Conrad of Montferrat facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Conrad of Montferrat |
|
|---|---|
13th-century depiction of Conrad's marriage to Isabella
|
|
| King of Jerusalem (jure uxoris) | |
| Reign | 1190–1192 |
| Predecessor | Guy of Lusignan |
| Successor | Isabella I |
| Co-Sovereign | Isabella I |
| Marquis of Montferrat | |
| Reign | 1191–1192 |
| Predecessor | William V |
| Successor | Boniface I |
| Born | Unknown Montferrat |
| Died | 28 April 1192 Tyre |
| Consort | first wife Theodora Angelina Isabella I of Jerusalem |
| Issue | Maria of Montferrat |
| House | Aleramici |
| Father | William V, Marquess of Montferrat |
| Mother | Judith of Babenberg |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Conrad of Montferrat (Italian: Corrado del Monferrato) (died 28 April 1192) was a brave nobleman and a key leader during the Third Crusade. He became the King of Jerusalem in 1190 by marrying Isabella I of Jerusalem. He was officially elected king in 1192, just days before his death. Conrad was also the eighth Marquess of Montferrat starting in 1191.
Contents
Conrad's Early Life and Family
Conrad was the second son of Marquess William V of Montferrat, known as "the Elder," and his wife Judith of Babenberg. He was related to important European rulers. For example, he was a cousin of Frederick Barbarossa, the Holy Roman Emperor, and also of Louis VII of France.
Conrad was born in Montferrat, a region in northwest Italy. We don't know the exact year or place of his birth. He is first mentioned in records in 1160, when he was serving at the court of his uncle, Conrad, who was a bishop.
People described Conrad as handsome, brave, and very smart. He was good at talking to people and a strong leader. One old history book said he was "vigorous in arms, extremely clever... amiable in character and deed, endowed with all the human virtues." He was also good at diplomacy and became a skilled military commander.
Time in the Byzantine Empire
In 1179, Conrad led an army against forces of Frederick Barbarossa and won a battle, taking an important enemy leader hostage. He then traveled to Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, where he was praised for his good looks and strong personality.
Later, in 1187, the Byzantine Emperor Isaac II Angelus offered his sister Theodora to Conrad for marriage. Conrad accepted and married her. He was given the important title of Caesar. Soon after, he helped the Emperor defend his throne against a rebellion. Conrad fought bravely in a battle where the rebel general was killed.
After this, Conrad decided to leave for the Kingdom of Jerusalem. He felt he hadn't been rewarded enough and was worried about anti-Latin feelings in the Byzantine Empire. His youngest brother had been murdered there a few years earlier. So, in July 1187, Conrad sailed to the Holy Land.
Defending the City of Tyre
Conrad arrived in the Holy Land at a very difficult time. The great Muslim leader Saladin had just won a huge victory at the Battle of Hattin, defeating the Crusader army. Saladin was capturing many cities. Conrad first tried to go to Acre, but it had already fallen to Saladin. So, he sailed north to Tyre.
In Tyre, Conrad found the remaining Crusader leaders. Many of them wanted to go back to defend their own lands. Conrad took charge of Tyre's defense. He reorganized the city's defenses and got the people of Tyre to swear loyalty to him.
When Saladin's army arrived, they found Tyre well-defended and ready to fight. Saladin's own chroniclers described Conrad as "a devil incarnate in his ability to govern and defend a town, and a man of extraordinary courage." Tyre successfully held out against Saladin's first attack.
In November 1187, Saladin returned for a second siege of Tyre. Conrad was still in command. The city was now even stronger and full of Christian refugees. Saladin tried to use Conrad's captured father, William V, to make Conrad surrender. Saladin brought William in front of the city walls and offered to release him if Conrad gave up Tyre. But William told his son to keep fighting, even if it meant his death. Conrad bravely refused Saladin's offer. Saladin eventually released William unharmed.
On December 30, Conrad's forces launched a surprise attack on Saladin's ships, capturing many of them. The remaining enemy ships fled. Saladin then attacked the city walls from land, but Conrad led his men out of the gates and broke the enemy lines. Saladin was forced to retreat again, burning his siege machines so they wouldn't fall into enemy hands.
Struggle for the Crown
In 1188, Saladin released King Guy of Lusignan, who was the husband of Queen Sibylla. A year later, Guy came to Tyre and demanded that Conrad hand over the city to him. Conrad refused. He argued that Guy had lost his right to be king after the defeat at the Battle of Hattin. Conrad said he was holding Tyre until the kings from Europe arrived to help.
