Gibelet Castle
| Gibelet Castle | ||
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| Creation time : | 1103 | |
| Castle type : | Hilltop castle | |
| Conservation status: | ruin | |
| Standing position : | Barons | |
| Construction: | Natural stone with battlements, rectangular | |
| Place: | Jebail | |
| Geographical location | 34 ° 7 '12 " N , 35 ° 38' 47" E | |
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The Byblos Castle is a Crusader fortress in Lebanon . It is located in the urban area of ancient Byblos (today also Jebail ). Crusaders called the place Gibelet (also Giblet).
The castle was built by the Crusaders in 1103 and was the center of Gibelet's rule . This was one of the fiefs in the county of Tripoli during the Crusades . It was located in the very south of the county and bordered the rule of Beirut , which belonged to the Kingdom of Jerusalem .
Castle complex
The building material for the castle was taken from the ancient temple complex in Byblos, the columns of ancient temples were used to reinforce the wall. The castle was built from stone blocks that were very roughly hewn for this area. Originally the castle consisted of a rectangular donjon measuring 17.6 by 21.3 meters. The donjon had two floors, with the first floor, which also served as living space, could only be reached via a ladder. The floors were arched, which gave the donjon additional stability. Then there was the massive masonry. An equally rectangular curtain wall surrounded the tower. Rectangular defensive towers were also built on every corner or already built towers were improved.
history
Following the First Crusade , Gibelet was conquered on April 28, 1103 by Raimund von Toulouse with the help of a Genoese fleet under William I Embriaco . The crusaders then built the castle. The castle and the surrounding land were initially partially transferred to the Genoese in 1109, who appointed Wilhelm's son Hugo I. Embriaco as administrator and first lord of Gibelet. Over time, he and his descendants expanded their office into a hereditary fiefdom. The Genoese Embriaco family owned the fief until 1302, with the exception of a few years when Saladin occupied the place.
During the Crusades this was also the seat of the Latin diocese of Gibelet, which was founded in 1138.
In 1187 Hugo III. Embriaco handed over the place and the castle to Saladin after a siege against free withdrawal . In 1190, when Saladin received news of the approaching crusade of Frederick Barbarossa , he gave the order to demolish the castle, which only partially succeeded. In 1197 the place and castle were from the crusade of Henry VI. recaptured and handed over to Guido I. Embriaco , who had the castle repaired.
Guido's son Heinrich I Embriaco rebelled against his liege lord, the Count of Tripoli, during the war of Saint-Sabas from 1256 and, with the support of Genoa, declared himself independent from him. The conflict did not end until Count Bohemond IV of Tripoli conquered Gibelet Castle in 1282 and executed Guido II Embriaco and his brothers Johann and Balduin. Guido's son and heir Peter I Embriaco was only able to regain actual rule over Gibelet after the death of Bohemond IV in 1287.
When the Mamluks conquered and destroyed the surrounding cities of Tripoli , Botrun and Nephin in 1289, Peter I. Embriaco had already agreed with the Mamluk Sultan Qalawun to submit in return for paying tribute. The Mamluk sultans left the family in their rule until they apparently gave up the property in 1302 at the latest. The historian Steven Runciman suspects that the family was able to hold out against the Mamluks for so long because, as masters of Gibelet, they could be sure of the traditional support of the Maronites of the Lebanese mountains.
In 1369 the place was sacked by a fleet from Famagusta ( Crusader Kingdom of Cyprus ).
Lords of Gibelet
- 1109–1135: Hugo I. Embriaco († around 1135), his son, ⚭ Adelasia
- 1135–1159: Wilhelm II. Embriaco († around 1159), his son, ⚭ Sancha from Provence
- 1159–1184: Hugo II. Embriaco († around 1184), his son
- 1184-1187: Hugo III. Embriaco († 1196), his son, ⚭ 1179 Stephanie von Milly
- 1187–1197: occupied by Saladin
- 1197–1238: Guido I. Embriaco († 1238), son of Hugo III., ⚭ 1204 Alix, daughter of Bohemund III. , Prince of Antioch, and Sibylle
- 1238–1271: Heinrich I. Embriaco († 1271), son of Guido I., ⚭ 2) 1250 Isabella, daughter of Balian von Ibelin , Lord of Beirut, and Eschiva von Montbéliard
- 1271–1282: Guido II. Embriaco († 1282), son of Heinrich I, ⚭ Margarete, daughter of Julian Garnier , Count of Sidon
- 1282 / 87–1298: Peter I. Embriaco († 1298), son of Guido II, ⚭ 1) Douce de Gaurelée, widow of John of Picquigny , ⚭ 2) his niece Agnes Embriaco, widow of Gauvain de la Roche, treasurer from Jerusalem
- 1298–1302: Maria Embriaco († 1331), daughter of Guido II, ⚭ 1295 Philipp von Ibelin (* 1253; † 1318), Seneschal of Cyprus
literature
- Chris Gravett: Atlas of Castles. The most beautiful castles and palaces. Tosa, Vienna 2001, ISBN 3-85492-470-4 , p. 150.
- Hans Eberhard Mayer : History of the crusades (= Kohlhammer Urban pocket books. 86). 8th, improved and enlarged edition. W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart et al. 1995, ISBN 3-17-013802-2 .
- Steven Runciman : History of the Crusades. CH Beck, Munich 1978, ISBN 3-406-02527-7 (In addition: Hans Eberhard Mayer: Review. In: Göttingische Gelehre Werbung . Vol. 214, No. 1/2, 1960, pp. 42-63).
Web links
- Ancient / Historical Sites: Byblos at lgic.org (English)
- Byblos at middleeast.com (English)
- Crusader Era Sites - Middle East: Giblet / Byblos / Jebail at users.stlcc.edu/mfuller (English)
- Lords of Jebail (Embriaco) at fmg.ac (English)
- Gibelet at maxime.goepp.free.fr (French)
Individual evidence
- ^ Jean-Pierre Thiollet : Je m'appelle Byblos . Editions H & D, Milon-la-Chapelle 2005, ISBN 2-914266-04-9 .
- ↑ Peter Plank: Church Colonialism. The meeting of the Eastern and Western Churches during the Crusades. In: Helga Kaiser (Red.): The Crusades (= World and Environment of the Bible . Vol. 8, No. 3 = No. 29). Katholisches Bibelwerk - World and Environment Edition of the Bible, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-932203-43-7 , pp. 30–35, here p. 30.