plot to turn one of Henry's cities over to Guy of Lusignan, Aimery's brother who had been effectively exiled to Cyprus because he wanted to (illegally) retain the title of King of Jerusalem himself.

The Kingdom of Jerusalem had made a peace treaty with the Ayubbid Dynasty of Saladin, but that expired in 1196, and the danger of renewed Muslim attacks was a grave concern for Henry. Cyprus, that had been captured by Richard I of England on his way to the Third Crusade and the Siege of Acre, was becoming formally a Christian kingdom under changes made by Aimery.

The nobles of the mainland understood that an alliance between the former rivals Henry and Aimery was necessary for aid in the potential conflicts to come. Aimery's wife Eschiva was from the Ibelin clan, a prominent family in Jerusalem, and many of the nobles in Jerusalem held land on Cyprus. No one wanted hostility between Henry and Aimery.

Henry sailed to Cyprus in 1197 and the two kings made a promise of mutual aid against enemies. Even more profound for the future, the three daughters of Henry were promised to the three sons of Aimery. The town of Jaffa had been taken from Aimery when he was forced to leave Jerusalem, and now it was restored as dowry for the future marriages. In November of that year, Aimery was using his former Jerusalem title of constable (even though by that time he had been crowned as King of Cyprus).

While negotiating, the Ayubbids did attack. Aimery sent his representative to Jaffa to organize defense. Henry returned to the mainland to organize his men at Acre. Somehow, some way, on 10 September Henry fell out of a window from his royal palace at Acre (illustration). He died. No details survive as to how this happened.

His death was a blow to the kingdom; he had been a capable and tolerant ruler, and had brought revenue from Champagne to the defense of the kingdom. He was mourned, but the immediate question was raised:

Who should become King of Jerusalem by marriage to Queen Isabella, so that a man would be in charge? Isabella had already had three husbands—not always by her choice. Should she accept another? The immediate suggestion was the palace seneschal, Ralph of Saint-Omer.

Ralph, however, was not wealthy or prestigious enough to satisfy the nobles. Who, then? I'll tell you tomorrow, of course.

Aimery of Lusignan

Aimery (born c.1153) was one of the sons of the Lord of Poitou, Hugh VIII of Lusignan, and Burgundia of Rancon. His brother Guy has figured largely in the past couple weeks for his time as King of Jerusalem.

After rebelling unsuccessfully against Henry II of England by kidnapping Eleanor of Aquitaine, Aimery fled to the Latin East —not that unusual a move since the Lusignan family had been involved in the Crusades for generations. He married into the influential Ibelin family with the support of King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem and became constable of Jerusalem c.1180. He and Eschiva of Ibelin had six children.

He was a commander at the disastrous Battle of Hattin, and was part of the Siege of Acre. He supported his brother Guy when the barons wanted to remove Guy as king.

After Guy was sent to govern Cyprus and Conrad of Montferrat was chosen to be King of Jerusalem by marrying Queen Isabella, Aimery remained in the office of constable. After Conrad's death and Henry II of Champagne's marriage to Isabella, however, Aimery was involved in a plot to hand the city of Tyre over to Guy. Henry arrested Aimery, but the barons persuaded Henry to release him.

Once freed from prison, Aimery went to Cyprus in 1193 to join Guy. Guy died in 1194, and the nobles of Cyprus chose Aimery as their lord. Aimery started a process of organizing laws and policies in Cyprus to try to raise its status to a kingdom. To do this required him to be acknowledged as king, and only an emperor or a pope could authorize this. He appealed to Pope Celestine III to establish a Latin Church hierarchy (an archbishopric and bishops and dioceses, etc.) on Cyprus.

He also reached out to Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI, promising he would be a vassal to the Emperor if he were granted the right to be crowned King of Cyprus. Henry sent Aimery a golden scepter. A letter from Celestine in December 1196 refers to Aimery as king, so he may have been using the title already, although his coronation was delayed until 1197 to allow Henry time to arrive; Henry was too ill to travel, however. (The illustration shows Aimery's coronation, attended by Henry's chancellor, Conrad.)

Henry's death shortly after Aimery's coronation led to a war of succession in the Empire and denied Aimery the attention and support of a powerful ally.

