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 The King of Jerusalem was the supreme ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, a Crusader state founded in Jerusalem by the Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade, when the city was conquered in 1099. Godfrey of Bouillon, the first ruler of ...

from 1268. Born into the family of the princes of Antioch, he effectively ruled as

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 ...

for underage kings Hugh II of Cyprus and Conrad III of Jerusalem for several years. Prevailing over the claims of his cousin Hugh of Brienne, he succeeded both young monarchs upon their deaths and appeared poised to be an effective political and military leader. As the first king of Jerusalem to reside in the kingdom since the 1220s, Hugh tried to restore the royal domain, reassert royal authority over the increasingly independent mainland vassals, and prevent further loss of territory to the Egyptian Mamluks. Marital alliances brought to him steadfast loyalty of the most powerful noble families, the Ibelins and the Montforts, but his efforts on the mainland were doomed to failure by the hostility of the Venetian merchants and the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

. His insular vassals, on the other hand, resented his determination to deploy Cypriot armies in defense of the

Crusader states The Crusader States, also known as Outremer, were four Catholic realms in the Middle East that lasted from 1098 to 1291. These feudal polities were created by the Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade through conquest and political i ...

. In 1275 he failed to establish himself as regent of the County of Tripoli. Most problematically, Hugh's right to the throne of Jerusalem was challenged by his aunt Maria of Antioch, who sold her claim to

Charles I of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and Forcalquier (1246–48, 1256–85) i ...

in 1277. With the support of the Venetians and the Templars, Charles promptly took

Acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial and US customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, of a square mile, 4,840 square ...

, the last city on the mainland that belonged directly to the king. After two unsuccessful attempts to regain Acre, Hugh died in Tyre, a mainland city held by the loyal Montforts. He was succeeded by his son

John I John I may refer to: People * John I (bishop of Jerusalem) * John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople * John of Antioch (died 441) * Pope John I, Pope from 523 to 526 * John I (exarch) (died 615), Exarch of Ravenna * John I ...

Background

Hugh was the son of

Isabella of Cyprus Isabella of Cyprus (died in 1264) was a Cypriotic princess. She was the regent of Kingdom of Jerusalem on behalf of her nephew King Hugh II in 1263-1264. Family Isabella was the daughter of Hugh I, king of Cyprus, and Alice of Champagne, regen ...

and

Henry of Antioch Henry of Antioch (french: Henri; 1217-27 June 1276) was a nobleman from the Latin East who governed the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1263 until 1264. He was made bailli by his wife, Isabella of Cyprus, who exercised regency on behalf of their nephew ...

, who married 1233. Isabella was the sister of King Henry I of Cyprus, while Hugh's father was the youngest son of Prince Bohemond IV of Antioch. Hugh's maternal grandmother,

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 ...

, was an unsuccessful claimant to the

Kingdom of Jerusalem The Kingdom of Jerusalem ( la, Regnum Hierosolymitanum; fro, Roiaume de Jherusalem), officially known as the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem or the Frankish Kingdom of Palestine,Example (title of works): was a Crusader state that was establish ...

. As the

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...

to her grandnephew King

Conrad II of Jerusalem Conrad (25 April 1228 – 21 May 1254), a member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, was the only son of Emperor Frederick II from his second marriage with Queen Isabella II of Jerusalem. He inherited the title of King of Jerusalem (as Conrad II) up ...

, she was selected to rule the kingdom as

in 1243. She died in 1246 and the regency passed to her son, Henry I of Cyprus, passing over the claim of her half-sister Melisende of Cyprus. King Henry ruled the mainland kingdom as regent until his death in 1253. Hugh's mother brought him up along with his cousin Hugh of Brienne, son of her deceased older sister, Maria. He married Isabella, a member of the House of Ibelin, who were the leading

nobility of the Kingdom of Jerusalem The Crusader state of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, created in 1099, was divided into a number of smaller seigneuries. According to the 13th-century jurist John of Ibelin, the four highest crown vassals (referred to as barons) in the kingdom proper ...

. The marriage, or at least a betrothal, took place in 1255, when a dispensation was issued. Hugh was handsome and charming, but disadvantaged by his bad temper and tactlessness.

