War of the Antiochene Succession

When Bohemond III died in April,[13] Bohemond of Tripoli hurried to Antioch,[15][16] where, because he was the late prince's closest living relative, he was recognized by the commune of the townspeople as his father's rightful heir.[15] The nobles who had regarded Raymond-Roupen (the only son of Bohemond III's eldest son) the lawful prince, fled to the Kingdom of Cilicia.[13][15] Bohemond repaid a loan that Raymond III of Tripoli had long before borrowed from the Knights Hospitaller, thus winning them over to his side.[15]

Leo continued to support Raymond-Roupen, which sparked an enduring conflict, with many theatres of war.[16] During the war, neither Leo nor Bohemond IV was able to control his own territory (Cilicia and Tripoli, respectively) and Antioch at the same time, due to insufficient forces.[16] Az-Zahir Ghazi, the Ayyubid emir of Aleppo, and the Seljuq rulers of Anatolia were always ready to invade Cilicia, while the Ayyubid rulers of Hama and Homs controlled the territory between Antioch and Tripoli, hindering the movements of Bohemond's troops between the two crusader states.[16]

Shortly after Bohemond seized Antioch, Leo laid siege to it to press Raymond-Roupen's cause, but Bohemond's allies, Az-Zahir Ghazi and Suleiman II, Seljuq Sultan of Rum, stormed into Cilicia, forcing Leo to withdraw in July 1201.[15] He soon sent letters to Pope Innocent, informing him of Bohemond's cooperation with the Muslim rulers.[16] Leo again invaded Antioch in 1202, but Aimery, King of Jerusalem and Cyprus, and the papal legate, Cardinal Soffredo, mediated a truce.[15] After Bohemond IV refused to acknowledge the right of the Holy See to pass judgement in the case of the succession of Antioch, Leo renewed the war.[17] Taking advantage of Bohemond's absence, Leo entered Antioch on 11 November 1203, but he was not able to seize the citadel, which was defended by the Templars and the troops of the commune.[15] Before long, Az-Zahir Ghazi again invaded Cilicia, forcing Leo to return to his kingdom.[18][19]

Renoart of Nephin, who had married an heiress in the County of Tripoli without Bohemond's consent, rose up against Bohemond in late 1204.[20] He routed Bohemond at the gates of Tripoli.[18] Leo seized the Antiochene fortresses in the Amanus Mountains, which controlled the road towards Antioch.[19] He laid siege to the fortress at Trapessac on 25 December 1205, but Az-Zahir Ghazi's troops routed his army.[19] After crushing Renoart of Nephin's revolt, Bohemond returned to Antioch, forcing Leo to sign a truce for eight years in summer 1206.[19][18]

A conflict between the new papal legate, Peter of Capua, and the Latin Patriarch of Antioch, Peter of Angoulême, who had become Raymond-Roupen's supporter, ended with the excommunication of the patriarch.[21] Exploiting the situation to get rid of his opponent, Bohemond replaced Peter of Angoulême with the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, Symeon II with the support of the commune in early 1207.[20][21] Peter of Angoulême was reconciled with the legate, excommunicated Bohemond and the commune,[20][21] and then persuaded some nobles to rise up against Bohemond, forcing him to take refuge in the citadel.[22][21] Leo entered Antioch, but Bohemond collected his forces and defeated the Armenians.[22][21] Peter of Angoulême was captured and died of drink deprivation in his prison.[23]

The Ayyubid sultan, Al-Adil I, stormed into the County of Tripoli, creating an opportunity for Leo to plunder the land around Antioch in 1208.[22] Bohemond persuaded Kaykaus I, Sultan of Rum, to invade Cilicia, forcing Leo to withdraw from Antioch.[24] Pope Innocent tasked Albert Avogadro, Patriarch of Jerusalem, to mediate a peace.[22] Avogadro, who was an ally of the Knights Templar, urged Leo to return Bagras to them.[22] In an attempt to renew the truce, Leo obeyed the legate's demand, promising to withdraw from Bagras.[19]

Before long, Leo broke his promise and refused to return Bagras to the Templars.[19] He also decided to terminate the union of the Armenian Church with Rome.[25] On the other hand, he granted fortresses to the Teutonic Knights in Cilicia.[23][25] He also arranged the marriage of Raymond-Roupen with Helvis, sister of Hugh I of Cyprus.[25] Leo ambushed a caravan which had been transporting provisions to the Templars in 1211.[26] In the skirmish, Guillaume de Chartres, Grand Master of the Knights Templar, was badly injured.[26] News of Leo's action shocked Pope Innocent, who forbade all Christian rulers to assist Leo and urged John of Brienne, King of Jerusalem, to intervene on the Templars' behalf.[27] John sent fifty knights to Northern Syria to fight against Leo.[28] Leo expelled the Latin priests from Cilicia and gave shelter to the Orthodox Patriarch, Symenon, who had been driven out of Antioch.[29] He dispatched Raymond-Roupen to plunder the region of Antioch in 1212.[26]

Pope Innocent, who had proclaimed a new crusade in 1213, wanted to persuade Leo to assist the crusaders.[30] In that year, Leo renounced all lands that he had seized from the Templars, but retained Bagras.[31] John of Brienne married Leo's daughter, Stephanie, in 1214.[32] During the same period, Bohemond's position weakened.[32] His attempt to take vengeance on the Assassins for the murder of his eldest son, Raymond, brought him into conflict with his old ally, Az-Zahir Ghazi of Aleppo.[25]

Triumphant entry of Leo the Magnificent into Antioch (a painting by Juliano Zasso, 1885)

With Leo's support, Raymond-Roupen began to find new allies, promising land grants to the Hospitallers and Antiochene noblemen, including Acharie of Sermin, the head of the commune of the burghers. Taking advantage of the absence of Bohemond IV, Leo and his army entered Antioch during the night of 14 February 1216.[33] A few days later, the Templars, who had held the citadel, also surrendered without a struggle.[25][33] The Latin Patriarch of Antioch, Peter of Ivrea, consecrated Raymond-Roupen prince.[25][33] After his protégé seized the Principality of Antioch, Leo restored Bagras to the Knights Templar.[26][25] During Leo's absence, Kaykaus I captured the Armenian forts to the north of the Taurus Mountains, forcing him to concentrate on the defense of Cilicia.[34][26]

After finding an empty treasure in Antioch, Raymond-Roupen increased taxation, which made him unpopular among his subjects.[33] In 1217, Raymond-Roupen tried to capture Leo, but the Templars assisted Leo to flee to Cilicia.[26] Bohemond visited John, King of Jerusalem, in Acre in autumn 1217.[35] Early the next year, John recognized Bohemond as the lawful prince, but did not provide him with military assistance.[36] The burghers and noblemen of Antioch rose up against Raymond-Roupen.[37] Their leader, William Farabel, persuaded Bohemond to come back to the town.[37] After Bohemond's arrival, Raymond-Roupen at first sought refuge in the citadel but soon fled to Cilicia, granting the citadel to the Hospitallers.[37] Raymond-Roupen could never regain Antioch.[38]