Margaret of Antioch-Lusignan (french: Marguerite; 1244 - 30 January 1308), also known as Margaret of Tyre, was an
Outremer
The Crusader States, also known as Outremer, were four Catholic realms in the Middle East that lasted from 1098 to 1291. These feudal polities were created by the Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade through conquest and political int ...
noblewoman who ruled the
Lordship of Tyre
The Lordship of Tyre was a semi-independent domain in the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1246 to 1291.
Background
The town of Tyre was an important port on the Palestinian coast of the Fatimid Caliphate in the late 11th century. The town was locate ...
in the
Kingdom of Jerusalem
The Kingdom of Jerusalem ( la, Regnum Hierosolymitanum; fro, Roiaume de Jherusalem), officially known as the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem or the Frankish Kingdom of Palestine,Example (title of works): was a Crusader state that was establishe ...
. A member of the
House of Antioch-Lusignan, she married
John of Montfort, Lord of Tyre
John of Montfort (french: Jean; died 27 November 1283) was lord of Toron from 1257 to 1266 and Lord of Tyre from 1270 to 1283. He was the son of Philip of Montfort (lord of La Ferté-Alais, of Bréthencourt, of Castres, of Toron and of Tyre), an ...
, and was granted rule of the city as widow in 1284. She concluded a truce with the Egyptian sultan
Al-Mansur Qalawun
( ar, قلاوون الصالحي, – November 10, 1290) was the seventh Bahri Mamluk sultan; he ruled Egypt from 1279 to 1290.
He was called (, "Qalāwūn the Victorious").
Biography and rise to power
Qalawun was a Kipchak, ancient Turkic ...
and ruled until 1291, when she ceded the lordship and moved to Cyprus.
Dynastic position
Margaret was the younger child of the
Lusignan
The House of Lusignan ( ; ) was a royal house of French origin, which at various times ruled several principalities in Europe and the Levant, including the kingdoms of Jerusalem, Cyprus, and Armenia, from the 12th through the 15th centuries du ...
Cypriot
Cypriot (in older sources often "Cypriote") refers to someone or something of, from, or related to the country of Cyprus.
* Cypriot people, or of Cypriot descent; this includes:
**Armenian Cypriots
**Greek Cypriots
**Maronite Cypriots
**Turkish C ...
princess
Isabella
Isabella may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Isabella (surname), including a list of people
Places
United States
* Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpor ...
and
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
*Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
, member of the
Ramnulfid
The Ramnulfids, or the House of Poitiers, were a French dynasty ruling the County of Poitou and Duchy of Aquitaine in the 9th through 12th centuries. Their power base shifted from Toulouse to Poitou. In the early 10th century, they contested th ...
dynasty which ruled the
Principality of Antioch
The Principality of Antioch was one of the crusader states created during the First Crusade which included parts of modern-day Turkey and Syria. The principality was much smaller than the County of Edessa or the Kingdom of Jerusalem. It extende ...
. Like her brother, King
Hugh III of Cyprus
Hugh III (french: Hugues; – 24 March 1284), also called Hugh of Antioch-Lusignan and the Great, was the king of Cyprus from 1267 and king of Jerusalem from 1268. Born into the family of the princes of Antioch, he effectively ruled as regent ...
, Margaret adopted her mother's name. The
Templar of Tyre Templar of Tyre (french: Templier de Tyr) is the conventional designation of the anonymous 14th-century historian who compiled the Old French chronicle known as the ''Deeds of the Cypriots'' (French: ''Gestes des Chiprois''). The ''Deeds'' was writt ...
, who served as her
page
Page most commonly refers to:
* Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book
Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to:
Roles
* Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation
* Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...
in 1268, recorded that she was "particularly fair of face" at the time, but that later in life she became "enormously fat" and started to resemble her father. According to British historian
Steven Runciman
Sir James Cochran Stevenson Runciman ( – ), known as Steven Runciman, was an English historian best known for his three-volume ''A History of the Crusades'' (1951–54).
