Melisende of Jerusalem

Melisende
Queen of Jerusalem
Reign	1131–1152
Coronations	14 September 1131 25 December 1143
Predecessor	Baldwin II
Successor	Baldwin III
Co-rulers	Fulk (1131–1143) Baldwin III (1143–1152)

Melisende (c. 1109 – 11 September 1161) was the queen of Jerusalem from 1131 to 1152. She was the first female ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the first woman to hold a public office in the crusader kingdom. Her fame grew during her lifetime for her generous support of Christian communities across her kingdom. Contemporary chronicler William of Tyre praised her wisdom and abilities, while modern historians vary in their assessment.

Melisende had mixed Frankish–Armenian heritage and was the eldest daughter of King Baldwin II and Queen Morphia. In the late 1120s, when it became clear that her father was unlikely to have a son, she was declared heir presumptive to the throne and married Fulk of Anjou in 1129. Baldwin II died in 1131, having conferred the kingdom on Melisende, Fulk, and their son Baldwin III. Melisende and Fulk were crowned shortly after.

Early in their joint reign, King Fulk attempted to rule without Queen Melisende. Barons led by Melisende's relative Count Hugh II of Jaffa revolted in 1134 and, although Hugh was defeated and exiled, Melisende grew powerful and terrorized the king and his supporters until he agreed to give her a share of the government. Once reconciled, they had another son, Amalric, and Fulk no longer made any decision in the kingdom without Melisende's assent. During their joint rule, Melisende managed church relations and patronage. The couple eschewed wars of conquest and instead focused on strengthening the kingdom's defenses. After Fulk died in 1143, Melisende assumed full power and was crowned together with their elder son, Baldwin III. Baldwin reached the age of majority in 1145, but Melisende refused to cede any authority to him. After the fall of Edessa in 1144, Melisende urged a military intervention from Europe, which led to the Second Crusade.

Melisende's relationship with Baldwin III collapsed in 1150 as she further reduced his role in state affairs. In 1152, the High Court of Jerusalem divided the kingdom between mother and son. Within weeks, however, Baldwin invaded Melisende's portion and besieged her in the Tower of David. Melisende agreed to step down and retire to Nablus. She continued to involve herself in the affairs of her family, which also ruled the crusader states of Antioch and Tripoli. Although her influence in Jerusalem became limited, she counseled Baldwin and took a successful military initiative in his absence. Her patronage and involvement in ecclesiastical matters also continued. She died in 1161 after becoming incapacitated by an illness, possibly a stroke.

Background

Melisende was the eldest daughter of the Frankish count of Edessa, Baldwin II, and Morphia of Melitene, an Armenian noblewoman of the Greek Orthodox faith. She was likely born in Edessa sometime between 1104 and 1109 or slightly later. Her mixed heritage reflected the ethnoreligious diversity of the Latin East. She and her sisters Alice and Hodierna would have grown up speaking Armenian and probably Greek, but also became proficient in French.

In early 1118, Melisende's father set out on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. During this journey, the king of Jerusalem, Baldwin I, died. Baldwin II was elected to succeed him. His wife and daughters stayed in Edessa while he consolidated his position in the kingdom. In late 1119, Baldwin sent for his family, and the new count of Edessa, Baldwin's cousin Joscelin of Courtenay, arranged for them to be escorted south. The cultural setting of Jerusalem was a distinct departure from what Melisende had experienced growing up in Edessa: alongside the Franks, the city's population was largely Arabic- and Syriac-speaking. Melisende's parents were crowned king and queen on Christmas. They had another daughter, Ioveta, the following year.

Baldwin II was the first Latin ruler of Jerusalem to have children but all four of his children were daughters, and no conventions had yet developed in the crusader states regarding female succession. Baldwin and Morphia's marriage was happy despite there being no male heir to the kingdom. Michael, a contemporary Syriac Orthodox monk, credits Morphia with instilling "the fear of God" in Melisende, suggesting that she may have played a greater role than Baldwin in Melisende's spiritual upbringing. Like Baldwin I's wives Arda of Armenia and Adelaide del Vasto, Morphia took no part in the affairs of state. During the 18 months Baldwin spent in Muslim captivity in 1123–24, the kingdom was ruled first by the constable, Eustace I Grenier, and then by William of Bures, prince of Galilee; neither Melisende nor her mother were involved in government. The rulers of Jerusalem were expected not only to govern but to personally lead armies against near-constant threats from Muslim powers on the northern, eastern, and southern borders. This militarized model of kingship made female rule particularly problematic, as it clashed with entrenched expectations of a warrior-king.