Regency

Hugh's mother, Isabella, was the aunt of the young King Hugh II of Cyprus and his closest relative of royal blood. The king's mother, Plaisance of Antioch, ruled on his behalf as regent until her death in 1261. Isabella then stood to assume the regency as Hugh II's heir presumptive. She ceded the regency to her son, Hugh of Antioch, who proved to be an able ruler. As Hugh II was also heir presumptive to King Conrad III of Jerusalem, who lived in Europe, he was entitled to govern the Kingdom of Jerusalem as regent. But since he was a minor, that regency needed to be exercised by his next of kin, and Isabella accepted that role in 1263. Isabella died in 1264, and a dispute arose between Hugh of Brienne and Hugh of Antioch. The former claimed that he should now exercise the regency in Jerusalem because his mother was older than Hugh of Antioch's. But, as regent of Cyprus, Hugh of Antioch could contribute more militarily to the dwindling mainland kingdom, and was better connected, being the first cousin of Prince

Bohemond VI of Antioch Bohemond VI (–1275), also known as the Fair, was the prince of Antioch and count of Tripoli from 1251 until his death. He ruled while Antioch was caught between the warring Mongol Empire and Mamluk Sultanate. In 1268 Antioch was captured by t ...

as well as being married into the powerful Ibelin family. The High Court of Jerusalem ruled that, since the contenders were equally close relatives of the young king, the elder of them should have priority, and that was Hugh of Antioch. Being chosen as regent effectively marked Hugh of Antioch as the heir presumptive of Hugh II. As regent, Hugh considered it his duty to defend the

. He was the first ruler of Cyprus in over a decade to deploy Cypriot army in defense of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. His army, however, came too late to prevent the

Mamluk Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning " slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') ...

ruler of Egypt,

Baibars Al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Bunduqdari ( ar, الملك الظاهر ركن الدين بيبرس البندقداري, ''al-Malik al-Ẓāhir Rukn al-Dīn Baybars al-Bunduqdārī'') (1223/1228 – 1 July 1277), of Turkic Kipchak ...

, from conquering

Caesarea Maritima Caesarea Maritima (; Greek: ''Parálios Kaisáreia''), formerly Strato's Tower, also known as Caesarea Palestinae, was an ancient city in the Sharon plain on the coast of the Mediterranean, now in ruins and included in an Israeli national pa ...

, Arsur,

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

Safed Safed (known in Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), is a city in the Northern District of Israel. Located at an elev ...

, Toron, and Chastel Neuf. Hugh likely focused on reinforcing the defence of

, the sole remaining royal city on the mainland.

Reign

Accessions

14-year-old King Hugh II died in December 1267, not having reached

majority A majority, also called a simple majority or absolute majority to distinguish it from related terms, is more than half of the total.Dictionary definitions of ''majority'' aMerriam-Websterking of Cyprus by his cousin and regent Hugh of Antioch (Hugh III). Hugh III's coronation took place in the Cathedral of Saint Sophia in

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 ...

on 25 December 1267. In May 1268 the new king sailed to Acre to be recognized as the formal regent, and thus heir presumptive, of Conrad III of Jerusalem. The High Court was prepared to accept him, but he was surprised to find his claim challenged by his aunt Maria of Antioch. She insisted that she had the better claim to regency due to being a nearer relative of Conrad; whereas Hugh was a great-grandchild of their common ancestor, Queen

Isabella I of Jerusalem Isabella I (1172 – 5 April 1205) was reigning Queen of Jerusalem from 1190 to her death. She was the daughter of Amalric I of Jerusalem and his second wife Maria Comnena, a Byzantine princess. Her half-brother, Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, eng ...

, Maria was a grandchild. Maria's case was legally stronger and, unlike Hugh, she had come prepared for debate. Hugh, however, was a more desirable choice, as he was a man, experienced in government, and with troops at disposal. Earlier in 1268 Baibars had conquered

Jaffa Jaffa, in Hebrew Yafo ( he, יָפוֹ, ) and in Arabic Yafa ( ar, يَافَا) and also called Japho or Joppa, the southern and oldest part of Tel Aviv-Yafo, is an ancient port city in Israel. Jaffa is known for its association with the b ...

