Philip of Ibelin (Bailli of Cyprus)

Coat of arms of the Ibelin family

Philip of Ibelin (French: Philippe d'Ibelin ; * around 1180; † 1227 ) was a leading nobleman of the Kingdom of Cyprus . As the younger son of Baron Balian von Ibelin and the Queen's widow Maria Komnena, he came from the high crusader nobility of the Kingdom of Jerusalem .

Philipp is first mentioned in 1206 when he and his older brother Johann von Ibelin ("the old man of Beirut") accompanied their niece, Princess Alice , to their wedding with King Hugo I in Cyprus. Before the year 1217, both brothers finally relocated their ancestral home to this island, probably after they came into conflict with King John of Jerusalem . Already in 1218 died King Hugo I of Cyprus and Philip was as a steward of the underaged I. Heinrich reigning queen widow Alice to Bailli appointed Cyprus. In this position he was instrumental in establishing the dominant influence of the House of Ibelin on the island. In 1223 there was a break between Philip and Alice when he refused to withdraw the tithe from the Orthodox Church , as previously recommended by Cardinal Pelagius at a council in Limassol . Since Alice had agreed to the cardinal, but was not able to assert herself against Philip, she withdrew to Tripoli , with Philip effectively taking over the reign of the island.

When he heard about the preparations for the crusade by Emperor Frederick II in 1225 , Philip arranged for King Henry I to be formally coronated, which immediately provoked the emperor's intervention. Since King Amalrich I once took over the kingdom of Emperor Heinrich VI in 1197 . Had taken to fief, Emperor Friedrich II now saw his feudal rights attacked by the coronation that was not authorized by him. In addition, the decision on the reign for the underage king belongs to him. However, Philip received approval for his actions from Pope Honorius III in 1226 . ; in addition, he was able to pull the Haute Cour of the kingdom on his side, which also claimed the right to appoint the reign for itself, contrary to the claims of the emperor.

At the beginning of 1227 the queen widow Alice appointed her second husband, Bohemond of Antioch , from her self-chosen exile in Tripoli , to be her Bailli in Cyprus, who was not recognized by the Haute Cour. She then appointed Baron Amalrich Barlais for this office, but this was also rejected by the Haute Cour in favor of Philip. Barlais then also retired to Tripoli, but made contact with the emperor. Philip died in 1227, a year before Emperor Frederick II reached Cyprus on his crusade. His brother Johann therefore had to resolve the conflict with him.

Philip of Ibelin was married to Alice de Montbéliard († after 1244), a sister of Odo de Montbéliard . They had two children:

• Maria von Ibelin († after 1244) became a nun. In 1244 Alice donated the monastery of St. Theodor (Nicosia) to provide for them .
• Johann von Ibelin († 1266), Count of Jaffa

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

• Philippe Ibelin at fmg.ac (English)

predecessor	Office	successor
Queen Alice	Regent of Cyprus 1223-1227	Johann of Ibelin