Sibylla, Queen Of Jerusalem
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Sibylla (; – 25 July 1190) was the queen of Jerusalem from 1186 to 1190. She reigned alongside her husband
Guy of Lusignan Guy of Lusignan ( 1150 – 18 July 1194) was King of Jerusalem, first as husband and co-ruler of Queen Sibylla from 1186 to 1190 then as disputed ruler from 1190 to 1192. He was also Lord of Cyprus from 1192 to 1194. A French Poitevin kni ...
, to whom she was unwaveringly attached despite his unpopularity among the
barons of the Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem, one of the Crusader states that was 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 ...
. Sibylla was the eldest daughter of King Amalric and the only daughter of his first wife,
Agnes of Courtenay Agnes of Courtenay ( – ) was a Franks, Frankish noblewoman who held considerable influence in the Kingdom of Jerusalem during the reign of her son, King Baldwin IV. Though she was never queen, she has been described as the most powerful wom ...
. Her father died in 1174, making her
heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir app ...
to her younger brother, King Baldwin IV; when it became clear that the 13-year-old king had contracted
leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...
, the matter of Sibylla's marriage became urgent. The
regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
, Count
Raymond III of Tripoli Raymond III (1140 – September/October 1187) was count of Tripoli from 1152 to 1187. He was a minor when Nizari Assassins murdered his father, Count Raymond II of Tripoli. His cousin, King Baldwin III of Jerusalem, who was staying ...
, arranged for her to marry William Longsword of Montferrat in late 1176, but within a year, William died, leaving her pregnant and in possession of the
County of Jaffa and Ascalon The double County of Jaffa and Ascalon was one of the four major seigneuries comprising the major Crusader state of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, according to 13th-century commentator John of Ibelin. History Jaffa was fortified by Godfrey of Bo ...
. Shortly after giving birth to a son, Baldwin, Sibylla came to be associated with her brother in public acts, thereby being designated as next in line to the throne. Sibylla's second marriage to Guy of Lusignan was arranged by her brother in 1180, likely to foil a coup planned by Raymond and
Bohemond III of Antioch Bohemond III of Antioch, also known as Bohemond the Child or the Stammerer (; 1148–1201), was Prince of Antioch from 1163 to 1201. He was the elder son of Constance of Antioch and her first husband, Raymond of Poitiers. Bohemond ascended to the ...
, but the marriage deeply divided the nobility. By 1183, King Baldwin had become completely incapacitated by his disease as well as disillusioned with Guy's character and inability to lead. To prevent Guy's accession to the throne, Baldwin had Sibylla's son crowned as co-king and attempted to separate Sibylla from Guy, but she and her husband refused to show up at court. Baldwin IV died in 1185, having named Raymond to rule as regent for Baldwin V instead of Sibylla or Guy. The boy king died the next year, and Sibylla moved quickly to claim the throne against Raymond's ambitions. She agreed to her supporters' demand to set Guy aside on the condition that she could choose her next husband, and outwitted them at her coronation in mid-September 1186 by choosing to remarry Guy and crown him herself.
Saladin Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known as Saladin, was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from a Kurdish family, he was the first sultan of both Egypt and Syria. An important figure of the Third Crusade, h ...
took advantage of the discord in the kingdom to invade in 1187, reducing the
Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem, also known as the Crusader Kingdom, was one of the Crusader states established in the Levant immediately after the First Crusade. It lasted for almost two hundred years, from the accession of Godfrey of Bouillon in 1 ...
to a single city, Tyre. Sibylla visited her husband, who had been taken captive at the decisive
Battle of Hattin The Battle of Hattin took place on 4 July 1187, between the Crusader states of the Levant and the forces of the Ayyubid sultan Saladin. It is also known as the Battle of the Horns of Hattin, due to the shape of the nearby extinct volcano of ...
, and procured from Saladin his release. She died in July 1190, along with her daughters with Guy, of an epidemic outside
Acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...
while Guy was besieging it.