But now Aimery was a king in his own right, having fled from a king on the mainland. Both were Christian rulers in the Eastern Mediterranean and had similar concerns about maintaining Christian power while surrounded by Muslims. It would be in their best interests to get along, despite hostility in the past. Were they able to put aside their former conflicts for the sake of achieving mutual goals? We'll take a look at that tomorrow.

Henry's Problems

While Henry II of Champagne was functioning as King of Jerusalem (even if he did not use the title itself, preferring to manage things clearly on behalf of his wife, Queen Isabella), he had a lot of support from the barons and military orders like the Templars and Hospitallers. He was also good to supporters outside of those who followed him from the Champagne region.

Some problems cropped up, however. We've talked before about rivalry between the Maritime Republics, and the merchants of Pisa were not happy with the favor Henry showed to merchants from Genoa. The Pisans conspired to help Guy of Lusignan (who had been "exiled" to Cyprus) to become ruler of the city of Tyre (Henry was living in Acre).

The conspiracy was discovered in May 1193 and the conspirators arrested. Henry decreed that the Pisans in Tyre could number no more than 30 and the rest had to leave. Those who left began raiding villages in the area, so Henry expelled all Pisans from Acre.

Guy was in Cyprus, but his brothers were close by. Aimery of Lusignan held Jaffa and had been granted the office of constable, and he spoke up for the Pisans. Angered, and doubting Aimery's loyalty, he arrested the constable. Aimery argued that Henry had no right to arrest a constable, but Henry replied that Aimery was no longer constable.

Henry demanded that Guy turn over Cyprus as ransom for Aimery's release. The barons persuaded Henry to free Aimery without gaining Cyprus. Aimery gave up Jaffa and the position of constable and left to join his brother Guy at Cyprus.

Cyprus was a lot of territory, and ruling it would have been a boon for the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Guy's governorship ended in 1194 with his death, and Aimery became governor. Henry and Aimery were going to have to deal with this situation.

Tomorrow we'll learn more about Aimery and his history.

Henry, Ruler of Jerusalem

After the brutal murder of Conrad of Montferrat right after he was informed that he had been chosen to replace Guy of Lusignan as King of Jerusalem, Henry II of Champagne went back to Tyre to mourn. He was greeted warmly by the people of Tyre, who proposed to make him their new lord. Henry had a certain amount of standing, since he was a nephew to the current kings of both England and France. Then something happened which he likely did not expect.

The Queen of Jerusalem, Isabella, now a widow after Conrad's death, offered to marry Henry, which would make him King of Jerusalem suo jure ("by right of marriage"). Henry was 20 years younger than Conrad (a husband who was imposed upon her; the illustration shows her having her first husband annulled and marrying Conrad), and probably more to the liking of the 20-year-old Isabella.

Henry had doubts. Isabella was pregnant by Conrad, and if the child were a boy, he would be the next heir rather than an heir of Henry's. The barons and Richard I of England agreed that the succession would pass to children of Henry and Isabella. Henry and Isabella married within a week of Conrad's death, Henry was granted all the cities held by Crusaders (but Jerusalem itself was still in the hands of Saladin), and the couple went to live in Acre, recently freed from Muslims.

As for the most recent king, Guy, Richard had Guy pay Henry 40,000 bezants.

There was still more fighting to be done in the Holy Land, and Henry joined Richard to capture or recapture cities from the Muslims. The Third Crusade officially ended on 2 September 1192 with a peace treaty that allowed the existence of the Kingdom of Jerusalem as a narrow strip of land extending south to Jaffa. It was signed by Henry (speaking for Richard), and the heads of the Templars and Hospitallers. Richard declared Henry the leader of all Christian forces in Palestine.

Henry's standing did not go to his head. He never called himself "king," but used his European title of "count of Troyes." His rulings were done in the name of Isabella, and he constantly claimed he did things with her "wish and consent." When Aymar the Monk was elected Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem (a seat vacant for a couple years since the death of Heraclius) by the priests who manage the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Henry was angered at not having been consulted and arrested them. Their argument was that he did not need to be consulted because he was not king. Pope Celestine III agreed with the priests. Archbishop Josias of Tyre convinced Henry to let the priests go and appease the insult to Aymar by giving a rich fief to Aymar's nephew.

The child of Isabella and Conrad turned out to be a daughter, Maria of Montferrat. This new marriage produced three daughters, of which two survived past childhood, Alice and Philippa.

