Raymond II ( la, Raimundus; 1116 – 1152) was
count of Tripoli
The count of Tripoli was the ruler of the County of Tripoli, a crusader state from 1102 through 1289. Of the four major crusader states in the Levant, Tripoli was created last.
The history of the counts of Tripoli began with Raymond IV of Toulo ...
from 1137 to 1152. He succeeded his father,
Pons, Count of Tripoli
Pons ( 1098 – 25 March 1137) was count of Tripoli from 1112 to 1137. He was a minor when his father, Bertrand, died in 1112. He swore fealty to the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos in the presence of a Byzantine embassy. His advisors sent hi ...
, who was killed during a campaign that a commander from Damascus launched against Tripoli. Raymond accused the local Christians of betraying his father and invaded their villages in the
Mount Lebanon area. He also had many of them tortured and executed. Raymond was captured during an invasion by
Imad ad-Din Zengi
Imad al-Din Zengi ( ar, عماد الدین زنكي; – 14 September 1146), also romanized as Zangi, Zengui, Zenki, and Zanki, was a Turkmen atabeg, who ruled Mosul, Aleppo, Hama, and, later, Edessa. He was the namesake of the Zengid dyna ...
,
atabeg of Mosul
This is a list of the rulers of the Iraqi city of Mosul.
Umayyad governors
* Muhammad ibn Marwan (ca. 685–705)
* Yusuf ibn Yahya ibn al-Hakam (ca. 685–705)
* Sa'id ibn Abd al-Malik (ca. 685–705)
* Yahya ibn Yahya al-Ghassani (719–720)
* ...
, who gained the two important castles of
Montferrand (at present-day
Baarin
Baarin ( ar, بعرين, ''Baʿrīn'' or ''Biʿrīn'') is a village in northern Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate, located in Homs Gap roughly southwest of Hama. Nearby localities include Taunah and Awj to the south, Aqrab and ...
in Syria) and
Rafaniya in exchange for his release in the summer of 1137.
Since his army proved unable to secure the defence of the eastern borders of his county, Raymond granted several forts to 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 military order. It was headq ...
in 1142. The sudden death of his father's uncle,
Alfonso Jordan
Alfonso Jordan, also spelled Alfons Jordan or Alphonse Jourdain (1103–1148), was the Count of Tripoli (1105–09), Count of Rouergue (1109–48) and Count of Toulouse, Margrave of Provence and Duke of Narbonne (1112–48).
Life
Alfonso was ...
,
Count of Toulouse
The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings,
the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surroundin ...
, during the
Second Crusade gave rise to gossips which suggested that Raymond had poisoned him, because Alfonso Jordan had allegedly wanted to lay claim to Tripoli. Alfonso Jordan's illegitimate son, Bertrand of Toulouse, actually seized the
fortress of Areimeh in the
County of Tripoli
The County of Tripoli (1102–1289) was the last of the Crusader states. It was founded in the Levant in the modern-day region of Tripoli, northern Lebanon and parts of western Syria which supported an indigenous population of Christians, ...
in 1149, but Raymond recaptured it with the assistance of Muslim rulers. Raymond ceded the castle to the
Knights Templar.
The marriage of Raymond and his wife,
Hodierna of Jerusalem
Hodierna of Jerusalem ( 1110 – 1164) was a Countess consort of Tripoli through her marriage to Raymond II of Tripoli, and regent of the County of Tripoli during the minority of her son from 1152 until 1155.
Early life
She was the daughte ...
, was unhappy. Her sister,
Melisende of Jerusalem, came to Tripoli to put an end to their conflict. Hodierna preferred to leave Tripoli for Jerusalem along with her sister and Raymond escorted them for a short distance. On his way back to Tripoli, a group of
Assassins
An assassin is a person who commits targeted murder.
Assassin may also refer to:
Origin of term
* Someone belonging to the medieval Persian Ismaili order of Assassins
Animals and insects
* Assassin bugs, a genus in the family ''Reduviida ...
stabbed him at the southern gate of the town. He was the first Christian ruler to be murdered by
Assassins
An assassin is a person who commits targeted murder.
Assassin may also refer to:
Origin of term
* Someone belonging to the medieval Persian Ismaili order of Assassins
Animals and insects
* Assassin bugs, a genus in the family ''Reduviida ...
.
Early life
He was the elder son of
Pons, Count of Tripoli
Pons ( 1098 – 25 March 1137) was count of Tripoli from 1112 to 1137. He was a minor when his father, Bertrand, died in 1112. He swore fealty to the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos in the presence of a Byzantine embassy. His advisors sent hi ...
and
Cecile of France
Cecile of France (1097 – 1145) was a daughter of Philip I of France and Bertrade de Montfort.
