Guy of Lusignan

Guy of Lusignan (died 1194) was a French knight who became King of Jerusalem and led the chivalry of the Kingdom to disaster at the Battle of Hattin in 1187.

After King Baldwin IV was incapacitated by his leprosy, he appointed Guy of Lusignan, Count of Jaffa, bailli for the kingdom of Jerusalem, by virtue of his marriage to Sibylla, the daughter of Amalric I. An opposing faction was led by Raymond of Tripoli[?], Baldwin's cousin, and one of the most formidable feudal barons. In 1185, Raymond of Tripoli was chosen to act as regent of the nine-year-old successor to the throne Baldwin V, Guy's step-son. After Baldwin V died the following year, Guy of Lusignan claimed the throne, making himself the first Lusignan King of Jerusalem.

After the Christians were routed by Saladin at the Battle of Hattin, a disaster for which Guy's poor decisions were largely responsible, Jerusalem and most of the Kingdom fell to Saladin, save Tyre, defended by the valiant efforts of newcomer to the east Conrad of Montferrat. Guy lost his claim to the kingdom for good when Sibylla died in 1190. Conrad, who married Sibylla's younger half-sister Isabella, was elected in his place. In the end, Richard the Lionheart sold Guy the Kingdom of Cyprus in order to remove him from the internal hostilities of Palestine. Descendants of the Lusignans continued to rule the island until 1474.

Preceded by: Baldwin V

Kingdom of Jerusalem

Followed by: Conrad of Montferrat (nominal king only)