Aimery of Cyprus
1154 CE to 1205 CE
Aimery of Lusignan (Latin: Aimericus; before 1155 – 1 April 1205), erroneously referred to as Amalric or Amaury in earlier scholarship, is the first King of Cyprus from 1196 to 1205.
He is also King of Jerusalem by virtue of being the husband of the queen, Isabella I of Jerusalem, from 1197 to 1205.
He is the younger son of Hugh VIII of Lusignan, a nobleman in Poitou.
After participating in a rebellion against Henry II of England in 1168, he goes to the Holy Land and settles in the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
His marriage to Eschiva of Ibelin (whose father, Baldwin of Ibelin is an influential nobleman) strengthenshis position in the kingdom.
His younger brother, Guy of Lusignan, marries Sibylla, the sister of and heir to Baldwin IV of Jerusalem.
Baldwin makes Aimery Constable of Jerusalem around 1180.
He was one of the commanders of the Christian army in the Battle of Hattin, which ends with decisive defeat at the hands of the army of Saladin, the Ayyubid sultan of Egypt and Syria, on July 4, 1187.
Aimery supports is brother, Guy, even after Guy lose his claim to the Kingdom of Jerusalem according to most barons of the realm, because of the death of Sibylla and their two daughters.
The new king of Jerusalem, Henry of Champagne, arrests him for a short period.
After his release, he retires to Jaffa, which is the fief of his elder brother, Geoffrey of Lusignan, who has left the Holy Land.
After Guy dies in May 1194, his vassals in Cyprus elect Aimery as their lord.
He acceptsthe suzerainty of the Holy Roman Emperor, Henry VI.
With the emperor's authorization, Aimery is crowned King of Cyprus in September 1197.
He soon marries Henry of Champagne's widow, Isabella I of Jerusalem.
He and his wife are crowned king and queen of Jerusalem in January 1198.
He signs a truce with Al-Adil I, the Ayyubid sultan of Egypt, which secures the Christian possession of the coastline from Acre to Antioch.
His rule is a period of peace and stability in both of his realms.
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