Childhood

Sibylla was the elder of the two children of the
count of Jaffa and Ascalon The double County of Jaffa and Ascalon was one of the four major seigneuries comprising the major Crusader state of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, according to 13th-century commentator John of Ibelin. History Jaffa was fortified by Godfrey of Bouill ...
,
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 language, Gothic ''reiks'') meaning "ruler, prince". E ...
, and his first wife,
Agnes of Courtenay Agnes of Courtenay ( – ) was a Franks, Frankish noblewoman who held considerable influence in the Kingdom of Jerusalem during the reign of her son, King Baldwin IV. Though she was never queen, she has been described as the most powerful wom ...
. Sibylla was born between 1157, when her parents married, and 1161, when her younger brother, Baldwin, was born. On her father's side, Sibylla was the niece of the then-reigning
king of Jerusalem The king or queen of Jerusalem was the supreme ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, a Crusader state founded in Jerusalem by the Latin Church, Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade, when the city was Siege of Jerusalem (1099), conquered in ...
, Baldwin III, and granddaughter of
Queen Melisende Melisende ( 1105 – 11 September 1161) was the queen of Jerusalem from 1131 to 1152. She was the first female ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the first woman to hold a public office in the crusader kingdom. She was already legendary in he ...
, the first female ruler of the
Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem, also known as the Crusader Kingdom, was one of the Crusader states established in the Levant immediately after the First Crusade. It lasted for almost two hundred years, from the accession of Godfrey of Bouillon in 1 ...
. The
ruling class In sociology, the ruling class of a society is the social class who set and decide the political and economic agenda of society. In Marxist philosophy, the ruling class are the class who own the means of production in a given society and apply ...
of the kingdom and other
crusader states The Crusader states, or Outremer, were four Catholic polities established in the Levant region and southeastern Anatolia from 1098 to 1291. Following the principles of feudalism, the foundation for these polities was laid by the First Crusade ...
, called the
Franks file:Frankish arms.JPG, Aristocratic Frankish burial items from the Merovingian dynasty The Franks ( or ; ; ) were originally a group of Germanic peoples who lived near the Rhine river, Rhine-river military border of Germania Inferior, which wa ...
, were French-speaking
Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
who had arrived in the
Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...
from
Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...
and remained Western in culture. Sibylla was named after the
countess of Flanders The count of Flanders was the ruler or sub-ruler of the county of Flanders, beginning in the 9th century. Later, the title would be held for a time, by the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Spain. During the French Revolution, in 1790, the c ...
, her father's half-sister and her godmother, who would take on an active role in her childhood. When King Baldwin III died in 1163, the High Court forced Amalric to agree to an
annulment Annulment is a legal procedure within secular and religious legal systems for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning alm ...
of his marriage to Agnes to be accepted as the new king. After the marriage was annulled, he succeeded in having his and Agnes's children declared legitimate by
Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland (), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a Papal election, ...
. As there was no longer a queen's household in the king's court until his marriage to Maria Komnene in 1167, it was consequently unsuitable for Sibylla, who was now just four years old. In common with Western practices, Sibylla would move to the Convent of Saint Lazarus near
Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
to be educated by the king's aunt, Abbess
Ioveta Ioveta ( 1120 – 6 September 1178) was a Latin princess from the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. Her name appears in various other forms, including Joveta, Yveta, Yvette, Ivetta, and Juditta. She headed the Convent of Saint Lazarus in Bethany, ...
, Queen Melisende's youngest sister; Princess Sibylla's godmother, Sibylla of Anjou, was also there as a nun, having become one in 1159 when Princess Sibylla was born. She consequently had little contact with her mother or brother, who was
heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
to their father. With his second wife, Maria Komnene, the king had two daughters, of whom only Isabella survived infancy. A convent was not only the usual place for a noblewoman like Sibylla to receive her education, but the best one; it was not only a learning center for women, but also protected the princess from forced marriage or abduction. As a student at the abbey, Sibylla would have learned what was expected of any aristocratic woman at this time. She would have learned about the
Christian faith Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
, how to read and write in French and
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
, and women's skills such as
spinning Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...
, embroidery, and singing. She would also learn how to hunt with a hawk, or even how to handle a bow. King Amalric feared that, like his brother and their father,
King Fulk Fulk of Anjou (, or ''Foulques''; – 13 November 1143), also known as Fulk the Younger, was the king of Jerusalem from 1131 until 1143 as the husband and co-ruler of Queen Melisende. Previously, he was the count of Anjou as Fulk V from 1109 t ...
, he too would die young, before his heir reached the
age of majority The age of majority is the threshold of legal adulthood as recognized or declared in law. It is the moment when a person ceases to be considered a minor (law), minor, and assumes legal control over their person, actions, and decisions, thus te ...
. Having no close male relative who could rule as
regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
on his son's behalf if the latter ascended as a minor, Amalric authorized the
archbishop of Tyre The See of Tyre was one of the most ancient dioceses in Christianity. The existence of a Christian community there in the time of Saint Paul is mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles. Seated at Tyre (Lebanon), Tyre, which was the capital of the Roma ...
, Frederick de la Roche, in 1169 to find a husband for Sibylla in Western Europe. This candidate had to be an older man of high enough rank and with enough experience in government who was not related to Sibylla within the Church's forbidden degrees. Amalric chose Count Stephen I of Sancerre, the brother-in-law of King
Louis VII of France Louis VII (1120 – 18 September 1180), called the Younger or the Young () to differentiate him from his father Louis VI, was King of France from 1137 to 1180. His first marriage was to Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine, one of the wealthiest and ...
and a relative of the English royal house. Stephen thus came to Jerusalem in 1171, joined by other important noblemen, including his nephew, Hugh III of Burgundy, who would later be offered Sibylla's hand in marriage. Stephen was described by the chronicler
William of Tyre William of Tyre (; 29 September 1186) was a Middle Ages, medieval prelate and chronicler. As Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tyre, archbishop of Tyre, he is sometimes known as William II to distinguish him from his predecessor, William I of Tyr ...
as "a man noble in flesh, but not so behavior" Sibylla's brother was suspected of having contracted
leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...
, then an incurable disease that would prevent him from marrying and having children, so Amalric therefore saw Sibylla and Stephen as eventual monarchs instead of his son. However, Stephen rejected the match for unknown reasons, returning to his own lands after a few months. While it is unknown why Stephen backed out of the arrangement "disgracefully and foully," it is possible that he and Amalric could not agree on what power he would hold as Sibylla's husband. As Amalric already had a son, Baldwin, and could have still had a healthy son with his wife Maria at this time, Stephen realized that he was not guaranteed to inherit anything, thus backing out. It is also possible that Stephen, knowing of Agnes and Amalric's annulment, grew to worry about Sibylla's legitimacy.


