House of Lusignan

Aimery, named Amalric by outdated scholarship, married Eschiva, the daughter of Baldwin of Ibelin, and entered court circles.

Aimery had also obtained the patronage of Agnes of Courtenay (the divorced mother of King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem and the wife of Reginald of Sidon), who held the county of Jaffa and Ascalon.

It is more likely that his promotions were aimed at weaning him away from the political orbit of the Ibelin family, who were associated with Raymond III of Tripoli, the cousin of King Amalric of Jerusalem and a former bailli or regent.

Older accounts, derived from William of Tyre and Ernoul, claim that Agnes of Courtenay was concerned that her political rivals, headed by Raymond of Tripoli, intended to exercise more control by forcing her daughter, the widowed Sibylla (sister and heir presumptive to King Baldwin IV) to marry a man of their choosing.

Upon his release, Guy and Sibylla sought refuge in Tyre, but were denied entry by rival Conrad of Montferrat, the husband of Isabella.

"[citation needed] As the Lusignan allies managed to detain both Arthur and Eleanor, John surprised their unprepared forces at the castle of Mirebeau in July 1202, and took Hugh prisoner with 200 of his troops.

The Lusignans' diplomatic rebellion resulted in the loss to England of half its territory in France, soon incorporated into his kingdom by Philip Augustus.

In 1247, Guilliame de Lusignan, a younger son of Hugh X and Isabella, moved from France to England along with two of his brothers at the request of their half-brother King Henry III.

As a result he was unpopular and was heavily involved in the Second Barons' War, supporting the King and Prince Edward against the rebels led by Simon de Montfort.

He was appointed guardian of Scotland in 1306, but with the accession of King Edward II to the throne and the consequent rise of his favourite Piers Gaveston to power, his influence declined and he became prominent among the discontented nobles.

In 1312, after the Earl of Warwick betrayed him by executing the captured Gaveston, Aymer de Valence left the allied lords and joined the King.

[7] His uncle arranged the early coronation in a political maneuver intended to outflank Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor expected attempt to seize power.

He had the "Haute Cour" keep written records for the first time in their history, and developed them from a simple advisory council into a true court that tried criminals.

In 1300, the Lusignans, led by Amalric, Lord of Tyre entered into combined military operations with the Mongols under Ghazan to retake the Holy Land, but without success.

In 1307 Pope Clement, under pressure from king Philip IV of France ordered that all Templars be arrested and their properties seized, leaving Amalric no choice but to comply.

He was initially reluctant as the regent, Oshin of Corycos, was rumored to have poisoned the previous king, and killed Guy's mother and two brothers.

He had a strong interest in art, literature and philosophy, hosting regular philosophical discussions at his summer villa in Lapithos and commissioned Genealogia deorum gentilium by the Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio.

Peter believed that since Cyprus was the last Christian stronghold in the mideast it was his duty to fight the Muslims, and raided the coastal ports of the Asia Minor.

Peter united Knights of Saint John from Rhodes, Papal armies, and Mediterranean pirates to defeat the Muslim fleets before they could land.

After another defeat at Antalya the remaining emirs in the region offered him tribute, and he accepted, sending the flags, coats of arms, and other symbols of his house to be raised in different cities.

While Peter was attempting to launch another crusade and gaining recognition, his brother Prince John ruled as vice-king in Cyprus and faced many challenges.

In 1375, Armenia was invaded by the Mameluks and Leon was forced to surrender, putting an end to the last fully independent Armenian entity of the Middle Ages after three centuries of sovereignty.

[3] Leon and his family were held captive in Cairo for several years, until King John I of Castile ransomed him and made him Lord of Madrid.

In 1403, the governor of Genoa, de Mengre, had talks with Janus' representative Giorgio Billi which ended in an agreement by which the cities remained under Genoese hands.

Later, he forced the Cypriot people to pay special taxes to assemble an army and siege machines, and he besieged Famagusta for three years but in vain, since there was access from the sea to the city.

Led by Tangriver Mohamed and Inal el Kakimi, their army contained over 3,000 men and included Mamliks, Turks and Arabs and arrived at the island with 180 ships near Avdimou.

He asked in vain for help from the forces in Europe: the Genoese were his enemies, and the Venetians and others did not want to destroy commercial relations with the sultan.

That disaster, together with the previous raids, the war operations of Janus against Genoese, the epidemics and the invasion of locusts, caused the Cypriot serfs to revolt, as they suffered from living in conditions of utter poverty.

The rebels' leader was arrested and, after terrible tortures, was executed in Nicosia on 12 May 1427, the same day that King Janus arrived in Paphos from Cairo.

[14] After the death of Guy/Kalfa Narbei in 1905, his wife Marie's lover became the alleged Grand Master and called himself Comte d'Alby de Gratigny.

Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry (1412/16) , March: the Château de Lusignan
Arms of the lords of Lusignan
The lion rampant added to the original arms of Lusignan was an augmentation of honour granted by Richard the Lionheart [ 5 ] during the Third Crusade (1189–92)
Map of the Crusader States in 1165. At the height of their power, the Lusignans ruled the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Principality of Antioch, and the County of Tripoli
Battle of Hattin in which Guy de Lusignan was captured by Saladin, and Jerusalem was lost. From a copy of the Passages d’outremer , c.1490.
Guy de Lusignan and Saladin . Saladin en Guy de Lusignan , 1625 painting by Jan Lievens .
Lusignan coat of arms Detail crests above the gateway to Kyrenia Castle
Coat of Arms of Armenia
Coat of Arms of Armenia
Basin attributed to a commission by Hugh IV of Cyprus . An inscription in Arabic reads: "Made by the order of Hugh, favoured by God, the one at the vanguard of the elite troops of the Franks, Hugh of the Lusignans". Another inscription in French reads: "Très haut et puissant roi Hugues de Jherusalem et de Chipre que Dieu manteigne." ("Very high and powerful king Hugh of Jerusalem and Cyprus, may God maintain him"). 14th century, Egypt or Syria. Louvre Museum [ 8 ]
Constantin III of Armenia on his throne. "Les chevaliers de Saint-Jean-de-Jerusalem rétablissant la religion en Arménie", 1844 painting by Henri Delaborde .
The assassination of Peter . "Assassinat Pierre de Lusignan, roi de Chypre", 15th-century painting by Jean Froissart.
Tomb of Leo V , last king of Armenia, in the Couvent des Célestins , Paris . It was desecrated in the French Revolution and a new one was built in the Basilique Saint-Denis . [ 9 ]
After the fall of Armenian Cilicia, Lusignan-controlled Cyprus was the only Christian state in the Middle East.
Melusine 's secret is discovered. "Die schöne Melusine", 1844 painting by Julius Hübner .