Guy of Lusignan
King of Jerusalem blamed for the kingdom's fall to Saladin.
Guy of Lusignan was a Frankish knight from Poitou who ended up as king of Jerusalem, first through his marriage to Queen Sibylla, with whom he ruled jointly from 1186 to 1190, and then as a contested king until 1192. He also ruled Cyprus from 1192 until his death in 1194. The nobles of Jerusalem strongly disliked him, and many hold him responsible for the kingdom’s loss to Saladin.
Born around 1150, Guy was the youngest son of Hugh VIII of Lusignan and Burgundia of Rancon. His family held lands in Poitou, part of King Henry II of England’s territories in France. Both the Lusignans and the Rancons had a long crusading tradition: Guy’s great-grandfather Hugh VI fought at the Battle of Ramla in 1102, his grandfather Hugh VII and maternal uncle Geoffrey the Poitevin joined the Second Crusade, and his father died in Muslim captivity after the Battle of Harim in the 1160s. In 1168, Guy and his brothers ambushed and killed Patrick, Earl of Salisbury, who was escorting Eleanor of Aquitaine. They captured William the Marshal, and Eleanor paid for his release. The brothers were then banished from Poitou.
Guy arrived in Jerusalem sometime between 1173 and 1180, possibly as a pilgrim or crusader, or with French crusaders in 1179. His older brother Aimery had already married into the powerful Ibelin family and gained the support of King Baldwin IV and his mother Agnes of Courtenay, becoming constable of the kingdom. Aimery’s success likely helped Guy’s own rise. Because King Baldwin had leprosy and was not expected to live long, the succession was uncertain.
In Holy Week of 1180, Raymond III of Tripoli and Bohemond III of Antioch prepared to invade Jerusalem. Historians think they wanted to force Baldwin to have his sister Sibylla marry Baldwin of Ibelin, then abdicate, removing Agnes from power and putting a local noble on the throne. To stop this, Guy and Sibylla were hastily married at Easter. The wedding was rushed, canonically invalid, and lacked public notice. From 1180, Guy held Jaffa and Ascalon with Sibylla, and they had four daughters. The marriage split the nobles: one faction backed Guy, mostly Sibylla’s maternal relatives; the other opposed him, mostly her paternal kin. To block a rival claimant, Baldwin followed his mother’s advice and betrothed his half-sister Isabella to Humphrey IV of Toron in October 1180. By March 1181, Guy and Sibylla were appearin
- born
- c. 1150
- died
- 1194
- field
- Monarchy, Crusades
- nationality
- Frankish Poitevin
- known_for
- King of Jerusalem, lord of Cyprus, defeat at the Battle of Hattin
Lore & Background
Guy was the youngest son of Hugh VIII of Lusignan. After killing Patrick, 1st Earl of Salisbury, in a failed attempt to kidnap Eleanor of Aquitaine, he was banished from Poitou. He arrived in the Holy Land at an unknown date between 1173 and 1180, and was hastily married to Sibylla, sister of King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, in 1180 to prevent a political coup. As Baldwin's leprosy worsened, he appointed Guy regent in 1183, but Guy proved unpopular and incompetent, and Baldwin resumed power later that year, stripping Guy of his inheritance and naming Baldwin V as co-king.
Reader's Guide
Guy of Lusignan's reign is historically significant primarily for the catastrophic loss of Jerusalem to Saladin. His unpopularity among the kingdom's nobles and his perceived incompetence as a leader, particularly during the Battle of Hattin in July 1187 where he was captured, are widely cited as key factors in the kingdom's collapse. After his release, his disputed claim to the throne led to a bitter conflict with Conrad of Montferrat, which was only resolved when Richard I of England compensated Guy with the lordship of Cyprus. His legacy is thus one of failure and division, marking the end of the first Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Did You Know?
- Guy was hastily married to Sibylla in 1180 to prevent a political coup by Raymond III of Tripoli and Bohemond III of Antioch.
- He was captured at the Battle of Hattin in July 1187 and imprisoned in Damascus for a year.
- After being denied entry to Tyre by Conrad of Montferrat, Guy besieged Acre in 1189, which became a rallying point for the Third Crusade.
- The Assassins killed Conrad of Montferrat days after his election as king in 1192.
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