Fulk (or Fulcher) of Angoulême was the

Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem ( la, Patriarchatus Latinus Hierosolymitanus) is the Latin Catholic ecclesiastical patriarchate in Jerusalem, officially seated in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was originally established in 1099, wit ...

from 1146 to his death in 1157. Fulk came from

Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; oc, Engoleime) is a communes of France, commune, the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Charente Departments of France, department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of southwestern Franc ...

. According to William of Tyre, he was "religious and God-fearing, possessed of little learning, but a faithful man and a lover of discipline." In France he had been abbot of

Cellefrouin Cellefrouin () is a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France. It is the site of the remains of the canonry of Cellefrouin, founded in 1025 by Arnald of Vitabre, bishop of Périgueux. Population See also *Communes of the Chare ...

, and came to Jerusalem during the schism between

Pope Innocent II Pope Innocent II ( la, Innocentius II; died 24 September 1143), born Gregorio Papareschi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 February 1130 to his death in 1143. His election as pope was controversial and the fi ...

and

Antipope Anacletus II Anacletus II (died January 25, 1138), born Pietro Pierleoni, was an antipope who ruled in opposition to Pope Innocent II from 1130 until his death in 1138. After the death of Pope Honorius II, the college of cardinals was divided over his succ ...

in 1131, as the Bishop of Angoulême favoured Anacletus and Fulk favoured Innocent. In Jerusalem he served as a canon of the

Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, hy, Սուրբ Հարության տաճար, la, Ecclesia Sancti Sepulchri, am, የቅዱስ መቃብር ቤተክርስቲያን, he, כנסיית הקבר, ar, كنيسة القيامة is a church i ...

, and in 1134 he succeeded William I, an Englishman and former prior of the Holy Sepulchre,This William was prior of the Holy Sepulchre from around 1123 until 1128, the year he was elected Archbishop of Tyre. William the Englishman was succeeded as prior by William of Malines, who went on to become Patriarch in 1130. See William of Tyre, "A History of Deeds Done beyond the Sea", vol. 2, bk. 13, ch. 23, 26, pp. 35-36 and 43. as Archbishop of Tyre. He was consecrated by William of Malines, Patriarch of Jerusalem, but travelled to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

to be given the

pallium The pallium (derived from the Roman ''pallium'' or ''palla'', a woolen cloak; : ''pallia'') is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the pope, but for many centuries bestowed by the Holy See upon metropolit ...

by Innocent II; Patriarch William was offended and treated Fulk poorly after he returned. Innocent II rebuked William, and threatened to place Tyre directly under the authority of Rome, or transfer it to the

Latin Patriarch of Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

. This was part of the ongoing controversy over which Patriarchate Tyre should be subject to; prior to the Muslim conquest of the Holy Land, Tyre had been subject to Antioch, but when Tyre was recaptured by the crusaders in 1124, it became a suffragan of Jerusalem, which was more politically dominant than Antioch. The dispute was resolved with Tyre remaining under the jurisdiction of Jerusalem. In 1139 Fulcher participated in the siege of

Baniyas Baniyas ( ar, بَانِيَاس ') is a Mediterranean coastal city in Tartous Governorate, northwestern Syria, located south of Latakia (ancient Laodicea) and north of Tartous (ancient Tortosa). It is known for its citrus fruit orchards an ...

, and was present at a

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''wikt:synod, synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin ...

in Antioch in December of that year. Patriarch William of Malines died in 1145, and on 25 January 1146 Fulcher became Patriarch of Jerusalem. There was a dispute over the succession in Tyre between Ralph, the chancellor of Jerusalem, and Peter of Barcelona; Ralph was never consecrated and Peter eventually succeeded to the archbishopric. In 1148 Fulk was among those who welcomed

Conrad III of Germany Conrad III (german: Konrad; it, Corrado; 1093 or 1094 – 15 February 1152) of the Hohenstaufen dynasty was from 1116 to 1120 Duke of Franconia, from 1127 to 1135 anti-king of his predecessor Lothair III and from 1138 until his death in 1152 k ...

when he arrived in Jerusalem on the

Second Crusade The Second Crusade (1145–1149) was the second major crusade launched from Europe. The Second Crusade was started in response to the fall of the County of Edessa in 1144 to the forces of Zengi. The county had been founded during the First Crusa ...

. He was also sent to meet

Louis VII of France Louis VII (1120 – 18 September 1180), called the Younger, or the Young (french: link=no, le Jeune), was King of the Franks from 1137 to 1180. He was the son and successor of King Louis VI (hence the epithet "the Young") and married Duchess ...

, who had stopped in Antioch; Fulk persuaded Louis to continue to Jerusalem rather than remain in Antioch or Tripoli, both of which were ruled by his relatives. In June, Fulk attended the Council of Acre, where the decision was made to attack Damascus, which led to the failure of the Second Crusade. In 1149 Fulk consecrated the newly renovated Holy Sepulchre, which had been undergoing reorganization and expansion during the previous 50 years of crusader rule. The church's Romanesque style inspired numerous churches in Europe. In 1152, Fulk intervened in the dispute between King

Baldwin III of Jerusalem Baldwin III (1130 – 10 February 1163) was King of Jerusalem from 1143 to 1163. He was the eldest son of Melisende and Fulk of Jerusalem. He became king while still a child, and was at first overshadowed by his mother Melisende, whom he eventua ...

and his mother

Melisende of Jerusalem Melisende (1105 – 11 September 1161) was Queen of Jerusalem from 1131 to 1153, and regent for her son between 1153 and 1161, while he was on campaign. She was the eldest daughter of King Baldwin II of Jerusalem, and the Armenian princess M ...

. Baldwin III had inherited the throne at the age of 13 on the death of his father,

King Fulk Fulk ( la, Fulco, french: Foulque or ''Foulques''; c. 1089/1092 – 13 November 1143), also known as Fulk the Younger, was the count of Anjou (as Fulk V) from 1109 to 1129 and the king of Jerusalem with his wife from 1131 to his death. During t ...

, in 1143, but Melisende continued to rule as regent even after Baldwin passed the age of majority in 1148. The dispute led to armed conflict in 1152, and Fulk's attempts to negotiate peace failed. Baldwin eventually was victorious in the dispute. In 1153 Fulk was present at the Siege of Ascalon, where he carried the relic of the

True Cross The True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, althoug ...

. In 1155 he was involved in a dispute with the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...

, who refused to pay tithes to the church; they also interrupted Fulk's preaching at the Holy Sepulchre, and at one point, according to William of Tyre, shot arrows into the church. Fulk and the other ecclesiastical prelates of Outremer travelled to Rome to complain directly to

Pope Hadrian IV Pope Adrian IV ( la, Adrianus IV; born Nicholas Breakspear (or Brekespear); 1 September 1159, also Hadrian IV), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 4 December 1154 to his death in 1159. He is the only Englishman t ...

. In 1156 Fulk opposed the marriage of

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 ...

, Count of Jaffa and Ascalon, and Agnes of Courtenay, on the grounds of consanguinity. Fulk died on 20 November 1157. William describes him as "a very aged man, indeed almost a centenarian."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fulk Of Jerusalem 1157 deaths People from Angoulême Latin Patriarchs of Jerusalem Christians of the Crusades 12th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the Kingdom of Jerusalem Year of birth unknown 12th-century people of the Kingdom of Jerusalem 12th-century French people