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 had 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 (but more on that tomorrow.

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.