Marriages
Her first marriage was arranged while Bohemond I of Antioch was visiting the French court seeking support against Alexios I Komnenos. Sh ...
. The date of his birth is unknown, but
William of Tyre
William of Tyre ( la, Willelmus Tyrensis; 113029 September 1186) was a medieval prelate and chronicler. As archbishop of Tyre, he is sometimes known as William II to distinguish him from his predecessor, William I, the Englishman, a former ...
noted that Raymond was "adolescent" when his father died, implying that he was at least fifteen in 1137. He and his younger brother, Philip, were mature enough to sign their father's charters in the early 1130s. Historian Kevin J. Lewis argues that Raymond "could easily have been in his early twenties" in 1137, suggesting that he was born around 1116. Lewis also states that Raymond was most probably betrothed to Hodierna, who was a younger daughter of
Baldwin II of Jerusalem
Baldwin II, also known as Baldwin of Bourcq or Bourg (; – 21August 1131), was Count of Edessa from 1100 to 1118, and King of Jerusalem from 1118 until his death. He accompanied his cousins Godfrey of Bouillon and Baldwin of Boulogne to th ...
, "as early as 1127".
Reign
War with Muslim powers
Bazwāj, the
mamluk
Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning " slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') ...
(or slave) commander of
Damascus made a raid against Tripoli and defeated Pons in a battle. Pons fled from the battlefield, but native Christians captured and handed him over to Bazwāj who had him executed on 25 March 1137. Bazwāj captured a frontier fort, but returned to Damascus without attacking Tripoli. To take vengeance for his father's death, Raymond invaded the local Christians' settlements in the
Mount Lebanon area and captured many of them. The captured men, women and children were taken to Tripoli where the majority was tortured and executed. William of Tyre remarked that Raymond's campaign against the local Christians provided "the first lessons of his martial courage".
After learning of Pons' death,
Zengi invaded Tripoli in July 1137. A Muslim historian, Kamal al-Din, would later claim that Zengi attacked Tripoli only after Raymond mustered his troops to force Zengi to lift the siege of
Homs. Lewis emphasizes that Kamal al-Din's report is doubtful, because Bazwāj had almost annihilated the army of Tripoli, preventing Raymond from launching major campaigns. After Zengi laid siege to Montferrand, Raymond sent envoys to his maternal uncle,
Fulk, King of Jerusalem, urging him to hurry to the besieged fortress. Shortly after Fulk and his army crossed the frontier of the County of Tripoli, the envoys of
Raymond of Poitiers
Raymond of Poitiers (c. 1105–29 June 1149) was Prince of Antioch from 1136 to 1149. He was the younger son of William IX, Duke of Aquitaine, and his wife Philippa, Countess of Toulouse, born in the very year that his father the Duke began hi ...
,
Prince of Antioch, informed him that the Byzantine Emperor
John II Komnenos
John II Komnenos or Comnenus ( gr, Ἱωάννης ὁ Κομνηνός, Iōannēs ho Komnēnos; 13 September 1087 – 8 April 1143) was Byzantine emperor from 1118 to 1143. Also known as "John the Beautiful" or "John the Good" (), he ...
had invaded Antioch.
Fulk and Raymond of Tripoli decided to launch an assault on Zengi's forces before marching to Antioch, because they thought they could easily defeat the atabeg. However, Zengi lifted the siege of Homs and made an unexpected attack on the united forces of Jerusalem and Tripoli. Thousands of Christian soldiers were killed during the battle, and even more (including Raymond) were captured; Fulk and his retinue fled to Montferrand. Zengi again besieged Montferrand, but began negotiations with the besieged when he heard that further relief was on its way from Raymond of Poitiers,
Joscelin II of Edessa
Joscelin II of Edessa (died 1159) was the fourth and last ruling count of Edessa. He was son of his predecessor Joscelin I of Edessa and Beatrice, daughter of Constantine I of Armenia.
Biography
In 1122, Joscelin I was captured by Belek Ghazi ...
, and emperor
John II Komnenos
John II Komnenos or Comnenus ( gr, Ἱωάννης ὁ Κομνηνός, Iōannēs ho Komnēnos; 13 September 1087 – 8 April 1143) was Byzantine emperor from 1118 to 1143. Also known as "John the Beautiful" or "John the Good" (), he ...
. Those besieged in the fortress did not know of these movements but readily agreed to hand over the castle to Zengi in exchange for a safe passage and the release of Raymond and all other Christian captives.
Attempts to consolidate
The Byzantine author,
Theodore Prodromos
Theodore Prodromos or Prodromus ( el, Θεόδωρος Πρόδρομος; c. 1100 – c. 1165/70), probably also the same person as the so-called Ptochoprodromos (Πτωχοπρόδρομος "Poor Prodromos"), was a Byzantine Greek writer, wel ...
