Leo I, prince of Armenia

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Prince Leo I of Armenia

Armenian: Լեիոն Ա Ռուբինյան, Հայոց իշխան
Also Known As: "Lewon", "Levon I", "Leon I", "Leon Rubenida"
Birthdate:
Death: February 14, 1140 (45-54)
Constantinople, Byzantine Empire
Immediate Family:

Son of Kostandin I Prince of Armenia and N.N.
Husband of Cécile de Réthel
Father of .... of Armenia; .... of Armenia; Constantine of Cilicia; Thoros II, prince of Armenia; Stephen of Armenia and 2 others
Brother of Thoros I of Armenia; Daughter of Constantine and Beatrice d'Arménie

Occupation: Lord of Armenian Cilicia
Managed by: Erin Ishimoticha
Last Updated:

About Leo I, prince of Armenia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_I,_Prince_of_Armenia

Leo I, Prince of Armenia

Leo I[1](Armenian: Լեիոն Ա), also Levon I[2][3] or Leon I,[4] (unknown[2] – Constantinople, February 14, 1140[2]%29 was the fifth lord of Armenian Cilicia[3] or “Lord of the Mountains”[2] (1129[2][3]/1130[1]-1137[1][3]). ...

Marriage and children# (1100–1103) The name and the origin of his wife are not known with certainty.[2] It is possible that his wife was a daughter of Count Hugh I of Rethel, or she may have been the daughter of Gabriel of Melitene.[2]

  1. (?) unnamed daughter, who was the wife of a “Frankish knight from Antioch”, and mother of the Regent Thomas[2]
  2. unnamed daughter, the wife of Vasil Dgha[2]
  3. (?)[2] Constantine[1] (? – Edessa, 1138/1144)[2]
  4. Thoros II of Cilicia (? – February 6, 1169)[2]
  5. Stephen (before 1110 – February 7, 1165)[2]
  6. Mleh I of Cilicia (before 1120 – Sis, May 15, 1175)[2]
  7. Roupen (after 1120 – Constantinople, 1141)[2] (Leo’s second marriage proposed by Rüdt-Collenberg is speculative.)[2]

Born 1190 by merge of -https://www.genealogieonline.nl/en/genealogie-richard-remme/I238335... /!\


-http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/ARMENIA.htm#LeoIMountainsB

LEWON, son of KOSTANDIN Lord of Vaghka and Partzerpert & his wife --- (-Constantinople 14 Feb 1140). Matthew of Edessa names "Thoros et Léon" as the two sons of "le grand prince arménien Constantin, fils de Roupen"[395]. The Lignages d'Outremer name "Thoros et Leon" as the two sons of Kostand[396]. According to Iskenderian, Lewon ruled in the eastern part of "the Mountains" during the lifetime of his brother Thoros I[397]. The original of this source has not been consulted, so the basis for the proposition is not known. However, it may be based on the primary sources quoted below which supposedly justify the identity of Lewon's wife. If that is correct, the argument is circular as there is considerable doubt whether these sources have been interpreted correctly. No information about Lewon's pre-accession career has been identified, although Boase suggests that "in 1118 Thoros sent a contingent of troops under his brother Leon to aid Roger of Antioch in the capture of Azaz"[398]. He succeeded his nephew in 1129 as LEWON I Lord of the Mountains. The Chronicle attributed to King Hethum II records the death in [17 Feb 1129/16 Feb 1130] of "Toros paron of the Armenians" and the succession of "his brother Lewon"[399]. Bohémond II Prince of Antioch invaded Lewon's territories in Feb 1130, but his forces were massacred by the Danishmend Emir Ghazi with whom Lewon had entered an alliance[400]. Lewon captured Mamistra, Tarsus and Adana from Antioch in 1131, and Sarventikar from Baudouin Lord of Marash in 1135[401]. The Lignages d'Outremer record that Lewon captured "des capitales de la Cilicie, Mamistra et Tarse"[402]. Raymond Prince of Antioch invaded Armenian territory in 1136, with Baudouin Lord of Marash, but they were driven back by Lewon I who was, however, taken prisoner by Baudouin of Marash and sent in captivity to Antioch, although he brought his freedom in 1137[403]. Emperor Ioannes II invaded Cilicia, captured Tarsus, Adana and Mamistra, deposed Lewon I and took him as a prisoner to Constantinople in 1139 with his wife and family. The Chronicle attributed to King Hethum II records that "the Byzantine emperor Porphyrogenitus took Cilicia from paron Lewon" in [13 Feb 1137/14 Feb 1138] and that the Byzantines "bound Lewon and his sons and sent them to Constantinople"[404]. The Chronicle of Grégoire dates the capture to [Aug] 1137 and specifies that "le prince arménien Léon, ses fils et sa femme" were captured and taken to Constantinople where Lewon died[405]. The Lignages d'Outremer is more specific, recording that Lewon and his two sons "Thoros et Rupin" were captured by Emperor Ioannes and taken in chains to Constantinople, were released "plusieurs années plus tard" although they remained in the royal palace, but that Lewon and his son Thoros were imprisoned again after Rupen was blinded, and that Lewon died in prison[406]. Lewon's date of death is calculated from the Chronographie of Samuel d'Ani which records that he lived twelve years after succeeding his brother[407].

