Henry I of Cyprus, nicknamed the Fat (french: Henri de Lusignan; 3 May 1217 – 18 January 1253 at
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
) was
King of Cyprus from 1218 to 1253. He was the son of
Hugh I of Cyprus
Hugh I (french: Hugues; gr, Ούγος; 1194/1195 – 10 January 1218) succeeded to the throne of Cyprus on 1 April 1205 underage upon the death of his elderly father Aimery, King of Cyprus and Jerusalem. His mother was Eschiva of Ibelin, heir ...
and
Alice of Champagne
Alice of Champagne (french: Alix; 1193 – 1246) was the queen consort of Cyprus from 1210 to 1218, regent of Cyprus from 1218 to 1223, and of Jerusalem from 1243 to 1246. She was the eldest daughter of Queen Isabella I of Jerusalem and Count He ...
. When his father Hugh I died on January 10, 1218, the 8-month-old Henry became king. His mother was the official
regent
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
, but handed off the actual governing to her uncle, Philip of Ibelin. When Philip died, the effective regency passed to his brother,
John of Ibelin, the Old Lord of Beirut.
Biography
Henry was crowned at the age of 8 at
Santa Sophia,
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
, in 1225.
[Runciman, Steven, ''A History of the Crusades, Volume Three: The Kingdom of Acre and the Later Crusades'', Cambridge University Press, London, 1951, pg. 180] The reason for the early coronation was as a political maneuver by his uncle Philip, who sensed that
Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II (German: ''Friedrich''; Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Jer ...
, was going to attempt to seize power. In 1228 this did occur, as Frederick forced John of Ibelin to hand over the regency to
Amalric Barlais, and the island of Cyprus. However, when Frederick left the island in April, John counter-attacked and regained control, which began the
War of the Lombards. Henry was able to assume control of the kingdom when he came of age at 15, in 1232, and maintained close ties with the
Ibelin family.
Henry himself served as Regent of
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
for
Conrad of Hohenstaufen 1246–1253.
He was married three times; his third wife, whom he married in 1250, was
Plaisance of Antioch, daughter of
Bohemund V of Antioch. They had a son, Hugh.
On his death, Henry was succeeded by his only child, his infant son
Hugh II (b. 1253). If he had not had children, his heirs were his eldest sister's sons Jean de Brienne (b. 1234) and
Hugh of Brienne (b. c. 1240), as well as his younger sister's son Hugh of Antioch, the future
Hugh III of Cyprus
Hugh III (french: Hugues; – 24 March 1284), also called Hugh of Antioch-Lusignan and the Great, was the king of Cyprus from 1267 and king of Jerusalem from 1268. Born into the family of the princes of Antioch, he effectively ruled as regen ...
(b. c. 1235). He was buried at the Church of the
Templars
, colors = White mantle with a red cross
, colors_label = Attire
, march =
, mascot = Two knights riding a single horse
, equipment ...
, at
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
.
Consorts:
#
Alix of Montferrat (1210/1215 –
Kyrenia
Kyrenia ( el, Κερύνεια ; tr, Girne ) is a city on the northern coast of Cyprus, noted for its historic harbour and castle. It is under the ''de facto'' control of Northern Cyprus.
While there is evidence showing that the wider region ...
, December, 1232 – May, 1233, buried at
Santa Sophia,
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
), daughter of Marquis
William VI of Montferrat, by Bertha da Clavesana, married at
Limassol
Limassol (; el, Λεμεσός, Lemesós ; tr, Limasol or ) is a city on the southern coast of Cyprus and capital of the district with the same name. Limassol is the second largest urban area in Cyprus after Nicosia, with an urban populatio ...
in May, 1229, without issue
#
Stephanie of Lampron
Stephanie of Lampron (ca. 1220/1225 – soon after April 1, 1249, buried at Santa Sophia, Nicosia), was a queen consort of Cyprus, wife of Henry I de Lusignan, king of Cyprus. Runciman, Steven (1989). A History of the Crusades, Volume III: The K ...
(ca. 1220/1225 – soon after April 1, 1249, buried at
Santa Sophia,
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
), daughter of Constantine of Lampron, Regent of
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...
, by Stephanie of Barbaron, married at
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
in 1237/1238, without issue
#
Plaisance of Antioch (1235 – September 22/27, 1261), daughter of
Bohemond V,
Prince of Antioch
Prince of Antioch was the title given during the Middle Ages to Norman rulers of the Principality of Antioch, a region surrounding the city of Antioch, now known as Antakya in Turkey. The Princes originally came from the County of Sicily in S ...
and
Count of Tripoli
The count of Tripoli was the ruler of the County of Tripoli, a crusader state from 1102 through 1289. Of the four major crusader states in the Levant, Tripoli was created last.
The history of the counts of Tripoli began with Raymond IV of Toulo ...
, by
Lucienne of Segni, married at
Santa Sophia,
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
, in 1250, and had issue, an only son:
Hugh II of Cyprus
Hugh II of Cyprus (or Hugues II de Lusignan) (June–August, 1252 or 1253 – November or December 5, 1267) was king of Cyprus and, from the age of 5 years, also Regent of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Biography
On January 18, 1253, at the age of tw ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henry 01 Of Cyprus
1217 births
1253 deaths
13th-century Cypriot people
13th-century people of the Kingdom of Jerusalem
13th-century monarchs in the Middle East
13th-century viceregal rulers
Kings of Cyprus
Medieval child rulers
Christians of the Sixth Crusade
Regents of Jerusalem