Henry had an interesting approach to his Muslim neighbors, now that a peace treaty was in place. He requested of Saladin a turban and tunic, wearing these around Acre to show respect for the Muslim residents and neighbors. He gained a reputation for being tolerant to others, and was even hosted by the Assassins (perhaps we'll get to that some day).

Not everything was pleasant, however, and some of the danger came not from Muslims but from other Europeans. I'll tell you about that tomorrow as well.

Henry II of Champagne

We're going to look at the man who unexpectedly became King of Jerusalem in 1192.

Henry was the son of the Count of Champagne, Henry I, and Marie of France, who was a daughter of Eleanor of Aquitaine and King Louis VII of France. Because Marie was half-sister to both Philip II of France and Richard I of England, Henry was the nephew of two kings.

Henry was born on 29 July 1166. His father arranged a betrothal to Isabella of Hainaut. When his father died in March 1181, Marie became regent for the 15-year-old Count Henry II. A couple months later, a different bride was suggested for young Henry: Yolanda, daughter of Count Baldwin of Hainaut. Yolanda was nine years younger than Henry, and Baldwin asked that the marriage be postponed until she was older (this delay would work in Henry's favor in a few years).

While waiting to reach his majority at 21, he traveled on the tournament circuit, learning (and enjoying) how to fight. He turned 21 in 1187 and immediately took to the role of Count of Champagne, issuing orders and making changes to policy and in the chancery. He was a big supporter of the Champagne Fairs, an annual set of trade fairs in the county that were a large part of Champagne's economic stability.

When news reached Europe that Jerusalem had been conquered by Saladin and Queen Sibylla had fled, he joined the Third Crusade and went to the Siege of Acre in 1190, leaving his mother as regent and having his barons swear fealty to Henry's 11-year-old brother, Theobald, as Henry's successor should Henry not return. Henry's marshal, Geoffrey de Villehardouin, also went along.

Henry's arrival at the Siege of Acre was a huge boost to morale: he brought many soldiers, money, weapons, siege engines, and supplies. His presence caused Saladin to pull his army back a little from the growing Crusader camp. Henry was respected, but the Crusaders wanted more leadership, and the kings of England and France had not yet arrived. On 15 November Henry and Conrad of Montferrat were both wounded in a battle. On 24 November Henry saw Conrad married to Isabella of Jerusalem, making Conrad king (although Guy of Lusignan refused to relinquish the title).

Henry's money ran out, and he asked King Philip of France for a loan; Philip would only lend money if Henry offered Champagne as collateral. This Henry was unwilling to do, but when Richard of England arrived, Richard gave him money. Philip went home after the Siege, and Henry joined his army to Richard to deal with the Battle of Arsuf and other conflicts.

When Richard wanted to return to England, he first wanted to settle the question of the King of Jerusalem. He called the nobles and prelates together and voted: the unanimous choice was Conrad over Guy. Henry was sent to Tyre with the news, then returned to Acre to prepare for the coronation. Meanwhile, Conrad was killed by two men who claimed to be of the Assassins; under torture, one confessed that Richard had ordered the death.

Hearing of Conrad's death, Count Henry went back to Tyre where he was greeted warmly, and then was handed a golden opportunity. I'll tell you about it tomorrow.

Selecting the King

The question of who should be King of Jerusalem came up after the death of Queen Sibylla of Jerusalem during the Siege of Acre. Her husband, Guy of Lusignan, was only king suo jure (by right of marriage), and therefore was no longer the rightful king.

The next in line was Sibylla's younger sister, Isabella of Jerusalem. The nobles were hostile to Guy, not liking him from the start, but long ago Sibylla had tricked them into accepting Guy. Guy proved his unworthiness by refusing to relinquish control of the kingdom to Isabella.

A further complication was that Isabella was married to Humphrey of Toron. Humphrey was a friend of Guy's and did not want to replace him. Despite pressure from other nobles, Humphrey pledged his loyalty to Guy. That loyalty got him nowhere because the nobles did not think Humphrey would be suitable as king by right of being married to Isabella, so they wanted to replace him. An annulment was arranged so that Isabella could be married to Conrad of Montferrat (brother of Sibylla's first husband, William), who so disliked Guy that when Guy and Sibylla fled Jerusalem after its takeover by Saladin, Conrad would not give them shelter in Tyre.