He was a strong admirer of the Byzantine Empire. His history's negative ...
, Margaret was considered "the loveliest girl of her generation".
King Hugh III of Cyprus, Margaret's brother, became also
King of Jerusalem
The King of Jerusalem was the supreme ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, a Crusader states, Crusader state founded in Jerusalem by the Latin Church, Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade, when the city was Siege of Jerusalem (1099), conqu ...
in 1268, ending a long period of absentee
Hohenstaufen
The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynasty ...
kings during which the city of
Tyre had been alienated from the
royal demesne
Crown land (sometimes spelled crownland), also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it ...
by
Philip of Montfort. Hugh was, however, not only too weak to act against Philip but also needed his help in defending the remnants of the kingdom against the neighbouring
Mamluk Sultanate
The Mamluk Sultanate ( ar, سلطنة المماليك, translit=Salṭanat al-Mamālīk), also known as Mamluk Egypt or the Mamluk Empire, was a state that ruled Egypt, the Levant and the Hejaz (western Arabia) from the mid-13th to early 16th ...
.
The two men thus came to an agreement: Philip's son
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
would marry Margaret and Hugh would
grant
Grant or Grants may refer to:
Places
*Grant County (disambiguation)
Australia
* Grant, Queensland, a locality in the Barcaldine Region, Queensland, Australia
United Kingdom
*Castle Grant
United States
* Grant, Alabama
*Grant, Inyo County, C ...
Tyre to John and his descendants by Margaret.
If the couple were childless, the lordship would revert to the royal demesne. Philip accepted and ceded rule over Tyre to his son. This marriage may have been envisaged even before Hugh ascended the throne of Jerusalem, but it only took place in 1269.
Rule
Margaret was widowed on 27 November 1283. Her husband had been severely afflicted by
gout
Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intensit ...
and she had no children by him. King Hugh allowed the lordship of Tyre to pass to her brother-in-law
Humphrey
Humphrey is both a masculine given name and a surname. An earlier form, not attested since Medieval times, was Hunfrid.
Notable people with the name include:
People with the given name Medieval period
:''Ordered chronologically''
*Hunfrid of P ...
, but reclaimed it when he died on 12 February 1284. Margaret was then confirmed as Lady of Tyre, while her brother died in March.
The Mamluk sultan
Al-Mansur Qalawun
( ar, قلاوون الصالحي, – November 10, 1290) was the seventh Bahri Mamluk sultan; he ruled Egypt from 1279 to 1290.
He was called (, "Qalāwūn the Victorious").
Biography and rise to power
Qalawun was a Kipchak, ancient Turkic ...
made clear his intention to attack the remaining
Crusader states
The Crusader States, also known as Outremer, were four Catholic realms in the Middle East that lasted from 1098 to 1291. These feudal polities were created by the Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade through conquest and political in ...
in 1285. Margaret and her sister-in-law
Eschiva of Ibelin, who ruled
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
alone since Humphrey's death, quickly moved to secure a truce with him. The text of Margaret's treaty with Qalawun survives, signed by "the exalted Lady, Dame Margaret, the daughter of Sir Henry, the son of
Prince Bohemond, the Lady of Tyre", and is considered exemplary of early Mamluk diplomacy.
In 1291, Margaret ceded the lordship of Tyre to her nephew,
Amalric
Amalric or Amalaric (also Americ, Almerich, Emeric, Emerick and other variations) is a personal name derived from the tribal name ''Amal'' (referring to the Gothic Amali) and ''ric'' (Gothic ''reiks'') meaning "ruler, prince".
Equivalents in di ...
. She then retired to
Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
, now ruled by her nephew
King Henry II, and entered the monastery of
Our Lady of Tyre in
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaor ...
. She died there as a
nun
A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...
on 30 January 1308.
References
Bibliography
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{{Antioch Monarchs
House of Poitiers-Lusignan
Lords of Tyre
13th-century women rulers
1308 deaths
Year of birth uncertain