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List of monarchs of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia

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See also: List of Armenian consorts
The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia and the surrounding area

The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia was a state formed in the Middle Ages by Armenian refugees, who were fleeing the Seljuk invasion of Armenia.[1] It was initially founded by the Rubenian dynasty, an offshoot of the larger Bagratid family that at various times held the thrones of Armenia and Georgia. While the Rubenian rulers were initially regional princes, their close ties with the Western world after the First Crusade saw the principality recognised as a kingdom under Leo I by the Holy Roman Empire in 1198.[2] The Rubenid dynasty fell in 1252 after the death of the last Rubenid monarch Isabella, and her husband Hethum I became sole ruler, beginning the Hethumid dynasty. After the death of Leo IV in 1341 his cousin was elected to succeed him as Constantine II, the first king of the Lusignan dynasty. The kingdom fell at the beginning of Leo V's reign to the Mamluks,[3] and henceforth title holders were only claimants to the throne. Charlotte of Cyprus ceded the throne to the House of Savoy in 1485,[4] and the title fell out of use until after 1861.

Lords/princes

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NameLifespanReign startReign endNotesFamilyImage
Ruben I10801095Rubenids
Constantine I10951102Rubenids
Thoros I11021129Rubenids
Constantine II11291129Rubenids
Leo I11291140Rubenids
Thoros II11441169Rubenids
Ruben II11691170Rubenids
Mleh11701175Rubenids
Ruben III11751187Rubenids
Leo II11871198/1199Became first king as Leo IRubenids

Kings and queens

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NameLifespanReign startReign endNotesFamilyImage
Leo I (II)1198/11991219Rubenids
Isabella12191252Queen regnant, and co-ruler with Philip and Hethum IRubenidsIsabella with King Hethum on a coin
Philip12221225Co-ruler with IsabellaHouse of Poitiers
Hethum I12261270Co-ruler with Isabella until 1252HethumidsHethoum at the court of the Mongols
Leo II (III)12701289Hethumids
Hethum II12891293Abdicated in favour of Thoros IIIHethumidsHethoum II in Franciscan garb
Thoros III12931298Recalled Hethoum II, with whom he became co-rulerHethumids
Hethum II12951296Co-ruler with Thoros IIIHethumidsHethoum II in Franciscan garb
Sempad12961298UsurperHethumids
Constantine I (III)12981299Hethumids
Hethum II12991303Reclaimed throne. Abdicated and became regent for Leo IIIHethumidsHethoum II in Franciscan garb
Leo III (IV)13031307Under regency of Hethum IIHethumids
Oshin13071320Hethumids
Leo IV (V)13201341Under regency of Oshin of Korikos until 1329HethumidsLeo IV dispensing justice
Constantine II (IV)13421344Elected by noblesHouse of Lusignan
Constantine III (V)13441362House of Neghir
Constantine IV (VI)13621373House of Neghir
Leo V (VI)13741375House of Lusignan

Claimants

[edit]
NameLifespanReign startReign endNotesFamilyImage
Leo V13751393Lusignan
James I13931398Lusignan
Janus13981432Lusignan
John14321458Lusignan
Charlotte14581467Lusignan

Potential claimants today

[edit]

The claim to the title passed to the House of Savoy, who were granted it by Charlotte in 1485. The Savoyard dynasts maintained their claim to the title "King of Cyprus, Jerusalem and Armenia" as late as the 20th century.[5]

In 1880, a former Maronite priest Kalfa Narbei declared that he was a descendant of Guy de Lusignan and styled himself as the Prince of Lusignan of Cyprus, of Jerusalem and of Armenia. He took the name Guy de Lusignan and title of Prince. He started offering self-styled chivalric orders. After the death of Guy/Kalfa Narbei in 1905, his wife Marie's lover became the alleged Grand Master and called himself Comte d'Alby de Gratigny. He became involved in a fake art scandal in 1910.

Notes

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  1. ^ (in Armenian) Poghosyan, S.; Katvalyan, M.; Grigoryan, G. et al. Cilician Armenia (Կիլիկյան Հայաստան). Soviet Armenian Encyclopedia. vol. v. Yerevan, Armenian SSR: Armenian Academy of Sciences, 1979, pp. 406–428
  2. ^ Kurdoghlian, Mihran (1996). Badmoutioun Hayots, Volume II (in Armenian). Athens, Greece: Hradaragoutioun Azkayin Oussoumnagan Khorhourti. pp. 29–56.
  3. ^ Mutafian, p.90
  4. ^ Lang, Robert Hamilton (1878), Cyprus, London: Macmillan and Co., p. 179, retrieved 2008-01-15
  5. ^ Arielli, Nir (2010). Fascist Italy and the Middle East, 1933–1940. London: Palgrave MacMillan. p. 173. ISBN 978-1349312047.

References

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  • Boase, T. S. R. (1978). The Cilician Kingdom of Armenia. Edinburgh: Scottish Academic Press. ISBN 0-7073-0145-9.
  • Mutafian, Claude (2001). Le Royaume Arménien de Cilicie. Paris: CNRS Editions. ISBN 2-271-05105-3.
  • Histoire des Princes de Lusignan, Anciens Rois de Jérusalem, de la Petite Arménie et de Chypre, St. Petersbourg: Soikine, 1903.
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