Barisan of Ibelin
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Barisan of Ibelin (died 1150) was an important figure in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, and was the founder of the Ibelin family. His name was later written as "Balian" and he is sometimes known as Balian the Elder or Balian I.
From his name, Barisan was probably from northern Italy (perhaps Pisa or Genoa) or Sardinia. However, nothing is known of his life before 1115, when he appears as constable of the County of Jaffa. In 1120 he was present at the Council of Nablus, where the first laws of the kingdom were promulgated. Around 1122, his services were rewarded with a marriage to Helvis of Ramla, daughter of Baldwin I of Ramla. In 1134, when Hugh II of Le Puiset, count of Jaffa, rebelled against King Fulk, Barisan supported the king, and soon became prominent at Fulk's court. In 1141 he was named lord of the newly constructed castle of Ibelin, located in the county of Jaffa between Jaffa itself and the fortress of Ascalon, which was at this point still controlled by Fatimid Egypt. In 1148 Barisan inherited the nearby lordship of Ramla, through his wife Helvis. That year, Barisan was also present at the council convened at Acre after the arrival of the Second Crusade, at which it was decided to attack Damascus (see Siege of Damascus).
With Helvis, Barisan was the father of Hugh, Baldwin, Barisan the Younger (who was known as Balian from the 1160s), Ermengarde, and Stephanie. Barisan died in 1150 and Ibelin was inherited by Hugh. Helvis then married Manasses of Hierges, constable of Jerusalem.
[edit] Sources
- William of Tyre, A History of Deeds Done Beyond the Sea. E. A. Babcock and A. C. Krey, trans. Columbia University Press, 1943.
- Peter W. Edbury, John of Ibelin and the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Boydell Press, 1997.
- Steven Runciman, A History of the Crusades, vol. II: The Kingdom of Jerusalem. Cambridge University Press, 1952.
