Stephanie of Armenia (after 1195 – June 1220), also known as Rita, was a member of the Rubenid dynasty and claimant to the throne of the

Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia (Middle Armenian: , '), also known as Cilician Armenia ( hy, Կիլիկեան Հայաստան, '), Lesser Armenia, Little Armenia or New Armenia, and formerly known as the Armenian Principality of Cilicia ( hy, ...

. Stephanie was the only child of

Leo I, King of Armenia Leo II (, ''Levon I. Metsagorts''; 1150 – 2 May 1219), also Leon II, Levon II or Lewon II, was the tenth lord of Armenian Cilicia or “Lord of the Mountains” (1187–1198/1199), and the first king of Armenian Cilicia (sometimes as Levon I th ...

, by his first wife Isabelle. Stephanie's maternal family is disputed. It is believed that her mother was a niece of Sybille, wife of

Bohemond III of Antioch Bohemond III of Antioch, also known as Bohemond the Child or the Stammerer (french: Bohémond le Bambe/le Baube; 1148–1201), was Prince of Antioch from 1163 to 1201. He was the elder son of Constance of Antioch and her first husband, Raymond o ...

. Others believe that her mother was of

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

origins. Stephanie was brought up by her paternal grandmother Rita of Barbaron. She was around ten years old when her mother died, who had not borne Leo any more children. Around 1210 Stephanie's father remarried to Sibylla, daughter of

Isabella I of Jerusalem Isabella I (1172 – 5 April 1205) was reigning Queen of Jerusalem from 1190 to her death. She was the daughter of Amalric I of Jerusalem and his second wife Maria Comnena, a Byzantine princess. Her half-brother, Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, eng ...

. From this marriage she gained a half-sister,

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 ...

. In April 1214, Stephanie married

John of Brienne John of Brienne ( 1170 – 19–23 March 1237), also known as John I, was King of Jerusalem from 1210 to 1225 and Latin Emperor of Constantinople from 1229 to 1237. He was the youngest son of Erard II of Brienne, a wealthy nobleman in Champag ...

. John had only recently lost his first wife

Maria Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...

Queen of Jerusalem This is a list of queens of Jerusalem, from 1099 to 1291. Throughout 200 years of its existence, the Kingdom of Jerusalem had one protector, 18 kings (including 7 ''jure uxoris'') and five queens regnant. Six women were queens consort, i.e. que ...

, who was a sister of Stephanie's stepmother Sibylla. Stephanie was a bad stepmother to John's daughter, Queen

Isabella II of Jerusalem Isabella II (12124 May 1228), also known as Yolande of Brienne, was a princess of French origin, the daughter of Maria, the queen-regnant of Jerusalem, and her husband, John of Brienne. She was reigning Queen of Jerusalem from 1212 until her death ...

, on whose behalf John ruled Jerusalem as

regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

. Stephanie herself gave birth in 1216 to a son named John. In May, 1219 Stephanie's father died. He had made the barons swear an oath of allegiance to his great-nephew

Raymond-Roupen Raymond-Roupen (also Raymond-Rupen and Ruben-Raymond; 1198 – 1219 or 1221/1222) was a member of the House of Poitiers who claimed the thrones of the Principality of Antioch and Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia. His succession in Antioch was preven ...

, who became his heir. However, on his death bed King Leo changed the succession. He made his daughter Isabelle his heir and released the barons from their oath of allegiance. Stephanie was still alive at the time and would have had more right because she was the older daughter. Also, Stephanie had a son. Stephanie's husband, John pressed the claim on behalf of his wife. Raymond-Roupen also pressed his claim on the throne. John left the

Fifth Crusade The Fifth Crusade (1217–1221) was a campaign in a series of Crusades by Western Europeans to reacquire Jerusalem and the rest of the Holy Land by first conquering Egypt, ruled by the powerful Ayyubid sultanate, led by al-Adil, brother of Sala ...

in February 1220 intending to visit Cilicia to press his family's claim. In June, however, Stephanie died; it was gossiped that John had beaten her to death after she tried to poison her stepdaughter, Isabella. Stephanie's young son died shortly afterwards. John of Brienne had no longer a claim on the throne of Cilicia.Runciman, Steven. A History of the Crusades – Volume III.: The Kingdom of Acre and the Later Crusades

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephanie Of Armenia Rubenid dynasty Pretenders Year of birth uncertain 1220 deaths Armenian princesses 12th-century Armenian people 12th-century Armenian women 13th-century Armenian people 13th-century Armenian women