Walter III (French: ''Gautier''), sometimes called Walter de Brisebarre or Walter Grenier (bef. 1180 – 24 June 1229), was the Constable of the

Kingdom of Cyprus The Kingdom of Cyprus (french: Royaume de Chypre, la, Regnum Cypri) was a state that existed between 1192 and 1489. It was ruled by the French House of Lusignan. It comprised not only the island of Cyprus, but it also had a foothold on the Ana ...

from 1206 and

Lord of Caesarea The Crusader state of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, created in 1099, was divided into a number of smaller seigneuries. According to the 13th-century jurist John of Ibelin, the four highest crown vassals (referred to as barons) in the kingdom prope ...

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 establish ...

from 1216. He was the eldest son of Juliana Grenier, Lady of Caesarea, and Guy de Brisebarre. Since he was witnessing royal charters by 1195, he must have been born no later than 1180. In the 1220s he was generally referred to as "the old lord of Caesarea", although probably only in his fifties.John L. LaMonte, "The Lords of Caesarea in the Period of the Crusades", ''Speculum'' 22, 2 (1947): 154–56. He took part in two

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were ...

and in two civil wars on the side of the

House of Ibelin The House of Ibelin was a noble family in the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century. They rose from humble beginnings to become one of the most important families in the kingdom, holding various high offices and with extensive holdin ...

. As a young man, Walter was frequently in attendance at the royal court. He witnessed charters of

Henry I Henry I may refer to: 876–1366 * Henry I the Fowler, King of Germany (876–936) * Henry I, Duke of Bavaria (died 955) * Henry I of Austria, Margrave of Austria (died 1018) * Henry I of France (1008–1060) * Henry I the Long, Margrave of the ...

in 1195–96, Amalric II in 1198, and the regent John of Ibelin in 1206. On an act of Amalric's he is term "lord of Caesarea", although his mother was still living, as was her second husband, Aymar de Lairon, who subscribed as "lord of Caesarea" to the same charter of John of Ibelin witnessed by Walter. In 1200 and 1206 he was a witness on charters of his mother and Aymar.

Loss of Caesarea and the Fifth Crusade

In 1206,

Hugh I of Cyprus Hugh I (french: Hugues; gr, Ούγος; 1194/1195 – 10 January 1218) succeeded to the throne of Cyprus on 1 April 1205 underage upon the death of his elderly father Aimery, King of Cyprus and Jerusalem. His mother was Eschiva of Ibelin, heir ...

nominated Walter constable, a post he held for the rest of his life. This was also the title Walter preferred when witnessing charters. Walter inherited the lordship of Caesarea on the death of his mother between 1213 and 1216, when the first reference to him as lord appears. In January 1217 he was in Acre at the court of the king,

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 ...

. By July he had returned to Nicosia, in Cyprus, where he witnessed a charter of

Bertrand of Margat Margat, also known as Marqab ( ar, قلعة المرقب, ''Qalaat al-Marqab'', lit=Castle of the Watchtower), is a castle near Baniyas, Syria, which was a Crusader fortress and one of the major strongholds of the Knights Hospitaller. It is locat ...

. In September he was at the royal court at Nicosia. He returned to the mainland in October, when he attended the council held at Acre by King

Andrew II of Hungary Andrew II ( hu, II. András, hr, Andrija II., sk, Ondrej II., uk, Андрій II; 117721 September 1235), also known as Andrew of Jerusalem, was King of Hungary and Croatia between 1205 and 1235. He ruled the Principality of Halych from 11 ...

to decide a course of action for 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 I, al-Adil, brothe ...

. As constable, Walter led 100 Cypriot knights at the Siege of Damietta in 1218. By July he had returned to Nicosia, where the dowager queen, Alice, was regent for the new infant king,

. In 1217–18, while Walter was in Egypt, a Muslim army threatened Caesarea, but the city was successfully re-fortified by King John. In 1220, the Muslims returned under al-Mu'azzam and captured the city, which was being defended by Werner von Egisheim and the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the La ...

. In 1220, Walter was at Nicosia at the court of Queen Alice, where he witnessed a charter of hers. In 1225, he was in Tyre for the coronation of 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 ...