, praised John II Komnenos for having made Tripoli subject shortly after 1137. Decades later the Byzantine historian
Niketas Choniates would also describe Raymond as a
liegeman
A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain. ...
(vassal) of John II Komnenos. Both sources suggest that Raymond renewed his predecessors' oath of loyalty towards the Byzantine emperor, according to Lewis. Nevertheless, Raymond did not participate in John II Komnenos' military campaign against the Muslim rulers of Northern Syria in 1138. Historian
Ralph-Johannes Lilie says the lack of sufficient military forces prevented Raymond from assisting the Byzantines.
Raymond granted several settlements to the
Knights Hospitallers
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 military order. It was headq ...
along the eastern borders of his county in 1142. His grant included "the fortress of the Kurds" which developed into the important Crusader castle of
Krak des Chevaliers
Krak des Chevaliers, ar, قلعة الحصن, Qalʿat al-Ḥiṣn also called Hisn al-Akrad ( ar, حصن الأكراد, Ḥiṣn al-Akrād, rtl=yes, ) and formerly Crac de l'Ospital; Krak des Chevaliers or Crac des Chevaliers (), is a medieva ...
during the following decades. He also transferred his rights to Montferrand and
Rafaniya, both seized by Zengi in 1137, to the Hospitallers if they could recapture them. When establishing a military order on the eastern borderland, Raymond only wanted to secure the defence of his county, but his magnanimous grant laid the foundation of an almost independent ecclesiastic state.
Family affairs
Raymond was a great-grandson of
Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse
Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse ( 1041 – 28 February 1105), sometimes called Raymond of Saint-Gilles or Raymond I of Tripoli, was a powerful noble in southern France and one of the leaders of the First Crusade (1096–1099). He was the Count of ...
, one of the leaders of the
First Crusade
The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic r ...
who was the first to style himself as count of Tripoli (even before Tripoli had been captured). However, Raymond was descended from Saint-Gilles through
Bertrand of Toulouse
Bertrand of Toulouse (or Bertrand of Tripoli) (died 1112) was count of Toulouse, and was the first count of Tripoli to rule in Tripoli itself.
Bertrand was the eldest son of Raymond IV of Toulouse, and had ruled Toulouse since Raymond left on the ...
, a son with disputed legitimacy. Saint-Gilles' legitimate son,
Alfonso-Jordan
Alfonso Jordan, also spelled Alfons Jordan or Alphonse Jourdain (1103–1148), was the Count of Tripoli (1105–09), Count of Rouergue (1109–48) and Count of Toulouse, Margrave of Provence and Duke of Narbonne (1112–48).
Life
Alfonso was th ...
, was born after Saint-Gilles started to use the title of count of Tripoli, making him his father's lawful heir in accordance with the idea of
porphyrogeniture.
Alfonso-Jordan was one of the supreme commanders of the
Second Crusade, but he died shortly after he landed at the Holy Land in April 1148. Because of his unexpected death, gossip about his murder started spreading among the Crusaders, although he most probably died of natural causes, as a consequence of his lengthy voyage across the Mediterranean Sea. An anonymous Syrian chronicler accused Raymond of the crime, stating that he poisoned Alfonso-Jordan because he feared that his uncle had come to seize Tripoli. Lewis emphasizes, the chronicle "is hardly the most reliable piece of evidence, so some skepticism about Raymond's involvement in Alfons's death is surely advisible". Another contemporaneous authorthe continuator of
Sigebert of Gembloux
Sigebert of Gembloux (Sigebertus Gemblacensis; 1030 – 5 October 1112) was a medieval author, known mainly as a pro-Imperial historian of a universal chronicle, opposed to the expansive papacy of Gregory VII and Pascal II. Early in his life ...
's chroniclewas convinced that Raymond's sister-in-law,
Melisende, Queen of Jerusalem, had poisoned Alfons-Jordan, because she wanted to prevent him from claiming Tripoli.
Raymond did not attend the assembly of the leaders of the crusade at
Acre on 24 June 1148. He also kept away from the Crusaders'
siege of Damascus in 1148. In contrast with Raymond, Alfons-Jordan's illegitimate son,
Bertrand
Bertrand may refer to:
Places
* Bertrand, Missouri, US
* Bertrand, Nebraska, US
* Bertrand, New Brunswick, Canada
* Bertrand Township, Michigan, US
* Bertrand, Michigan
* Bertrand, Virginia, US
* Bertrand Creek, state of Washington
* Saint-Bertr ...