Heir presumptive

When King Amalric died of dysentery on 11 July 1174, the High Court met to discuss who should succeed him. Sibylla's 13-year-old brother, Baldwin, would have been the obvious successor had there not been fears of his incipient leprosy. The only serious alternative to him was Sibylla, then aged about 15. Female succession had been grounded in recent law and had precedent, as Amalric's mother, Melisende, preceded her sons on the throne. However, unlike her grandmother, Sibylla was young, inexperienced, and unmarried. No bachelor in the Latin East was fit to marry her; Count
Raymond III of Tripoli Raymond III (1140 – September/October 1187) was count of Tripoli from 1152 to 1187. He was a minor when Nizari Assassins murdered his father, Count Raymond II of Tripoli. His cousin, King Baldwin III of Jerusalem, who was staying ...
and Baldwin of Antioch were too closely related, and a marriage to one of the barons in the kingdom could have caused resentment among the others. A match had to be found abroad, but since that would have taken too long, Baldwin IV was chosen with the expectation that a husband would be found for Sibylla to succeed him if he proved to be affected.


Marriage

Count Raymond of Tripoli, who was by then also
prince of Galilee The principality of Galilee was one of the four major seigneuries of the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, according to 13th-century commentator John of Ibelin, grandson of Balian. The direct holdings of the principality centred around Tiberias, ...
in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, became regent for the young king on the basis of being the nearest male relative. He allowed Sibylla and Baldwin's mother, Agnes, to return to court, and the siblings came to be strongly attached to and influenced by their mother in the following years. Baldwin's condition deteriorated rapidly after his accession, and since there was no longer any doubt that he had leprosy, it became imperative to arrange a marriage for Sibylla. The groom chosen by Raymond and the High Court was William "Longsword" of Montferrat, son of Marquis
William V of Montferrat William V of Montferrat (occ./piem. ''Guilhem'', it. ''Guglielmo'') ( 1115 – 1191) also known regnally as William III of Montferrat while also referred to as William the Old or William the Elder, in order to distinguish him from his eldest ...
and cousin of both Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (; ), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death in 1190. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March 115 ...
and King
Louis VII of France Louis VII (1120 – 18 September 1180), called the Younger or the Young () to differentiate him from his father Louis VI, was King of France from 1137 to 1180. His first marriage was to Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine, one of the wealthiest and ...
. Additionally, William V took part in the
Second Crusade The Second Crusade (1147–1149) 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 Crus ...
, displaying his family's dedication to the Kingdom of Jerusalem. William arrived in the East in October 1176; by that time, the
barons of the Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem, one of the Crusader states that was 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 ...
were no longer so well disposed towards him, likely because Emperor Frederick had suffered military setbacks against the
Lombard League The Lombard League (; ) was an alliance of cities formed in 1167, and supported by the popes, to counter the attempts by the Hohenstaufen Holy Roman emperors to establish direct royal administrative control over the cities of the Kingdom of It ...
and could no longer be expected to aid the Catholics in the East. William of Tyre reported that William of Montferrat's marriage to Sibylla was "unwelcome to and openly opposed by certain of those men by whose advice he had been summoned." The marriage had to go forward, however, because Sibylla's prospects could irreparably diminish if she were to be jilted again. According to William of Tyre, William Longsword would become Sibylla's husband in November, just forty days after his arrival, as Baldwin and Sibylla had sworn on oath the previous year. William was subsequently granted the
County of Jaffa and Ascalon The double County of Jaffa and Ascalon was one of the four major seigneuries comprising the major Crusader state of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, according to 13th-century commentator John of Ibelin. History Jaffa was fortified by Godfrey of Bo ...
, making Sibylla the only countess in the kingdom besides her mother, who had been granted the title after the annulment of the royal marriage, which conferred a certain distinction. Baldwin may have offered to
abdicate Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other soci ...
in William's favour, but William would have declined because he knew he lacked support among the nobility. Regardless, Sibylla and William appeared to have a stable future together, and could easily take authority if this was required.