Archbishop William of Tyre, the chief chronicler of the 12th-century kingdom, does not explicitly describe Melisende's appearance or education. He was only born in 1130, and from the death of Fulcher of Chartres in 1127, there was no resident chronicler in the crusader states. William was studying in Europe from 1145 to 1165 and only started writing his History of Deeds Done Beyond the Sea in 1167. The intervening period is therefore poorly documented and frequently invites speculative interpretation by historians.

Heir to the kingdom

Melisende remained unmarried unusually long for a noblewoman. The delay may reflect her father's lingering hope of producing a son; until then, Melisende remained a potential successor, and the king likely hesitated to settle for a match unworthy of that status, just as appropriate suitors may have been wary of her uncertain future. Queen Morphia died probably in 1126 or 1127. Because he no longer expected to have a son, King Baldwin started providing for his daughters and settling his succession: Melisende was to be his heir; Alice was married to Prince Bohemond II of Antioch; Hodierna may have been betrothed to Raymond of Tripoli at this time; and Ioveta, the youngest, was sent to the Convent of Saint Anne.

In late 1127, Baldwin and his advisors convened to discuss Melisende's marriage, which was now a matter of priority. They decided to offer her hand to Count Fulk V of Anjou. Aged around 37, Fulk was considerably older than Melisende and had 17 years of experience as ruler of Anjou. He had been to Jerusalem on a pilgrimage in 1120 and made a favorable impression on the nobles. His wife, Eremburga of Maine, had died in late 1126, and he already had grown children. An embassy led by the noblemen William of Bures and Guy I Brisebarre arrived at Fulk's court in early 1128.

Before he would agree to a marriage contract and leave his land, Fulk insisted that Melisende's position as heir be firmly established. A useful precedent was the formal recognition of Empress Matilda, who married Fulk's son Geoffrey Plantagenet in June 1128, as the heir presumptive to her father, King Henry I of England. Ioveta's status as porphyrogenita (born to crowned parents) may have complicated her eldest sister's position; Fulk knew that Henry had invoked the principle of porphyrogeniture to justify his accession to the throne of England ahead of his older brother Robert Curthose. Ioveta was still a child, however, and a more serious threat may have come from Alice and Bohemond. The contemporary chronicler Matthew of Edessa records that Baldwin had promised the succession to Bohemond on the occasion of Bohemond's marriage to Alice. The historian Alan V. Murray suggests that it is more plausible that any such plan originated with Alice and Bohemond. The other potential claimants were Baldwin's nephews Ithier of Rethel and Manasses of Hierges. During the negotiations with Fulk, Baldwin started associating Melisende with himself in official documents: in a charter from March 1129 she is listed first among the witnesses, taking precedence even over all the clergy, but is titled only "daughter of the king". In a later charter, she again heads the list of witnesses and is explicitly called "daughter of the king and heir of the kingdom".

Having relinquished his counties to his son Geoffrey, Fulk arrived in the Kingdom of Jerusalem with the embassy in May 1129. Melisende married him before 2 June. Steven Runciman assumes that the marriage was celebrated in Jerusalem, but Jaroslav Folda notes that it could as easily have been in Acre and that most recent historians prefer not to speculate. King Baldwin bestowed upon them the cities of Acre and Tyre as Melisende's dowry. These were the most lucrative parts of the royal domain and were to be held by the couple during the king's lifetime. In the first half of 1130, Melisende gave birth to a son, Baldwin, which further secured the succession.

Prince Bohemond II, the husband of Melisende's sister Alice, died in 1130, leaving their only child, the two-year-old Constance, as heir to the Principality of Antioch. Alice attempted to seize control of Antioch, but her and Melisende's father, King Baldwin II, advanced north to prevent her. Baldwin declined to assume direct rule in Antioch, probably wishing to focus on preparing Melisende and her husband, Fulk, for the government of Jerusalem; instead, he appointed Count Joscelin I of Edessa as regent until Constance's marriage could be arranged.

Reign