, who had arrived in his father's retinue, participated in the Crusaders' fights. He decided to lay claim to Tripoli and took possession of the fortress of
Areimeh
Areimeh ( ar, العريمة) is a Syrian
Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage ...
in the summer of 1149. After being unable to expel Bertrand from the fort which controlled important roads in the county, Raymond sought assistance from
Mu'in ad-Din Unur
Mu'in ad-Din Unur al-Atabeki ( tr, Muiniddin Üner; died August 28, 1149) was a Seljuk Turkish ruler of Damascus in the mid-12th century.
Origins
Mu'in ad-Din was originally a Mamluk in the army of Toghtekin, the founder of the Burid Dynasty o ...
, the Muslim ruler of Damascus, as well as from Zengi's son,
Nur ad-Din. The two Muslim rulers captured Areimeh and imprisoned Bertrand and his family. After destroying the castle, they returned the territory to Raymond. Raymond granted the land to the
Knights Templar in the early 1150s.
Last years
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 eventu ...
crossed Tripoli during his march towards northern Syria in the summer of 1150. He wanted to meet with the Byzantine Emperor
Manuel I Komnenos who had purchased the last fortresses of the
County of Edessa
The County of Edessa (Latin: ''Comitatus Edessanus'') was one of the Crusader states in the 12th century. Ferdinandi, Sergio (2017). La Contea Franca di Edessa. Fondazione e Profilo Storico del Primo Principato Crociato nel Levante (1098-115 ...
. Because of a conflict between Baldwin and his mother, Melisende, her supporters had refused to accompany the king, who thus asked Raymond to join him. Raymond agreed and accompanied Baldwin to the meeting and they jointly supervised the transfer of the castles to the Byzantines.
A
Fatimid fleet
The navy of the Fatimid Caliphate was one of the most developed early Muslim navies and a major military force in the central and eastern Mediterranean in the 10th–12th centuries. As with the dynasty it served, its history can be distinguished ...
pillaged Tripoli during a plundering raid against the coastal towns in the summer of 1151. The Egyptians destroyed ships and killed or captured hundreds of people in the harbor. In December, Crusader troops invaded the
Beqaa Valley, seizing prisoners and booty during their campaign before the Muslim governor of
Baalbek routed them. Nur ad-Din broke into the county in April or May 1152 and captured
Tortosa
Tortosa (; ) is the capital of the '' comarca'' of Baix Ebre, in Catalonia, Spain.
Tortosa is located at above sea level, by the Ebro river, protected on its northern side by the mountains of the Cardó Massif, of which Buinaca, one of the hig ...
, leaving a garrison there. Baldwin III came to Tripoli and held a "general court", attended by the leading barons of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the County of Tripoli. After the king's arrival, the Nur ad-Din's troops left Tortosa, but they destroyed the fortress. Since its restoration proved costly, Raymond ceded Tortosa first to the local bishop, then to the Templars who transformed it into one of their most important headquarters.
An "enmity born from marital jealousy" had meanwhile emerged between Raymond and his wife, according to William of Tyre. Her sister, Melisende, who attended the assembly at Tripoli, tried to mediate between them, but their relationship remained tense. After the assembly was closed, Melisende and Hodierna left Tripoli for Jerusalem. Raymond rode out with them for a short distance, and on his way back to Tripoli, he was killed by a group of
Assassins
An assassin is a person who commits targeted murder.
Assassin may also refer to:
Origin of term
* Someone belonging to the medieval Persian Ismaili order of Assassins
Animals and insects
* Assassin bugs, a genus in the family ''Reduviida ...
fanatics employed by the head of the
Nizari
The Nizaris ( ar, النزاريون, al-Nizāriyyūn, fa, نزاریان, Nezāriyān) are the largest segment of the Ismaili Muslims, who are the second-largest branch of Shia Islam after the Twelvers. Nizari teachings emphasize independent ...
to murder their enemiesat the southern gate to the city, along with two of his knights. The motivation of the crime is unknown. Since the Nizari had not previously killed Christian rulers, modern historians propose that the establishment of the Templars at Tortosa had outraged them.
Family
The exact date of the marriage of Raymond and Hodierna is unknown. According to historian Peter Lock, it took place in the spring of 1133, after her brother-in-law, Fulk of Jerusalem, provided military assistance to Raymond's father against Zengi. Raymond and Hodierna's son,
Raymond III, was born only in 1140, thus he was still a minor when he succeeded his father in 1152. Raymond and Hodierna's daughter,
Melisende, was famed for her beauty, but her delicate health and rumours about her mother's possible infidelity prevented her marriage to the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Komnenos.
References
Sources
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Further reading
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Raymond 02 Of Tripoli
1110s births
1152 deaths
Counts of Tripoli
Assassinated royalty
Christians of the Second Crusade
Victims of the Order of Assassins