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Baldwin II of Constantinople

 

 
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Baldwin II of Courtenay (; 1217 – October 1273) was the last emperor of the Latin Empire
Latin Empire

The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire after their sack of Constantinople in 1204 and ended in 1261....
 of Constantinople
Constantinople

Constantinople was the empire capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire . Strategically located between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara at the point where Europe meets Asia, Byzantine Constantinople had been the capital of a Christendom empire, successor to ancient ancient Greece...
.

He was a younger son of Yolanda of Flanders
Yolanda of Flanders

Yolanda of Flanders ruled the Latin Empire in Constantinople for her husband Peter II of Courtenay from 1217 to 1219.She was the daughter of Baldwin V, Count of Hainault, and Countess Margaret I of Flanders....
, sister of the first two emperors, Baldwin I
Baldwin I of Constantinople

Baldwin I , the first emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople, as Baldwin IX Count of Flanders and as Baldwin VI County of Hainaut, was one of the most prominent leaders of the Fourth Crusade, which resulted in the capture of Constantinople, the conquest of the greater part of the Byzantine Empire, and the foundation of the...
 and Henry of Flanders
Henry of Flanders

Henry , was the second emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople.He was a younger son of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut , and Margaret I, Countess of Flanders, sister of Philip, Count of Flanders, count of Flanders....
. Her husband, Peter of Courtenay, was third emperor of the Latin Empire (also known as Romania, not to be confused with modern Romania
Romania

Romania is a country located in Southeastern Europe Central Europe, North of the Balkan Peninsula, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian Mountains, bordering on the Black Sea....
), and had been followed by his son Robert of Courtenay
Robert of Courtenay

Robert of Courtenay , emperor of the Latin Empire, or of Constantinople, was a younger son of the emperor Peter II of Courtenay, and a descendant of the French king, Louis VI of France, while his mother Yolanda of Flanders was a sister of Baldwin I of Constantinople and Henry of Flanders, the first and second emperors of the Latin Empire....
, on whose death in 1228 the succession passed to Baldwin, then an 11-year-old boy.

The barons chose John of Brienne
John of Brienne

John of Brienne was a French nobleman who became King of Jerusalem by marriage, and was later invited to become Latin Empire.He was the second son of Erard II of Brienne, count of Brienne, in Champagne, France, and of Agnes de Montfaucon....
 (titular king of the Kingdom of Jerusalem
Kingdom of Jerusalem

The Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Christianity kingdom established in the Levant in 1099 after the First Crusade. It lasted nearly two hundred years, from 1099 until 1291 when the last remaining possession, Acre, Israel, was destroyed by the Mamluks....
) as emperor-regent for life; Baldwin was to rule the Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
tic possessions of the empire when he reached the age of twenty.






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Baldwin II of Courtenay (; 1217 – October 1273) was the last emperor of the Latin Empire
Latin Empire

The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire after their sack of Constantinople in 1204 and ended in 1261....
 of Constantinople
Constantinople

Constantinople was the empire capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire . Strategically located between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara at the point where Europe meets Asia, Byzantine Constantinople had been the capital of a Christendom empire, successor to ancient ancient Greece...
.

He was a younger son of Yolanda of Flanders
Yolanda of Flanders

Yolanda of Flanders ruled the Latin Empire in Constantinople for her husband Peter II of Courtenay from 1217 to 1219.She was the daughter of Baldwin V, Count of Hainault, and Countess Margaret I of Flanders....
, sister of the first two emperors, Baldwin I
Baldwin I of Constantinople

Baldwin I , the first emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople, as Baldwin IX Count of Flanders and as Baldwin VI County of Hainaut, was one of the most prominent leaders of the Fourth Crusade, which resulted in the capture of Constantinople, the conquest of the greater part of the Byzantine Empire, and the foundation of the...
 and Henry of Flanders
Henry of Flanders

Henry , was the second emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople.He was a younger son of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut , and Margaret I, Countess of Flanders, sister of Philip, Count of Flanders, count of Flanders....
. Her husband, Peter of Courtenay, was third emperor of the Latin Empire (also known as Romania, not to be confused with modern Romania
Romania

Romania is a country located in Southeastern Europe Central Europe, North of the Balkan Peninsula, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian Mountains, bordering on the Black Sea....
), and had been followed by his son Robert of Courtenay
Robert of Courtenay

Robert of Courtenay , emperor of the Latin Empire, or of Constantinople, was a younger son of the emperor Peter II of Courtenay, and a descendant of the French king, Louis VI of France, while his mother Yolanda of Flanders was a sister of Baldwin I of Constantinople and Henry of Flanders, the first and second emperors of the Latin Empire....
, on whose death in 1228 the succession passed to Baldwin, then an 11-year-old boy.

