Born about in Rethel, Ardennes, Champagne-Ardenne, France
Ancestors 
Brother of
Caravinca (Rethel) Trainel, Hodierne (Rethel) Antioch, Matilde (Rethel) Vitré, Beatrice Rethel and Gervais (Rethel) de Rethel
Husband of
Morphia (Melitene) Jerusalem
— married
1101 [location unknown]
Descendants 
Died
at about age 73
in Jerusalem, Holy Land
Profile last modified
| Created 10 May 2012
This page has been accessed 6,477 times.
| Preceded by Baldwin I |
Baldwin II King of Jerusalem 1118–1131 |
Followed by Fulk (V) and Melisende |
Biography
Second Count of Edessa from 1100 to 1118, and the second King of Jerusalem from 1118 until his death in 1131.
Also called Baldwin of Bourcq.
"Baldwin was the son of Hugh, count of Rethel, and his wife Melisende, daughter of Guy I of Montlhéry. He had two younger brothers, Gervase and Manasses, and two sisters Matilda and Hodierna. Baldwin was called a cousin of the brothers Eustace III of Boulogne, Godfrey of Bouillon, and Baldwin of Boulogne, but the exact manner in which they are related has never been discovered.
He left his own family behind to follow his cousins, Godfrey of Bouillon and Baldwin of Boulogne, on the First Crusade in 1096 through the Holy Land.
Cousin Baldwin of Boulogne was crowned the first King of Jerusalem. He died on 2 July 1118 and had bequeathed Jerusalem on his brother, Eustace III of Boulogne, stipulating that the throne was to be offered to Baldwin if Eustace failed to come to the Holy Land. The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Arnulf of Chocques, and Joscelin of Courtenay, who held the largest fief in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, convinced their peers to elect Baldwin king.
As a mark of his love for his wife, Baldwin postponed his coronation so that Morphia and his daughters could travel to Jerusalem and have his wife crowned Queen alongside him.
Baldwin had 3 daughters with wife Morphia: Melisende, Alice, and Hodiema. As the eldest child, Melisende was raised at heir presumptive.
Some books (in particular Steven Runciman's History of the Crusades) have claimed a fictitious Ida of Boulogne as grandmother to Baldwin II in order to force the relationship. While Ida of Boulogne did exist, neither of Baldwin's parents were her descendants." [1]
Sources
- ↑ Wikipedia
- Baldwin II of Jerusalem in Wikipedia
See also:
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- Are Baudouin and Baldwin the Same Name Apr 15, 2023.
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Tamara (Killian) Ledkins
Tamara (Killian) Ledkins
more from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemond_I_of_Antioch, paraphrased: Baldwin gave 2nd daughter, Alice, in marriage to Bohemond II, renounced the regency. He married off his eldest daughter, Melisende, to the wealthy Fulk V, Count of Anjou, to raise money to conquer Damascus. Baldwin forced Alice to leave Antioch and assumed the regency for her daughter, Constance. He fell seriously ill in Antioch and took monastic vows before he died in the Holy Sepulchre.
posted
by Tamara (Killian) Ledkins
Featured National Park champion connections: Baldwin II is 25 degrees from Theodore Roosevelt, 28 degrees from Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, 26 degrees from George Catlin, 26 degrees from Marjory Douglas, 34 degrees from Sueko Embrey, 26 degrees from George Grinnell, 28 degrees from Anton Kröller, 24 degrees from Stephen Mather, 31 degrees from Kara McKean, 28 degrees from John Muir, 21 degrees from Victoria Hanover and 36 degrees from Charles Young on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.
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Categories: First Crusade