Countess

Around April 1177, shortly after he and Sibylla conceived a child, William fell critically ill; when Baldwin came to visit his brother-in-law, he fell gravely ill too. William died in June, by which time Sibylla's pregnancy was known, and she was left as the ''
suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...
'' countess of Jaffa and Ascalon. William Longsword's death left his contemporaries dismayed, with many suspecting that the count had been murdered. William of Tyre made little note of it, implying that his intemperate lifestyle and excessive eating and drinking led to his death. Sibylla and Baldwin's first cousin Count Philip I of Flanders arrived in Jerusalem soon after William's death, but declined regency when the king, who was still terribly ill, hastily and eagerly offered it to him. Rather, one of Philip's major goals was to arrange for Sibylla and her half-sister Isabella to marry Robert and William, respectively, sons of his favourite liegeman Robert V of Béthune. Presumably, Philip wanted these men to surrender their lands in Flanders to him and take over the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Immediately recognizing Philip's attempt to undermine Baldwin's authority, the High Court countered that custom entitled the widowed Sibylla to a year of mourning, which was especially seemly given her pregnancy. Philip and the High Court could not agree on which of them had the final say in choosing Sibylla's next husband. The opposition to Philip was led by the
lord of Ramla The Lordship of Ramla was one of the lordships in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was vassal to and part of the County of Jaffa and Ascalon. History During the First Crusade, Ramla was abandoned by its Muslim inhabitants, as it lacked the defenses ...
,
Baldwin of Ibelin Baldwin of Ibelin, also known as Baldwin II of Ramla ( French: ''Baudouin d'Ibelin'', early 1130s – c. 1187 or 1186/1188), was an important noble of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and was lord of Ramla from 1169–1186. He ...
, who hoped to be the chosen suitor. Sibylla gave birth to a son, named Baldwin, in the winter of 1177–78. The boy was named after his maternal uncle, indicating that he was to become his heir. Her mourning period ended in June 1178, and it became appropriate to negotiate a new marriage for her. Baldwin of Ibelin's suit was well known, but rejected; his brother, Balian, was allowed to marry Queen Maria, stepmother of Sibylla and the king, in late 1177. On 1 July 1178, Sibylla began to be associated with her brother in public acts, and he therefore acknowledged her as next in line for the throne. This was reminiscent of their grandmother Melisende's association with her father, King Baldwin II. Baldwin IV thus confirmed Sibylla's status as his heir presumptive. The High Court agreed unanimously that Sibylla should next marry Duke Hugh III of Burgundy; according to William of Tyre, they said "that we should concede to him in matrimony the lord king's sister, whom first the marquis (of Montferrat) had had, on the same conditions." The king so desperately wanted a brother-in-law to take over the kingdom for him that he empowered the king of France to choose an alternative candidate if Hugh refused. However, unlike Stephen, Hugh would not become Baldwin IV's direct heir to the throne since Sibylla now had a son. Hugh intended to sail to the East in early 1180 and marry Sibylla at
Easter Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...
. A group of
crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding ...
from France, led by Count Henry I of Champagne,
Peter I of Courtenay Peter I of Courtenay (c. 1126 – 10 April 1183) was the sixth son of Louis VI of France and his second wife, Adélaide de Maurienne. He was the father of the Latin Emperor Peter II of Courtenay. Peter was born in France and died in Palestine. ...
, and Philip of Dreux, arrived in July 1179, but they failed to prevent the Egyptian ruler
Saladin Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known as Saladin, was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from a Kurdish family, he was the first sultan of both Egypt and Syria. An important figure of the Third Crusade, h ...
from destroying the crusader fortress of Le Chastellet. Regardless, they remained in the kingdom in the hopes of assisting at Sibylla and Hugh's
coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...
the following year. However, Hugh never set sail, possibly not wishing to leave his young son, Odo, as his regent in Burgundy.