The barons chose John of Brienne
John of Brienne

John of Brienne was a French nobleman who became King of Jerusalem by marriage, and was later invited to become Latin Empire.He was the second son of Erard II of Brienne, count of Brienne, in Champagne, France, and of Agnes de Montfaucon....
 (titular king of the Kingdom of Jerusalem
Kingdom of Jerusalem

The Kingdom of Jerusalem was a Christianity kingdom established in the Levant in 1099 after the First Crusade. It lasted nearly two hundred years, from 1099 until 1291 when the last remaining possession, Acre, Israel, was destroyed by the Mamluks....
) as emperor-regent for life; Baldwin was to rule the Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
tic possessions of the empire when he reached the age of twenty. He was also to marry Marie of Brienne
Marie of Brienne

Marie of Brienne was the Empress consort of Baldwin II of Courtenay, Latin Empire of Constantinople....
, daughter of John and his third wife Berenguela of Leon
Berenguela of León

Berenguela of Leon was the third wife but only Empress consort of John of Brienne, Latin Empire of Constantinople....
, and on John's death to enjoy the full imperial sovereignty. The marriage contract was carried out in 1234. Since the death of Baldwin's uncle, Emperor Henry of Flanders
Henry of Flanders

Henry , was the second emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople.He was a younger son of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut , and Margaret I, Countess of Flanders, sister of Philip, Count of Flanders, count of Flanders....
 in 1216, the Latin Empire had declined and the Byzantine
Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire and Eastern Roman Empire are conventional names used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on its capital of Constantinople....
 (Nicene
Empire of Nicaea

The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the three Byzantine Greeks states founded by the aristocracy of the Byzantine Empire that fled after Constantinople was conquered during the Fourth Crusade....
) power advanced; and the hopes that John of Brienne might restore it were disappointed.

The realm which Baldwin governed was little more than the city of Constantinople. His financial situation was desperate, and his life was chiefly occupied in begging at Europe
Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
an courts. He went to the West in 1236, visited Rome
Rome

Rome is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city, with 2,724,347 residents in an urban area of some ....
, France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 and Flanders
Flanders

Flanders is a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. Over the course of history, the geographical territory that was called "Flanders" has varied....
, trying to raise money and men to recover the lost territory of his realm. In 1237, Baldwin II pawned the Crown of Thorns
Crown of Thorns

In Christianity, the Crown of Thorns, one of the instruments of the Passion , was woven of thorn branches and placed on Jesus before Crucifixion of Jesus....
 to a Venetian merchant for 13,134 gold pieces. His efforts met with success, and in 1240 he returned to Constantinople (through Germany
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 and Hungary
Hungary

Hungary , officially in English the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in the Carpathian Basin of Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia....
) at the head of a considerable army. Circumstances hindered him from accomplishing anything with this help, and in 1245 he traveled again to the West, first to Italy
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
 and then to France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
, where he spent two years. The empress Marie and Philip of Toucy governed during his absence. He was happy to be able to get money from King Louis IX
Louis IX of France

Louis IX , commonly Saint Louis, was List of French monarchs from 1226 to his death. He was also Counts of Artois from 1226 to 1237. Born at Poissy, near Paris, he was a member of the House of Capet and the son of Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile....
 in exchange for relics. In 1249 he was with King Louis at Damietta
Damietta

Damietta, Damiata, or Domyat is a harbor and the capital of the governorate of Domyat Governorate, Egypt. It is located at the intersection between the Mediterranean Sea and the Nile, about north of Cairo....
.

The extremity of his financial straits reduced him soon afterwards to handing over his only son, Philip
Philip of Courtenay

Philip I of Courtenay was titular Latin Empire 1273–1283. He was the son of Baldwin II of Constantinople and Marie of Brienne.In his youth, his father was forced to mortgage him to Republic of Venice merchants to raise money for the support of his empire, which was lost to the Empire of Nicaea in 1261....
, to Venetian
Republic of Venice

The Most Serene Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice . It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century AD until the year 1797....
 merchants as a pledge for loans of money. Philip was later redeemed by Alfonso X of Castile
Alfonso X of Castile

Alfonso X was a Castilian monarch who ruled as the Kingdom of Castile, Kingdom of Le?n and Kingdom of Galicia from 1252 until his death. He also was elected List of German monarchs in 1257, though the Papacy prevented his confirmation....
. The rest of his reign was spent by Baldwin in mendicant tours in western Europe
Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
. In 1261 Constantinople was captured by Michael VIII Palaeologus, and Baldwin’s rule came to an end. He escaped in a Venetian galley to Negropont, and then proceeded to Athens
Athens

Athens , the Capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the List of cities by time of continuous habitation, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years....
, thence to Apulia
Apulia

Apulia is a region in southeastern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Otranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south....
, finally to France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
. As titular emperor, his role was still the same, to beg help from the western powers. In 1267 he went to Italy
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
; his hopes were centred on Charles of Anjou. Charles seriously entertained the idea of conquering Constantinople, though various complications hindered him from realizing it. To this intent, he signed the Treaty of Viterbo
Treaty of Viterbo

The Treaty of Viterbo was a pair of agreements made by Charles I of Sicily with Baldwin II of Constantinople and William II Villehardouin, Prince of Achaea, on 27 May, 1267, which transferred much of the rights to the Latin Empire from Baldwin to Charles....
 with Baldwin (May 1267). During the next year Baldwin and his son Philip lived on pensions from Charles. In October 1273 Philip married Beatrice, daughter of Charles, at Foggia
Foggia

Foggia is a city of Puglia, Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known as the "granary of Italy"....
. A few days later Baldwin died. Under Baldwin II, Constantinople's population had fallen to a mere 35,000 people.