Beaufort Beaufort may refer to: People and titles * Beaufort (surname) * House of Beaufort, English nobility * Duke of Beaufort (England), a title in the peerage of England * Duke of Beaufort (France), a title in the French nobility Places Polar regions * ...

, and

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

, which prompted the High Court to rule in Hugh's favour. On 29 October 1268, Conrad was executed in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...

by the orders of

, who had conquered Conrad's

Kingdom of Sicily The Kingdom of Sicily ( la, Regnum Siciliae; it, Regno di Sicilia; scn, Regnu di Sicilia) was a state that existed in the south of the Italian Peninsula and for a time the region of Ifriqiya from its founding by Roger II of Sicily in 1130 un ...

. Hugh thus became

too. Instead of appointing a bailli to rule his new kingdom on his behalf, Hugh divided his time between Cyprus and Acre. For the first time since the 1220s the mainland kingdom had a resident monarch.

Policy

The barons of the Kingdom of Jerusalem had grown independent from royal authority during the reigns of the absentee kings. Hugh tried to improve the system of government, introducing an inner council and the use of a

privy seal A privy seal refers to the personal seal of a reigning monarch, used for the purpose of authenticating official documents of a much more personal nature. This is in contrast with that of a great seal, which is used for documents of greater impor ...

, both likely imports from Cyprus. The regents had alienated much of the royal domain through legally tenuous grants, which became invalid on Hugh's accession. The most notable cases were the grants of the lordships of Arsur to the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headq ...

Sidon Sidon ( ; he, צִידוֹן, ''Ṣīḏōn'') known locally as Sayda or Saida ( ar, صيدا ''Ṣaydā''), is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate, of which it is the capital, on the Mediterranean coast. ...

to the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

, and Tyre to Philip of Montfort. Hugh refused to accept this as a ''

fait accompli Many words in the English vocabulary are of French origin, most coming from the Anglo-Norman spoken by the upper classes in England for several hundred years after the Norman Conquest, before the language settled into what became Modern Engl ...

'', but was willing to compromise to find solutions. His policy centred on fostering close relations with the Montforts, a powerful family which held the important

city of Tyre Tyre (; ar, صور, translit=Ṣūr; phn, 𐤑𐤓, translit=Ṣūr, Greek ''Tyros'', Τύρος) is a city in Lebanon, one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world, though in medieval times for some centuries by just a tiny pop ...

. With Philip he reached an agreement providing that Hugh's sister,

Margaret Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular through ...

, would marry Philip's son

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

, to whom Philip would cede Tyre, and that Hugh would enfeoff John and his descendants by Margaret with Tyre. The agreement enabled Hugh to be crowned, despite Maria's protests, on 24 September 1269 by the

bishop of Lydda Diocese of Lydda (Lod) is one of the oldest bishoprics of the early Christian Church in the Holy Land. Suppressed under Persian and Arab-Islamic rule, it was revived by the Crusaders and remains a Latin Catholic titular see. History In early ...

in the Cathedral of Tyre, where kings and queens of Jerusalem had been crowned since the loss of the city of Jerusalem in 1187. EdwardICrusadeMap

In June 1271, Acre became exposed when Baibars' conquered the Montfort Castle to its north-east. He immediately made an unsuccessful attempt at raid on Cyprus. At that time, the English prince

Edward Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sax ...

took a small army of about 1,000 men on a a crusade to the Latin East, arriving in Acre on 9 May 1271. Edward was soon disillusioned by the uncooperativeness of the local Christians. Baibars' failed attack on their island had disturbed Cypriot knights, who refused Hugh's summons to serve on the mainland. They argued that the king could not expect them to fight for him outside Cyprus. Edward was called on to arbitrate. Their disobedience was humiliating for Hugh. It was decided that the knights could be commanded to serve abroad for four months each year if led by the king or his son. Edward helped Hugh raid Baibars' territory, and early in 1272 Hugh secured a truce, after which Acre remained at peace until 1291. Edward left on 16 June 1272. The only

lay Lay may refer to: Places *Lay Range, a subrange of mountains in British Columbia, Canada *Lay, Loire, a French commune * Lay (river), France *Lay, Iran, a village * Lay, Kansas, United States, an unincorporated community People * Lay (surname) ...

fief on the mainland other than Tyre was

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

, held by Isabella of Ibelin. Her husband,

Hamo le Strange Hamo le Strange, Heimon Lestrange, Hamo L'Estrange or Hamo Extraneus (died late in 1272 or early 1273) was an English Crusader. His surname means ''the Foreigner''. By marriage to Isabella of Beirut he was Lord of Beirut in the Kingdom of Jerusale ...