Remarriage

Things took an unexpected turn during the
Holy Week Holy Week () commemorates the seven days leading up to Easter. It begins with the commemoration of Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, marks the betrayal of Jesus on Spy Wednesday (Holy Wednes ...
in 1180. The brewing conflict in France that followed the accession of King Philip II prevented Hugh from leaving his domain. Contemporary chroniclers Ernoul and William of Tyre relate the events differently. According to Ernoul, Sibylla wrote to Baldwin of Ibelin when he was in Saladin's captivity, promising that she would convince her brother to allow their marriage if he could ransom himself, but was persuaded by her mother to marry
Guy of Lusignan Guy of Lusignan ( 1150 – 18 July 1194) was King of Jerusalem, first as husband and co-ruler of Queen Sibylla from 1186 to 1190 then as disputed ruler from 1190 to 1192. He was also Lord of Cyprus from 1192 to 1194. A French Poitevin kni ...
, a Poitevin knight, instead. Historian Bernard Hamilton argues that Ernoul's account, though accepted in older historiography, is biased in favour of the Ibelins. William of Tyre reports that during the Holy Week in 1180, Count Raymond III of Tripoli and Prince
Bohemond III of Antioch Bohemond III of Antioch, also known as Bohemond the Child or the Stammerer (; 1148–1201), was Prince of Antioch from 1163 to 1201. He was the elder son of Constance of Antioch and her first husband, Raymond of Poitiers. Bohemond ascended to the ...
were marching towards Jerusalem to stage a coup against King Baldwin. Hamilton concludes that they intended to force the king to have Sibylla marry Baldwin of Ibelin and to then abdicate, and that the king foiled their plan by arranging her marriage to Guy. Baldwin of Ibelin had never been approved by Sibylla's brother, possibly because
his family ''His Family'' is a novel by Ernest Poole published in 1917 about the life of a New York widower and his three daughters in the 1910s. It received the first Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1918. Plot introduction ''His Family'' tells the story ...
had only recently risen to lordly rank. Another factor was that Saladin had been informed by Raymond and Bohemond's conspiracy to enthrone Baldwin and therefore set Baldwin's ransom to that of a king; a successor with such a debt was not desirable. From 1180, Sibylla held Jaffa and Ascalon with Guy, and had four daughters with him, including Alice and Maria. Their marriage divided the nobility into a faction supporting Guy (Sibylla; the king; their mother, Agnes; their stepfather, Raynald, lord of Sidon; their maternal uncle, Joscelin of Courtenay; and the lord of Oultrejordain,
Raynald of Châtillon Raynald of Châtillon ( 11244 July 1187), also known as Reynald, Reginald, or Renaud, was Prince of Antioch—a crusader states, crusader state in the Middle East—from 1153 to 1160 or 1161, and Lord of Oultrejordain—a Vassals of the Kingdo ...
) and a faction opposing him (Sibylla's paternal kinsmen Bohemond of Antioch and Raymond of Tripoli; Baldwin and Balian of Ibelin; and her stepmother, Maria Komnene). In order to prevent the opposing party from setting up a rival claimant, the king took his mother's advice and, in October 1180, betrothed his half-sister Isabella, Maria's daughter and Balian's stepdaughter, to
Humphrey IV of Toron Humphrey IV of Toron ( 1166 – 1198) was a leading baron in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. He inherited the Lordship of Toron from his grandfather, Humphrey II, in 1179. He was also heir to the Lordship of Oultrejourdan through his mother, Step ...
, stepson of Raynald of Châtillon. From March 1181, both Sibylla and Guy were associated with King Baldwin in public acts.