Once married to Conrad, the couple retired to Tyre, leaving the Siege of Acre to others, including Guy, and taking steps to ensure the succession (Isabella did get pregnant at this time). The European leaders at Acre were divided on the issue: Philip II of France supported Conrad, Richard I of England supported Guy (who was a vassal of Richard due to Guy being Lord of Poitou).

In April 1192, Richard called a meeting of all the European and Holy Land nobles. By this time, Richard may have still wanted Guy to be king, but the vote for Conrad was unanimous. Richard wanted Guy to have something, so he made him the governor of Cyprus, which Richard had captured on his way to the Holy Land. Guy was in Cyprus until his death in 1194, having squandered the country's treasury.

Henry II of Champagne, a nephew to both Philip and Richard, who had been at the Siege of Acre prior to his uncles arriving, was tasked with going to Tyre with the news of Conrad's election. Conrad and Isabella were happy to have a resolution to the conflict.

Conrad was never crowned, however. On 28 April, a few days after the election, Conrad:

...rode home through the city flanked by a pair of guards. As he turned down a narrow street, he saw two men sitting on either side of the road. As Conrad approached, they stood up and walked to meet him. One of them was holding a letter. Conrad was intrigued but did not dismount. Rather, he stretched down from his horse and reached out to take the letter. As he did so, the man holding the letter drew a knife and stabbed upwards, plunging the blade deep into Conrad's body. At the same time, the other man leaped onto the back of Conrad's horse and stabbed him in the side. [source]

One of the men was killed, the other captured and tortured. They turned out to be members of the Assassins, and might have been contracted by Saladin. Under torture, however, the surviving assassin maintained the order came from Richard (the Assassins had been known to form an alliance with Christians). Humphrey of Toron was also a suspect.

According to Richard I's chroniclers, on his deathbed Conrad said Tyre should be handed over to Richard, which is certainly suspect, especially since Conrad knew that Richard did not support Conrad.

So who became King of Jerusalem? As it turns out, Henry II of Champagne! We'll see how that came about tomorrow.

The Siege of Acre, Part 7

Richard I of England was now the leader of the Crusader force, and it was his responsibility to manage the final terms of surrender of the city of Acre. The Muslim garrison had been incarcerated, and Saladin needed to pay ransoms for them. Also, Christians taken prisoner by Saladin needed to be returned. Meanwhile, Richard's people began repairing the walls.

On 11 August the first exchange was to be made, with Saladin bringing money and captured Crusaders. Richard created a problem by complaining that there were prisoners of Saladin that were supposed to be included. On the 20th, unhappy with delays, Richard executed 2700 of his Muslim prisoners, excluding the nobles for which he could get higher ransoms from Saladin.

When Saladin learned of this, he killed all the Christian captives. Of course there was a complete breakdown of any negotiations. Richard decided the goal was to re-take Jerusalem, and the next step for him was to take over the important port city of Jaffa. He left Acre in the hands of crusaders Bertram de Verdun and Stephen Longchamp and took the army south toward Jaffa.

Saladin followed, catching up on 7 September and leading to the Battle of Arsuf which was related here and here. Arsuf turned out to be disastrous for Saladin's army and his reputation. Richard headed toward Jerusalem after securing Jaffa. Saladin proceeded to slight fortresses in Gaza and Ascalon.

(Slighting was the deliberate destruction of a structure to reduce their usefulness to an enemy. Robert the Bruce slighted English castles after taking them over. King John of England destroyed the Château de Montrésor in France during his French war. During the Crusading period, many Muslim leaders slighted fortified places to prevent their use as secure bases for the invading Christians.)

Since the Siege of Acre has been our focus, and that is over, let's turn back to the question that arose during the event: the rightful King of Jerusalem. Guy of Lusignan was only king suo jure (by right of marriage) to Queen Sibylla. With her death, her younger sister Isabella became queen. Isabella's marriage to Humphrey of Toron was annulled and she was married to Conrad of Montferrat, who took her back to Tyre to keep her safe (and probably to secure the succession by begetting an heir). It was time to settle the matter of the rightful King of Jerusalem. We'll look at that tomorrow.