, distrusted King Hugh and put her and her fief under Baibar's protection on his deathbed in 1273. As a female vassal, Isabella was legally required to marry one of three candidates presented to her by the king. Wishing to attract a capable knight to the East by offering her hand in marriage, Hugh took Isabella to Cyprus. Baibars demanded that she be returned to Beirut, and as the High Court offered no support, Hugh relented. The king did not resume control over Beirut until long after Baibars died. Despite some successes, in the end Hugh found it impossible to be more than "king of Acre", as Muslim writers called him. Bohemond VI, the last prince of Antioch, died in 1275, leaving two children,

Bohemond VII Bohemond VII (1261 – October 19, 1287) was the count of Tripoli and nominal prince of Antioch from 1275 to his death. The only part left of the once great Principality of Antioch was the port of Latakia. He spent much of his reign at war with the ...

and Lucia. Bohemond VII inherited the County of Tripoli from his father, but he was a minor. King Hugh arrived in Tripoli to claim regency as the closest adult scion of the ruling family. Bohemond VII's mother, Sibylla of Armenia, had already established herself as regent, however, as was her right according to family custom. Hugh found no support in Tripoli. He only won a minor diplomatic victory when he negotiated with Baibars a truce covering

Latakia , coordinates = , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = 11 , elevation_ft = , postal_code_type = , postal_code = , area_code = Country code: 963 City code: 41 , geocode ...

, preserving the last remnant of the

Principality of Antioch The Principality of Antioch was one of the crusader states created during the First Crusade which included parts of modern-day Turkey and Syria. The principality was much smaller than the County of Edessa or the Kingdom of Jerusalem. It exte ...

Baronial opposition

Hugh succeeded in mending the rifts between his lay vassals, the Ibelins and the Montforts, but the merchants of

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

and

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...

were irreconcilable. The Venetians in particular were aggrieved by his preferential treatment of the Genoese. The Templars and the

Teutonic Knights The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians o ...

objected to his own rapprochement with Philip of Montfort, while the commune of Acre resented the renewed royal involvement in its affairs and the favour shown to Tyre. Though he disliked him, the grand master of the Templars, Thomas Berard, never openly challenged Hugh. But William of Beaujeu, elected to succeed Thomas Berard in 1273, proved determined to undermine the king. Hugh's chief problem, however, was the persistence of his aunt Maria in claiming the throne of Jerusalem. Hugh sent procurators to answer her appeal to the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

in 1273, but she was already entertaining the sale of her claim to Charles of Anjou, whose ambition to dominate the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

Hugh had feared since 1269. Charles had the support of William of Beaujeu, his kinsman. As the ruler of Sicily and brother of the celebrated crusader King

Louis IX of France Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), commonly known as Saint Louis or Louis the Saint, was King of France from 1226 to 1270, and the most illustrious of the Direct Capetians. He was crowned in Reims at the age of 12, following the d ...

, he rivalled what Hugh could offer militarily and diplomatically. Charles was also personally hostile to Hugh, encouraging Maria's claims to Jerusalem and Hugh of Brienne's to Cyprus. Indignant at the opposition he faced, Hugh suddenly packed up his belongings and left Acre for good in October 1276. The final straw was the purchase of a village near Acre by the Templars, for which they deliberately did not seek the king's approval and ignored his complaints. The Templars and the Venetians were pleased to see him go, but the decision stunned the Hospitallers, the Teutonic Knights, and the

Latin patriarch of Jerusalem The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem ( la, Patriarchatus Latinus Hierosolymitanus) is the Latin Catholic ecclesiastical patriarchate in Jerusalem, officially seated in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was originally established in 1099, wit ...