Disinheritance

Baldwin IV's leprosy progressed quickly; in 1183 he lost his sight and could no longer walk unsupported or use his hands. Having developed a life-threatening fever, the king summoned the High Court in June and made Guy regent. Baldwin retained only the royal title and the city of Jerusalem. Guy proved far too unpopular to be an effective military leader, and gravely insulted the incapacitated king by refusing to exchange Jerusalem for Tyre. Saladin attacked
Kerak Castle Kerak Castle () is a large medieval castle located in al-Karak, Jordan. It is one of the largest castles in the Levant. Construction began in the 1140s, under Pagan the Butler, Pagan and Fulk, King of Jerusalem. The Crusaders called it ''Crac de ...
in late 1183 while the wedding of Sibylla's half-sister Isabella to Humphrey of Toron was celebrated. Baldwin summoned his troops. Not trusting him to efficiently command the army, the king deprived Guy of regency and, effectively, of his place in the line of succession. The succession was then deliberated by the assembled nobility, which included Guy, Agnes, Bohemond of Antioch, Raymond of Tripoli, Raynald of Sidon, and the Ibelin brothers, but not Sibylla's supporters Raynald of Châtillon and Joscelin of Courtenay. Eventually, Agnes's proposal that Sibylla's five-year-old son, Baldwin V, be crowned
co-king A coregency is the situation where a monarchical position (such as prince, princess, king, queen, emperor or empress), normally held by only a single person, is held by two or more. It is to be distinguished from diarchies or duumvirates (su ...
was accepted because his was the next strongest claim after Sibylla's. The coronation took place on 20 November, and the boy received the homage of all the barons except his stepfather. Baldwin IV and his army then relieved the
siege of Kerak The siege of Kerak was conducted by the forces of Ayyubid dynasty, Muslim Sultan Saladin against the Crusades, Crusaders and the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Christian King of Jerusalem, King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem at the Kerak Castle from early Nove ...
. The question of who would rule the kingdom as regent for Baldwin V troubled the disabled king. Sibylla and Guy would have the best claim to regency if Baldwin IV died. Her brother knew that this could only be prevented by having their marriage
annulled Annulment is a legal procedure within secular and religious legal systems for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning almo ...
and discussed the matter with the
Latin patriarch of Jerusalem The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem () is the Latin Catholic ecclesiastical patriarchate in Jerusalem, officially seated in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem is the archbishop of Latin Church Catholics of th ...
,
Heraclius Heraclius (; 11 February 641) was Byzantine emperor from 610 to 641. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the Exarch of Africa, led a revolt against the unpopular emperor Phocas. Heraclius's reign was ...
. Baldwin failed to take into account Sibylla's steadfast devotion to Guy as well as Guy's friendship with Heraclius, who may have warned the count about Baldwin's intentions. Instead of going to Jerusalem with the rest of the army after lifting the siege of Kerak, Guy went straight to
Ascalon Ascalon or Ashkelon was an ancient Near East port city on the Mediterranean coast of the southern Levant of high historical and archaeological significance. Its remains are located in the archaeological site of Tel Ashkelon, within the city limi ...
and sent a message to Sibylla, who joined him there. The annulment could not proceed without their presence, and the couple's refusal to leave Ascalon despite the king's summons frustrated the scheme to separate them. Baldwin next attempted to confiscate Jaffa and Ascalon but only succeeded in revoking Jaffa. On Baldwin IV's deathbed in early 1185, the right to rule the kingdom as regent in the name of Baldwin V, then a sickly child, was offered to the count of Tripoli. Raymond accepted the regency on the condition that the
pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
should, on the advice of the
Holy Roman emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...
and the kings of England and France, decide whether the crown should pass to Sibylla or Isabella in case of Baldwin V's premature death. The High Court accepted the conditions and swore an oath to him in the presence of Baldwin IV. Guardianship of the boy was awarded to his granduncle Joscelin of Courtenay. Raymond's party were determined to prevent Sibylla's accession; they questioned her legitimacy on the basis of the annulment of her parents' marriage and emphasized that her half-sister, Isabella, was born to a reigning king. The latter argument, resting on the Byzantine idea of being "
born in the purple Traditionally, born in the purple (sometimes "born to the purple") was a category of members of royal families born during the reign of their parent. This notion was later loosely expanded to include all children born of prominent or high-rankin ...
", may have come from Isabella's Byzantine mother, Maria Komnene. Baldwin IV died in March 1185 or before 16 May 1185 at the latest, when Sibylla's son, Baldwin V, is recorded as the sole king. Baldwin V's paternal grandfather, Marquis
William V of Montferrat William V of Montferrat (occ./piem. ''Guilhem'', it. ''Guglielmo'') ( 1115 – 1191) also known regnally as William III of Montferrat while also referred to as William the Old or William the Elder, in order to distinguish him from his eldest ...
, arrived in Jerusalem to safeguard the young king's rights.