Conrad eventually joined Guy at the Siege of Acre in 1189. This siege lasted for over two years. In 1190, Conrad traveled north to help another relative, Frederick of Swabia, bring his army safely to Acre.
Later that year, Queen Sibylla and her daughters died from disease. This meant King Guy no longer had a strong claim to the throne. The new heir to Jerusalem was Sibylla's half-sister, Isabella. Isabella was married to Humphrey IV of Toron. However, many important nobles supported Conrad. They arranged for Isabella's first marriage to be annulled (canceled), saying she had been too young to agree to it.
Conrad then married Isabella himself on November 24, 1190. This marriage made him the rightful King of Jerusalem. However, he had been wounded in battle just nine days before, so he and Isabella went back to Tyre to recover.
King Richard I of England supported Guy in this struggle for the throne. Conrad was supported by his cousin Leopold V of Austria and King Philip II of France. Conrad helped negotiate the surrender of Acre and raised the kings' flags in the city. After Acre was captured, an agreement was made: Guy would remain king of Jerusalem, but Conrad would be his heir. Conrad would also keep the cities of Tyre, Beirut, and Sidon.
In July 1191, King Philip of France decided to return home. Before leaving, he gave Conrad half of the treasures taken from Acre and all his important Muslim hostages. King Richard asked Conrad for the hostages, but Conrad refused for a while. When he finally gave in, Richard had all the hostages killed. Conrad did not join Richard's army in the south, choosing to stay in Tyre with his wife Isabella. He believed his life might be in danger. Around this time, Conrad's father passed away.
During that winter, Conrad started talking directly with Saladin. He suspected that Richard might try to take Tyre from him. Conrad wanted to be recognized as the ruler of the northern parts of the kingdom.
Conrad's Assassination
In April 1192, the nobles of the Kingdom of Jerusalem voted for their next king. To King Richard's surprise, they all chose Conrad. Richard then sold the island of Cyprus to Guy of Lusignan to make up for him losing the throne.
However, Conrad was never crowned king. On April 28, 1192, he was attacked by two Assassins while walking home. His guards killed one attacker and captured the other. Conrad died very soon after the attack. He was buried in Tyre. His death was a big loss for the kingdom.
The murder of Conrad remains a mystery. The surviving Assassin claimed that King Richard was behind the killing, but this has never been proven. Other suspects included Isabella's first husband, Humphrey of Toron, and even Saladin, though this seems unlikely as Saladin himself didn't like the Assassins.
Later, when King Richard was returning from the Crusade, he was captured by Conrad's cousin, Leopold V of Austria. Conrad's murder was one of the charges against Richard. A letter, supposedly from the leader of the Assassins, claimed that Conrad had captured an Assassin ship and refused to return its crew and treasure. However, this letter is now believed to be fake. The timing of the murder and what happened next (Isabella, who was pregnant, married Henry of Champagne just seven days later) suggest that the murder might have been about politics within the Crusader kingdom.
Conrad's Family
Conrad's brother Boniface later became a leader of the Fourth Crusade. Their youngest brother Renier married a daughter of the Byzantine Emperor. Conrad's oldest brother, William, was the first husband of Queen Sibylla and the father of Baldwin V of Jerusalem.
Conrad was briefly the Marquess of Montferrat after his father died in 1191. His brother Boniface took over this title after Conrad's death. Conrad's only child was a daughter named Maria of Montferrat, who was born after his death. Maria later became Queen of Jerusalem in 1205 after her mother Isabella died, but she also died young.
Conrad in Stories and Art
Conrad was seen as a heroic figure by many, especially for defending Tyre. He was called "the valiant and worthy Marquis" in old songs. However, in many English stories and films, he is often shown negatively because King Richard I, who was very popular, was his rival.
- In the novel The Talisman by Walter Scott, Conrad is shown as a villain.
- In the 1935 film The Crusades, he is played as a scheming traitor.
- The 1954 film King Richard and the Crusaders also shows him as a villain.
However, some authors have given him a more positive role. For example, in the 1968 novel Corrado di Monferrato, he is the hero. In the mystery novel The Widow of Jerusalem (2003), which looks into his murder, he is also shown in a good light.
In the video game Assassin's Creed, which is set during the Crusades, Conrad's father, William V of Montferrat, is one of the targets the main character must assassinate. This is based on the real-life assassination of Conrad.
Images for kids
-
Imaginary portrait of Conrad, c. 1843, by François-Édouard Picot for the Salles des Croisades at Versailles
See also
In Spanish: Conrado de Montferrato para niños
