Henry I (Cyprus)
Henry I (March 3, 1217 , † January 18, 1254 ) was a King of Cyprus from the House of Lusignan from 1218 to 1254 . He was the son of King Hugo I and Alice de Champagne . Because of his corpulence he was called "the fat one" (le Gros).
Life
When his father died on January 10, 1218, Heinrich was only a few months old. His mother initially took over the reign in Cyprus for him, but she was ousted by her Bailli Philipp von Ibelin in 1223 and went into voluntary exile in Tripoli . Ibelin enjoyed the support of the Haute Cour and unauthorizedly arranged the solemn coronation of Henry in 1225. However, this initiated a conflict with Emperor Frederick II , who was the liege lord of Cyprus and who felt that the question of government over the country had been ignored. Philipp von Ibelin died in 1227 and his older brother Johann von Ibelin ("the old gentleman of Beirut") succeeded him as regent, also with the support of the Haute Cour.
On July 21, 1228, the banished emperor landed with his crusade army in the port of Limassol . There he confirmed Heinrich as King of Cyprus, but deposed Ibelin in favor of a Regency Council headed by Amalrich Barlais . Heinrich also had to accompany the emperor on his crusade in Palestine. Before the emperor left the Levant for good in May 1229, he arranged for Heinrich to marry Alix von Montferrat. Immediately afterwards, the barons of Cyprus, led by Ibelin, rose against the imperial regents and defeated them on June 24, 1229 near Nicosia . Heinrich and his sisters in Amalrich Barlai's entourage had to witness a year-long siege at Dieu d'Amour Castle until Barlais surrendered in the summer of 1230. Heinrich was now again in the care of Johann von Ibelin, who was again the recognized ruler of Cyprus.
In the following years Heinrich was always present in the regent's entourage, during his fight in the Kingdom of Jerusalem against the imperial governor Richard Filangieri . He was present at the liberation of Beirut in the spring of 1232, and when Casal Imbert was defeated on May 2, 1232, he narrowly escaped captivity by escaping to Acre . When Cyprus was attacked, Heinrich and Ibelin crossed over to the island again and defeated Filangieri on June 15, 1232 in the battle of Agridi . Immediately afterwards, Ibelin ended his reign and handed over the power of government to King Heinrich, who had come of age. In April 1233, Kyrenia, the last castle held by the imperial family, was taken and the influence of Emperor Frederick II in Cyprus was finally ended.
After the death of his mother in 1246, Heinrich formally took over the reign of the Kingdom of Jerusalem for the absent King Konrad , but there he left the actual affairs of government in the hands of his Baillis from the House of Ibelin . He entrusted Philip of Montfort with the rule of Tire and dispatched eight galleys to rescue Ascalon , which was besieged by the Ayyubids , but could no longer prevent the fall of the city on October 15, 1247. In the same year the Pope freed the Kingdom of Cyprus from vassalage to the Roman emperor.
In September 1248, King Ludwig IX landed . of France with his crusade army in Cyprus and wintered on the island until spring 1249. Heinrich participated with the Cypriot knighthood in the conquest of Damiette in June 1249, but then returned to Cyprus, while his knights were continued by the Ibelin brothers.
After his death, Heinrich I was buried in the Templar Church of Nicosia.
Marriages and succession
Heinrich was married three times. His first marriage to Alix von Montferrat (* 1210; † before April 1233) was ordered by Emperor Friedrich in May 1229. The bride's father, Margrave Wilhelm VI. von Montferrat , was one of the emperor's most loyal followers in northern Italy. It is unlikely that Heinrich ever met his wife personally, as she did not come to Cyprus until 1231 while he was on the mainland fighting the Imperialists. When he returned to Cyprus in 1232, Alix was entrenched in the castle of Kyrenia in Filangieri's entourage, where she died before the castle had to capitulate to Heinrich in April 1233.
In 1237 he married Stephanie von Barberon (* around 1220/25; † 1249), a sister of King Hethum I of Armenia , the marriage remained without descendants.
In 1250 he finally married Plaisance von Antioch (* 1235; † 1261), a daughter of Prince Bohemond V of Antioch . As the only child she gave birth to his son and successor, Hugo II (* 1252), who, however, died as a child king in 1267, without ever being able to rule personally. After him, Henry's nephew, Hugo of Antioch , prevailed as King of Cyprus over another nephew, Hugo of Brienne .
literature
- Steven Runciman : A History of the Crusades. 1951.
- Kenneth M. Setton, Robert Lee Wolff, Harry W. Hazard: A History of the Crusades. Volume II: The Later Crusades, 1189-1311. 2006.
Web links
- Henri of Cyprus at fmg.ac (English)
- Heinrich I. at genealogie-mittelalter.de
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| Hugo I. |
King of Cyprus 1218–1254 |
Hugo II |
| Alice of Champagne |
Regent of Jerusalem 1246–1254 |
Plaisance of Antioch |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Heinrich I. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Henry the Fat |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | King of Cyprus |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 3, 1217 |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 18, 1254 |