Reign


Accession

Sibylla's son died in
Acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...
in August 1186. Sibylla's mother had died by then too. Raymond summoned the High Court to
Nablus Nablus ( ; , ) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 156,906. Located between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a ...
. It was attended by Sibylla's half-sister, Isabella; Isabella's husband, Humphrey, and her stepfamily, the Ibelins; and likely by Raymond's stepsons,
Hugh Hugh is the English-language variant of the masculine given name , itself the Old French variant of '' Hugo (name)">Hugo'', a short form of Continental Germanic Germanic name">given names beginning in the element "mind, spirit" (Old English ). ...
,
William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...
,
Ralph Ralph (pronounced or ) is a male name of English origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Old High German ''Radulf'', cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms are: * Ra ...
, and Odo of Saint Omer. Contemporaries believed that Raymond intended to claim the throne for himself. Meanwhile, Sibylla's uncle Joscelin of Courtenay took possession of Acre and
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
in her name. Sibylla hurried to Jerusalem to attend her son's funeral. She and Guy garrisoned the city with their strong armed escort. The count of Tripoli underestimated the support for Sibylla. The lord of Oultrejordain and her first husband's father, the marquess of Montferrat, came to Sibylla's side. She was also backed by the patriarch and the Master of the Knights Templar, Gerard of Ridefort, who both resided in Jerusalem, as well as by the
constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...
, Guy's brother Aimery; the
chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...
, Peter of Lydda; and the seneschal, her uncle Joscelin. The nobility and clergy assembled in Jerusalem wished to settle the succession immediately. They concurred that Sibylla had the best claim, but disagreed on whether Guy should become king alongside her. In the end, Sibylla's supporters required her to leave Guy in return for their recognition of her rights. Sibylla acquiesced on three conditions: the
legitimisation Legitimation, legitimization ( US), or legitimisation ( UK) is the act of providing legitimacy. Legitimation in the social sciences refers to the process whereby an act, process, or ideology becomes legitimate by its attachment to norms and val ...
of her daughters by Guy, Guy's retention of Jaffa and Ascalon, and the freedom to choose a new husband as she saw fit. The conditions were accepted.


Coronation

On the advice of Heraclius and Gerard, Sibylla sent an invitation to the nobles at Nablus to attend her coronation. Possibly in an attempt to appease Raymond and his party, Guy was not mentioned in it; Sibylla proclaimed that the kingdom had passed to her by right of inheritance. They nevertheless refused to attend, arguing that doing so would violate the oaths taken at Baldwin IV's deathbed, and went so far as to send a delegation of monks to forbid the coronation. The master of the Knights Hospitaller, Roger des Moulins, also declined to be present, more likely due to the oath than out of any opposition to Sibylla. He was nevertheless persuaded to surrender his key to the chest containing
regalia Regalia ( ) is the set of emblems, symbols, or paraphernalia indicative of royal status, as well as rights, prerogatives and privileges enjoyed by a sovereign, regardless of title. The word originally referred to the elaborate formal dress and ...
. The city gates were barred ahead of the coronation to prevent disruption by the opposing party, and instead of by the attendees, Sibylla was acclaimed queen by the citizens of Jerusalem at the urging of Raynald of Châtillon. As was traditional, the coronation was held at the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also known as the Church of the Resurrection, is a fourth-century church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The church is the seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchat ...
, likely in mid-September. After crowning her, the patriarch gave a second crown to Sibylla and asked her to choose a new consort. She astonished the attendees by calling forth Guy and placing the crown on his head. Having agreed that she should choose a husband after setting Guy aside, the assembled noblemen could raise no objection to her choice. Upon hearing about this turn of events, Raymond proposed crowning Isabella and Humphrey as rival monarchs, but Humphrey sneaked out of Nablus at night and rode to Jerusalem. Upon arrival, he demanded an audience with the queen, who agreed after initial reluctance. He swore fealty to her, and she took him to see Guy, to whom he paid homage. Roger des Moulins and Heraclius mediated peace, and all the barons except Raymond of Tripoli and Baldwin of Ibelin came to Jerusalem to submit.