The Siege of Acre, Part 6

With Philip of France and Richard of England at Acre with their armies (the illustration shows Philip arriving in Palestine), Saladin had reason to be concerned. The Crusaders now had fresh reinforcements, and Richard's reputation as a warrior preceded him.

Both kings had brought siege engines. Richard had wanted to parlay with Saladin, but Philip had already been battering the walls. Now Richard decided it was his turn. Richard had two mangonels—a type of trebuchet that could load and fire faster than the standard trebuchet—named "God's Own Catapult" and "Bad Neighbor." He started using them on 2 July, and by the next day had made a large breach in the walls. Still, the Crusaders could not get through, rebuffed by the Muslim garrison.

The next day, however, on 4 July the city offered its surrender, realizing that it could not handle more destruction to the walls. Richard did not accept. Acre sent a message to Saladin, telling him that without his help they would have to surrender. There was a final battle on 11 July, and the next day Acre again offered terms of surrender to the Crusaders, which this time were accepted.

Negotiations were needed to lay out all the details of what the two sides would agree to going forward, and word was sent to Conrad of Montferrat (he had taken his new bride, Isabella of Jerusalem, back to Tyre) to handle them. When Conrad arrived, the Crusaders officially entered the city and the Muslim garrison was taken captive.

Conrad raised the flags of the Duchy of Austria, England, France, and the Kingdom of Jerusalem over the city. Leopold V, Duke of Austria, was the leader of the German contingent since Frederick of Swabia had died (and Frederick's father, Barbarossa, had died along the way). Leopold wanted equal shares of plunder and equal rights to the kings of France and England, but was refused. He was Conrad's cousin, and related to Philip as well, but Richard tore down his banner. Leopold abandoned Acre and led his people home. He went to the court of Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI and told of Richard's disrespect. (There would be repercussions against Richard later.)

Philip also had to return home. On 1 June, Philip of Alsace had died at Acre. He was a close relation of Philip's and Philip realized that he was in a precarious position because he had not produced an heir of his body. Philip went back to France to deal with questions of succession.

Richard was now in charge of Acre. Let's see how that went.

The Siege of Acre, Part 5

So Conrad of Montferrat married Isabella of Jerusalem, the rightful queen, and took her back to Tyre while the former king by marriage to Isabella's older sister Sibylla, Guy of Lusignan, refused to surrender the kingship and stayed at the Siege of Acre. This was in the fall of 1190.

Attacks on the walls on 31 December and 6 January led to a partial collapse and an attempt by the Crusaders to enter the city, but they failed. On 13 February Saladin breached the Crusader defenses to get to the city and reinforce the soldiers there. Conrad, back at Acre, tried to breach the city from the sea, but a contrary wind prevented him from getting close enough.

The Siege itself was showing no signs of resolution, either. Acre now had a garrison of some 20,000. Saladin had the Crusader camp surrounded so that more men and supplies could not arrive. Poor sanitation led to illness. Frederick of Swabia, the son of Barbarossa (who died trying to get to Acre), died of illness. Leopold V of Austria took command of the German forces. The Patriarch Heraclius also died during this time.

Then news came that other leaders from Europe were coming, and Saladin's chances of success were slimming.

On 20 April 1191, King Philip II of France arrived with a Genoese fleet and started building siege engines. King Richard I "Lionheart" of England arrived on 8 June (illustration), accompanied by 100 ships and a total of 8000 men. He requested a cease-fire for three days to allow him to meet with Saladin, but both Richard and Philip became ill and there was no meeting.

On the question of the rightful King of Jerusalem, France and England disagreed. Philip, the Genoese, and the Knights Templar supported Conrad (Philip's cousin) as King of Jerusalem. Richard, along with the Pisans and the Knights Hospitaller, felt Guy should remain king. (Guy was lord of Poitou and therefore Richard was his liege lord.) This debate would not be settled right away.

Not all of the English had arrived yet, so Richard wanted to wait before attacking Acre (no sense starting without all your forces in place). Philip was ready to start battering the walls and did not wait: on 17 June he started using his siege engines. The Acre garrison signaled Saladin that they needed support by sending up smoke. A pattern formed: a breach in the walls would bring the Crusaders attacking, which would be the sign for Saladin's forces to attack the Crusader camp. This would cause the Crusaders to turn around to defend themselves. This gave Acre time to try to repair the breach.

Tomorrow we'll discuss the final battle and the end result for Acre.