, Thomas of Lentino. They sent delegates to Tyre, where the king had retired with the intention to sail to Cyprus, begging him to at least appoint a bailli. It took the intercession of his brother-in-law John of Montfort to make the angry king appoint an administrator, Balian of Ibelin. King Hugh immediately embarked and went to Cyprus, from where he justified his action to

Pope John XXI Pope John XXI ( la, Ioannes XXI; – 20 May 1277), born Pedro Julião ( la, Petrus Iulianus), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 September 1276 to his death on 20 May 1277. Apart from Damasus I (fr ...

The sale of Maria's claim to Charles was concluded, with papal approval, in March 1277. Within weeks Charles's representative

Roger of San Severino Roger of San Severino was the bailiff of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from 1277 to 1282. He was sent to Acre, then the capital of the kingdom, with a small force by the new king Charles I of Anjou, also King of Sicily, to act as regent. Charles, an ...

arrived in Acre to claim government, facing no opposition from Hugh. Roger proclaimed Charles king of Jerusalem and demanded that the barons do

homage Homage (Old English) or Hommage (French) may refer to: History *Homage (feudal) /ˈhɒmɪdʒ/, the medieval oath of allegiance *Commendation ceremony, medieval homage ceremony Arts *Homage (arts) /oʊˈmɑʒ/, an allusion or imitation by one arti ...

to him as Charles's bailli. To preserve a sense of legality, the barons twice asked Hugh to absolve them from their allegiance to him, but he refused to answer. The holders of the most important lordships, John of Tyre and Isabella of Beirut, continued to recognize Hugh as their legitimate king.

Struggles for Acre

Hugh attempted twice to reoccupy Acre but was ultimately unsuccessful. In 1279 he brought a large Cypriot army to Tyre, hoping that a display of strength and bribery would be enough to restore his authority over the city. John of Montfort was on his side, but William of Beaujeu's enduring opposition to Hugh frustrated the plan. Upon returning to Cyprus, he seized the Templars' properties and destroyed their fortifications in reprisal. The Templars complained to the pope, who asked Hugh to restore their property, but he declined. Though restricted since 1277 in his ability to support the mainland against the Mamluks, Hugh may have planned to assist the

Mongols The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...

in their attempted invasion of the Mamluk-held Levant. 1282 saw the recall of Roger of San Severino due to a major uprising on Sicily against Charles, as well as the death of Isabella of Beirut and the consequent passing of her lordship to her sister, Eschiva, whose husband, Humphrey of Montfort, was a close friend of Hugh's. Thus encouraged to try again to retake Acre, Hugh sailed from Cyprus in late July 1283 with his sons Henry and Bohemond. Instead of landing at Acre, Hugh was blown to Beirut, where he was welcomed on 1 August. While his army marched to Tyre, they were ambushed by Muslim raiders, whom the king believed to have been incited by the Templars. Hugh reached Tyre by sea, encountering

bad omen An omen (also called ''portent'') is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change. It was commonly believed in ancient times, and still believed by some today, that omens bring divine messages fr ...

s: his standard fell into the sea, and the cross carried by the assembled clergy accidentally cracked the skull of his Jewish court physician. Hugh waited in vain to be welcomed to Acre. Charles's new bailli in Acre, Odo Poilechien, had just concluded a truce with the Mamluks, and Hugh may have feared their intervention if he attacked. The king lost his most promising son, Bohemond, on 3 November 1283. An even more serious blow was the death of his friend and brother-in-law, John of Montfort. The Cypriots left him after the agreed period of four months expired, but Hugh remained in Tyre, where he died on 24 March 1284. He was succeeded by his eldest surviving son,

, who died the next year and was followed by another son, Henry II.

Issue

With his wife, Isabella of Ibelin, Hugh had eleven children:

References

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hugh 03 Of Cyprus 1235 births 1284 deaths 13th-century kings of Jerusalem Kings of Cyprus Christians of Lord Edward's crusade Burials at Saint Sophia Cathedral, Nicosia House of Poitiers-Lusignan