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The Kingdom of Jerusalem was founded in 1099 when Godfrey of Bouillon took the title Advocatus Sancti Sepulchri and was crowned in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. His brother Baldwin I of Jerusalem was the first to use the title "king" and the first to be crowned in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem itself.
The kingship of Jerusalem was partially elected and partially hereditary. During the height of the kingdom in the mid-12th century there was a royal family and a relatively clear line of succession. Nevertheless the king was elected, or at least recognized, by the Haute Cour. In the Haute Cour the king was considered primus inter pares, and in his absence his duties were performed by his seneschal.
The royal palace was centred on the Citadel, centred on the Tower of David . The king personally held several fiefs incorporated into the royal domain (these varied from king to king). He was also responsible for leading the kingdom into battle, although this duty could be passed to the constable. While contemporary European states were gradually moving towards centralized monarchies, the king of Jerusalem was continually losing power to the strongest of his barons. This was partially due to the young age of many of the kings, and the frequency of regents from the ranks of the nobles.
After the fall of Jerusalem in 1187, the Kingdom was moved to Acre, where it remained until 1291. Even in this period the kingship was often simply a nominal position, held by a European ruler who never lived in Acre. For some of the last hundred years of the kingdom, the kingship was held simultaneously by the kings of Cyprus.
| King/Queen | Reigned | Regent |
|---|---|---|
| Godfrey of Bouillon (Protector of the Holy Sepulchre) | 1099 - 1100 | |
| Baldwin I | 1100 - 1118Events Knights Templar founded Baldwin of Le Bourg succeeds his cousin Baldwin I as king of Jerusalem John II Comnenus succeeds Alexius I as Byzantine emperor Gelasius II succeeds Paschal II as pope Births December 21 Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbu | |
| Baldwin IIBaldwin of Bourcq was the cousin of Godfrey of Bouillon and Baldwin of Boulogne. He was one of the major knights who set out on the First Crusade. Baldwin of Boulogne, the first Count of Edessa, appointed Baldwin of Bourcq count when the former became kin | 1118Events Knights Templar founded Baldwin of Le Bourg succeeds his cousin Baldwin I as king of Jerusalem John II Comnenus succeeds Alexius I as Byzantine emperor Gelasius II succeeds Paschal II as pope Births December 21 Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbu - 1131Events May 9 Tintern Abbey is founded. Ramon Berenguer IV becomes Count of Barcelona. Alberich becomes Archdeacon of Reims. Fulk of Anjou and Melisende become King and Queen of Jerusalem. Births Valdemar I, King of Denmark Henry the Lion, Welf duke of Sax | |
| FulkFulk of Anjou king of Jerusalem ( 1092- 1143), was the son of Fulk IV, count of Anjou, and his wife Bertrada (who ultimately deserted her husband and became the mistress of Philip I of France). He became count of Anjou (as Fulk V) in 1109. He was original and Melisende | 1131 - 1143 | |
| Baldwin III | 1143 - 1162 | Melisende (Regent, 1143- 1152) |
| Amalric I | 1162 - 1174 | |
| Baldwin IV | 1174 - 1185 | Raymond III of Tripoli (Regent, 1174- 1177) |
| Baldwin V | 1185 - 1186 | Raymond III of Tripoli (Regent, 1185- 1186) |
| Guy of Lusignan | 1186 - 1192 | |
| With Sibylla | 1186 - 1190 | |
| Jerusalem lost in 1187 - remaining kings ruled over a narrow coastal strip | ||
| Isabella | 1192 - 1205 | |
| With Conrad of Montferrat | 1192 | |
| With Henry II of Champagne | 1192 - 1197 | |
| With Amalric II | 1198 - 1205) | |
| Maria of Montferrat | 1205 - 1212 | John of Ibelin (Regent, 1205 - 1210) |
| John of Brienne | 1210 - 1212 | |
| Yolande | 1212 - 1228 | John of Brienne (Regent 1212- 1225) |
| Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor | 1225 - 1228 | |
| Conrad of Hohenstaufen | 1228 - 1254 | Frederick II (Regent, 1228 - 1243) Queen Alice of Cyprus (Regent, 1243 - 1246) King Henry I of Cyprus (Regent, 1246 - 1253) Queen Plaisance of Cyprus (Regent, 1253 - 1254) |
| Conradin | 1254 - 1268 | Queen Plaisance of Cyprus (Regent, 1254 - 1261 Princess Isabella of Antioch (Regent, 1261 - 1264) King Hugh III of Cyprus (Regent, 1264 - 1268) |
| Hugh I | 1268 - 1284 (Opposed by Charles of Anjou) | |
| Charles of Anjou | 1277 - 1285 (Opposed by John II) | |
| John II | 1284 - 1285 | |
| Henry II | 1285 - 1291 | |
| Acre captured in 1291; kingdom ends. | ||