Conrad of Montferrat
Conrad of Montferrat (c. 1146; † April 28, 1192 in Tyre ) was Margrave of Montferrat, as Lord of Tyre, an important figure in the Third Crusade and in 1192 for a short time King of Jerusalem.
Family
Conrad's parents were the Marquis William V of Montferrat ( Aleramiden ) and Judith of Austria ( Babenberg ). He was a cousin of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa. Conrad's brother Boniface was the leader of the Fourth Crusade. Her brother Rainer was the son of the Byzantine emperor Manuel I, and a fourth brother, William, the first husband of Queen Sibyl and father of King Baldwin V.
Life
Well in the fall of 1186 Konrad moved to the court of the Byzantine Emperor Isaac II Angelos in Constantinople Opel. He took over in the spring of 1187 the command of the imperial troops and struck down the revolt of Alexios Branas, where he was severely wounded. By this act he became among the Greeks as one of the few " Latins " a real folk hero, and was therefore extolled among others by historian Nicetas Choniates. For his services Konrad was raised to the Kaisar and with the emperor's sister, Theodora, engaged.
However, it did not Konrad Konstantin in Opel, after he learned of the arrest of his father by Saladin after the Battle of Hattin. He traveled immediately Genoese ships in the Levant, reached on July 14, 1187 Tyre and took over the responsibility for the defense of the city, which has just been besieged by Saladin. He suggested the Ayyubids in a naval battle and also survived Saladin land attack successfully. Saladin retreated back then, and Konrad now controlled the main harbor, which was still in the hands of the Crusaders in the Holy Land. For the largest part of the Kingdom of Jerusalem - including the capital itself - was now under Saladin's control.
After this victory, Konrad recognized the unsuccessful Guy of Lusignan to no more than the King of Jerusalem and refused him access to Tyre. Guido then began with his remaining followers to besiege the city of Acre, which had been conquered by Saladin. But as Guido's wife Sibylle died during the siege of Acre, Guido had no more claim to the throne. Conrad, however, married in 1190 Sibylles sister Isabella I, although he was probably married by this time with Theodora; this first marriage was probably wrong to infer as church law and therefore considered invalid. Meanwhile came troops of the Third Crusade to the besiegers in Acre to help. Da Guido was a vassal of the English king Richard the Lionheart, this helped him in his political ambitions, while Konrad on the help of the French king Philip II and the German Duke Leopold V of Austria was able to build, since they were enemies with Richard.
After the conquest of Acre Guido was first confirmed as king of Jerusalem Conrad as his heir. But Guido was transferred early April 1192 under pressure from the barons of Outremer, the Kingdom of Cyprus - or rather, he was forced to accept it - while Konrad now received the crown of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Conrad's reign did not last long. On April 28, he went to Tyre to dinner at the house of the Bishop of Beauvais, because the preparation of the food had been delayed at his home; because the bishop had already eaten but, Konrad turned back. On the way home he was stabbed by two assassins. Many suspected Richard to have caused the murder, another Humphrey IV of Toron first, Isabella's husband, others Saladin.
Progeny
His marriage to Isabella I, he left behind a daughter, Maria of Montferrat (* 1192, † 1212 ), which was 1205 Queen of Jerusalem.