Breakout of civil war and the Sixth Crusade

Walter III married Margaret, a sister of the ex-regent John of Ibelin and the regent of Cyprus, Philip. This brought him firmly into the Ibelin camp opposed to the influence of the queen's husband, the Emperor Frederick II. When the queen died in Italy on 25 April 1228, the ''Haute Cour'' (High Court) elected Walter and John to serve as c-bailiffs for the young king Conrad II, the emperor's son, but they refused. The honour instead went to Lord

Balian of Sidon Balian I Grenier was the Count of Sidon and one of the most important lords of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1202 to 1241. He succeeded his father Renaud. His mother was Helvis, a daughter of Balian of Ibelin. He was a powerful and important re ...

and Eudes de Montbéliard.LaMonte, "Lords of Caesarea", 155. The source for this episode, John of Ibelin's '' Assises'', confuses Walter with his son. According to the ''

Gestes des Chiprois 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 ...

'' and

Philip of Novara Philip of Novara (c. 1200 – c. 1270) was a medieval historian, warrior, musician, diplomat, poet, and lawyer. born at Novara, Italy, into a noble house, who spent his entire adult life in the Middle East. He primarily served the Ibelin famil ...

's history of Frederick's reign, Walter was one of the judges of the

judicial duel Trial by combat (also wager of battle, trial by battle or judicial duel) was a method of Germanic law to settle accusations in the absence of witnesses or a confession in which two parties in dispute fought in single combat; the winner of the ...

between Amaury Barlais and Anceau de Brie, which took place in Cyprus before Frederick's arrival at the head of the Sixth Crusade. After Frederick's arrival, he held a banquet in

Limassol Limassol (; el, Λεμεσός, Lemesós ; tr, Limasol or ) is a city on the southern coast of Cyprus and capital of the district with the same name. Limassol is the second largest urban area in Cyprus after Nicosia, with an urban population ...

on Cyprus, where Walter was present when the emperor demanded that John of Ibelin surrender the bailliage of the kingdom. This was the spark which ignited the so-called

War of the Lombards The War of the Lombards (1228–1243) was a civil war in the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Kingdom of Cyprus between the "Lombards" (also called the imperialists), the representatives of the Emperor Frederick II, largely from Lombardy, and the ...

, a series of intermittent civil wars between those of the local baronage who sided with the Ibelins and those who sided with the Italians (i.e., Lombards) who followed Frederick to Cyprus. Only after a truce was arranged between the emperor and John, was the former able to continue his journey to Palestine. Walter accompanied him and witnessed one of his charters in Acre in April 1229. He took possession of Caesarea again after Frederick signed the Treaty of Jaffa with Egypt on 11 February 1229. When war broke out on Cyprus again, he returned to fight for the Ibelins and died at the Battle of Nicosia on 24 June.

Family

Walter was the second husband of Margaret of Ibelin, widow of Hugh of Tiberias. She bore one 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 ...

, who succeeded him in Caesarea. She also bore him four daughters: Isabella, Alice, Femie and Helvis. Alice married Jacques de la Mandelée, who need a dispensation because, according to the ''

Lignages d'Outremer The ''Lignages d'Outremer'' ("Lineages of Outremer") describe the pedigrees of the most important Crusader families. A first version was written in 1270 and is available in two manuscripts of the 14th century. A later version was produced in 130 ...

'', "previously he was espoused to the sister of this one" (''prius soror ipsius desponsaverat''). The text is not entirely clear: it may be saying that John of Caesarea had married a sister of Jacques's, but more likely it means that Jacques had previously been married to Isabelle, whom the ''Lignages'' record as dying young. Femie (Euphemia) married

John of Gibelet The Embriaco were a prominent Genoa, Genoese family, who played an important role in the history of the Crusader states. It also gave consuls, admirals and ambassadors to the Republic of Genoa. The family ruled the city of Byblos (in present-da ...

. Helvis became a nun.

Notes

{{S-end 1229 deaths Lords of Caesarea Christians of the Fifth Crusade Christians of the Sixth Crusade Year of birth unknown