Kings of Jerusalem
| King of Jerusalem | |
|---|---|
.svg)
Royal Coat of arms
(13th century) |
|
| Details | |
| First monarch | Godfrey of Bouillon |
| Last monarch | Henry II |
| Formation | 1099 |
| Abolition | 1291 |
| Residence | David's Tower |
| Appointer | Hereditary Election |
| Pretender(s) | See Claimant |
The King of Jerusalem was the supreme ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Crusader state founded by Christian princes in 1099 when the First Crusade took the city.
Godfrey of Bouillon, the first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, himself refused the title of king, and instead chose the title "Defender of the Holy Sepulchre". Thus, the title of king was only introduced for his successor, King Baldwin I in 1100. The city of Jerusalem was lost in 1187, but the Kingdom of Jerusalem survived (also known as the "Second Kingdom of Jerusalem"), moving its capital to Acre in 1191. The city of Jerusalem was re-captured in the Sixth Crusade, during 1229–39 and 1241–44. The Kingdom of Jerusalem was finally dissolved with the fall of Acre and the end of the Crusades in the Holy Land in 1291.
After the Crusader States ceased to exist, the title of King of Jerusalem was claimed by a number of European noble houses descended from the kings of Cyprus or the kings of Naples. The (purely ceremonial) title of King of Jerusalem is currently used by Felipe VI of Spain. It was claimed by Otto von Habsburg as Habsburg pretender until his renunciation of all claims in 1958, and by the kings of Italy until 1946.
The Kingdom of Jerusalem had its origins in the First Crusade, when Godfrey of Bouillon, after refusing a crown and the title of King "upon the plea that he would never wear a crown of gold where his Saviour had worn a crown of thorns", took the title Advocatus Sancti Sepulchri (Protector of the Holy Sepulcher) in 1099 and was inaugurated as ruler of Jerusalem in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.
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