Fall of Jerusalem

Sibylla was well-positioned to wield power because Guy's authority was entirely dependent on her. She was associated with her husband in public acts in the first months of their reign, but this was cut short by Saladin's invasion. In an act of continued defiance, Raymond had retired to his fief of Galilee, allied with Saladin, and garrisoned
Tiberias Tiberias ( ; , ; ) is a city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Four Holy Cities, along with Jerusalem, Heb ...
with Muslim troops. The sultan attacked the kingdom on 26 April 1187. After Muslim troops annihilated the combined armies of the Templars and the Hospitallers at Cresson near
Nazareth Nazareth is the largest Cities in Israel, city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. In its population was . Known as "the Arab capital of Israel", Nazareth serves as a cultural, political, religious, economic and ...
on 1 May, Raymond was forced by his own vassals to submit to Guy. Though now unified, the kingdom had been critically weakened by the defeat at Cresson. The Christian army led by Guy suffered a crushing defeat at the Horns of Hattin on 4 July. The king was taken prisoner; Raynald was executed; and Raymond died of an illness in Tripoli in September. At the time of King Guy's defeat and imprisonment at Hattin, Queen Sibylla was in Jerusalem. The queen went to Ascalon with her daughters to defend the city and only surrendered it to Saladin in return for Guy's release, but the sultan nevertheless kept him imprisoned. In September, Saladin besieged Jerusalem. The queen commanded the defence with the assistance of Patriarch Heraclius and Balian of Ibelin, but intense bombardment forced them to surrender. Saladin allowed the defeated to ransom themselves, and Sibylla was further permitted to visit Guy in Nablus while she travelled to
Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...
. She was apparently prevented from embarking there for Europe when her ship was seized by
Conrad of Montferrat Conrad of Montferrat (Italian language, Italian: ''Corrado del Monferrato''; Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ''Conrà ëd Monfrà'') (c. 1146 – 28 April 1192) was a nobleman, one of the major participants in the Third Crusade. He was the '' ...
, her first husband's brother who had taken up the defence of Tyre. Sibylla instead joined her stepmother, Queen Maria, in Tripoli. In the months following the Battle of Hattin, all of the kingdom except Tyre fell to Saladin. Sibylla repeatedly pleaded with Saladin for Guy's release, and the sultan granted her request in July 1188. The couple reunited on the island of
Arwad Arwad (; ), the classical antiquity, classical Aradus, is a town in Syria on an eponymous List of islands of Syria, island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative center of the Arwad nahiyah, Subdistrict (''nahiyah''), of which it is ...
near
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 hi ...
, from where they went north to Antioch and then back south to Tripoli, gathering an army along the way. They marched to Tyre in April 1189. The city's defender, Conrad, refused to allow the king and queen into the city, forcing them to spend months outside its walls. Conrad posited that Guy had forfeited the kingdom at Hattin and that Tyre was being held in trust for the Holy Roman emperor and the kings of England and France, who would decide to whom the government should be assigned.


Death

The
Third Crusade The Third Crusade (1189–1192) was an attempt led by King Philip II of France, King Richard I of England and Emperor Frederick Barbarossa to reconquer the Holy Land following the capture of Jerusalem by the Ayyubid sultan Saladin in 1187. F ...
was launched in 1189, and Sibylla accompanied Guy to the siege of Acre along with Humphrey, Isabella, Maria, and Balian. An epidemic struck the crusaders' camp in 1190. Sibylla died on 25 July, a few days after her daughters Alice and Maria. It is not clear whether the other two daughters had died earlier or at the same time. The ''Itinerarium'' recorded accusations of foul play against Guy, but in truth, their deaths deprived Guy of any right to the throne. Sibylla's heir was her half-sister Isabella I.


Assessment

Historian Bernard Hamilton disagrees with Ernoul's characterization of Sibylla as fickle, foolish, and sentimental, arguing that the portrayal "bears little relation to the known facts". Influenced by the prevailing medieval perception of ideal queenship, Sibylla's contemporaries and near-contemporaneous chroniclers were interested more in her relationship with Guy than in her military activity. Standing by her husband won her approval of her contemporaries;
Roger of Wendover Roger of Wendover (died 6 May 1236), probably a native of Wendover in Buckinghamshire, was an English chronicler of the 13th century. At an uncertain date he became a monk at St Albans Abbey; afterwards he was appointed prior of the cell ...
described her as: Resourcefulness and loyalty remain Sibylla's chief traits in modern historiography, which historian Helen J. Nicholson attributes to the distortion of her image by contemporary gender ideals.


Popular culture

* '' Kingdom of Heaven'' –
Eva Green Eva Gaëlle Green (; ; born ) is a French British-based actress, known for appearing in blockbuster and independent films, in which she often portrays eccentric, villainous, and complex characters. The daughter of actress Marlène Jobert, she ...
portrayed Sibylla as an orientalized princess who loved
Balian of Ibelin Balian of Ibelin (; ), also known as Barisan the Younger, was a Crusades, crusader noble of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century. He was Vassals of the Kingdom of Jerusalem#Lordship of Ibelin, Lord of Ibelin from 1170 to 1193. As the ...
rather than Guy. * ''
Kudüs Fatihi Selahaddin Eyyubi '' Fatihi Selahaddin Eyyubi'' ( English: ''Saladin: The Conqueror of Jerusalem'') is a Turkish television series produced by Turkey's Akli Films and Pakistan's Ansari and Shah Films. The series is based on the life of Saladin, the founder of A ...
'' - Gülper Özdemir portrayed Sibylla, who hated Guy and loved Balian.


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * * * * , * * * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Sibylla, Queen Of Jerusalem 1160s births Year of birth uncertain 1190 deaths 12th-century monarchs of Jerusalem Counts of Jaffa and Ascalon 12th-century French nobility Queens regnant of Jerusalem Women in 12th-century warfare 12th-century queens regnant Women in war in West Asia Infectious disease deaths in Israel