." Eventually, peace was restored After he died (1143) in a hunting accident, Melisende ruled as queen and regent to her young son In addition to the MLA, Chicago, and APA styles, your school, university, publication, or institution may have its own requirements for citations. The ORB: On-line Reference Book for MedievalStudies.http://the-orb.net/textbooks/crusade/jerusalem.html (accessed on April 24, 2004). In fact, her participation in the assembly led Baldwin III to adopt a new attitude towards his mother. Edited by Derek Baker. Baldwin Queen Melisende, however, did precisely that. Name variations: Melesend; Mlisande; Melissande; Melisend; Mlisende or Melisende; Melisinda, Mlisinde, or Melisinde. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. Mayer, Hans Eberhard. 1058-1118), a Norman known earlier as Baldwin of Boulogne and a chief lay leader of the First Crusade, reigned as king of Jerusalem fr, http://www.umich.edu/~marcons/Crusades/topics/women/women-article.html, http://www.medievalcrusades.com/kingsofjerusalem.htm, http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/heroine4.html, https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/melisende-0, Hodierna of Jerusalem (c. 1115after 1162). Later, William of Tyre wrote of Melisende's right to rule following the death of her father that "the rule of the kingdom remained in the power of the lady queen Melisende, a queen beloved by God, to whom it passed by hereditary right". "The Kingdom of Jerusalem." Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. By the time of his election as king, Baldwin II and Morphia already had three daughters:[1] Melisende, Alice, and Hodierna. WebMelisende was named for her aunt, Melisende, Queen of Jerusalem. The reign of Baldwin II was not an easy one. Eleanor had herself been designated by her father, WilliamX, to succeed him in her own right, just as Melisende had been designated to succeed her father. Keenly aware of the illegality of his familys hold on power, he tried to strengthen and legitimize his eldest daughters position. Hugh's enemies helped spread these rumors to the king, who became jealous, and soon the men were openly antagonistic. Armenian historian Matthew of Edessa wrote that Baldwin II was thoroughly devoted to his wife,[1] and refused to consider divorcing her. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. With the muslims applying an ever tighter chokehold on the kingdom, the queen was worried that a division of resources might spell the end. Baldwin got the cities of Tyre and Acre, while his mother got Jerusalem and Nablus. This alone was Mother and son struck a peace deal that allowed the queen to remain at court. In 1143, Fulk was killed in a hunting accident. The military developments that followed sucked young Baldwin into the affairs of the Near East. Although history records seven different Crusades, there was, in fact, fighting between Muslims and Christians on and off throughout the Middle East from the end of the eleventh to the end of the thirteenth century. Led by King Louis VII of France and his queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine , a tremendous army arrived in the Holy Land in the spring of 1148, after months of preparation and more months en route. She relinquished her authority in exchange for a grant of the city of Nablus. why this accident did not happened earlier! [2][5] Fulk's autocratic style contrasted with the somewhat collegial association with their monarch that native Eastern Franks had come to enjoy. Additionally, Melisende was witness to her son Amalric's marriage to Agnes of Courtenay in 1157.