m [firstly] ( [1100/03] ) ---. The name and origin of the wife of Lewon I are not known with certainty. Two sources hint at her possible identity. Firstly, Orderic Vitalis refers to Lewon as "fils de Turold des Montagnes [incorrect] et oncle de la femme de Boémond" (referring to Bohémond II Prince of Antioch)[408]. Secondly, "Cæcilia dominia Tarsi et soror regis Balduini II" donated property to the church of St Marie, Josaphat by charter dated 1126, with the agreement of Bohémond II Prince of Antioch[409]. Orderic Vitalis relied on contemporary crusader chroniclers for his narrative of events in the Levant. However, the origin of this specific passage concerning Lewon's family has not been traced to the most likely sources, William of Tyre, Fulcher of Chartres or Baudri of Bourgeuil. The wife of Prince Bohémond II was Alix, daughter of Baudouin II King of Jerusalem, who had previously been count of Edessa and was the younger son of the Comte de Rethel. No relationship between Lewon and King Baudouin has been identified in Lewon's paternal ancestry, although the known details of Lewon's paternal family are so sparse that it is not impossible that such a relationship existed (maybe more remote than a strict interpretation of the word "oncle" would imply). Rüdt-Collenberg suggests that the relationship was through Lewon's wife's family[410], and that Lewon's wife was therefore --- de Rethel, daughter of Hugues [I] Comte de Rethel & his wife Mélisende de Montlhéry. He also refers to her possible name as "Béatrice", but the source on which this is based is unclear from his notes[411]. Turning to the 1126 charter, Rüdt-Collenberg suggests that "Cæcilia dominia Tarsi et soror regis Balduini II" also refers to the wife of Lewon[412], although he does not explain the difference of name. "Dominia Tarsi" certainly suggests a reference to the ruler of Cilician Armenia. Armenian sources record that Lewon's brother Thoros was still "Lord of the Mountains" in 1126 (see above). No direct evidence has been found that Thoros shared power with his younger brother Lewon (apart from the reference to Iskenderian's suggestion to this effect as noted above). The marriage of Thoros/Lewon with the sister of Baudouin II King of Jerusalem would have taken place in the early 1100s, assuming that it was a first marriage, when Baudouin was still count of Edessa. It would probably have taken place before Baudouin's period of imprisonment from 1104 to 1107 which followed the battle of Harran. It is clear from his own marriage that Baudouin followed a policy of rapprochement with his Armenian neighbours. However, it is more likely that he would have contracted a marriage alliance with the older son of the ruler in Cilicia, Thoros, rather than his younger brother Lewon whose prospects must not have been good at the time. So what of the known sisters of Baudouin II King of Jerusalem? William of Tyre names only two, "Mahaldam" (called Mathilde in another source) and "Hodierna"[413], although it is possible that there were more who were otherwise unrecorded. Mathilde was still married to Eudes de Vitry in 1126 so can be excluded. The younger sister Hodierna had lost her second husband Roger Prince of Antioch in 1118. It is not impossible that she married again, either Lewon or his older brother Thoros, although the name change from Hodierna is difficult to explain. If this is correct she must have been a later wife who, the chronology suggests, was unlikely to have been the mother of the known children of whichever brother she married. This hypothesis could explain the consent given by Bohémond II Prince of Antioch to the 1126 donation as he would have been her previous husband's successor. In conclusion, the evidence for the precise identification of Lewon's wife is uncertain and confused, although many secondary sources, such as Europäische Stammtafeln[414], show the Rethel marriage as definite without any sign of doubt. There remains a completely different possibility. It is possible that the two sources should not be read together and that they refer to two different people. If we consider Orderic Vitalis in isolation, it is possible that Lewon's wife was [--- of Melitene, daughter of Gabriel Lord of Melitene ], who would have been the sister of Morfia of Melitene, who was the wife of Baudouin II. This is just as consistent with the passage in Orderic Vitalis as the proposed Rethel origin, although it should be emphasised that this is completely speculative.

[m secondly ---. Lewon’s second marriage is speculative, proposed by Rüdt-Collenberg[415] firstly because “a lady of such quality" as Lewon's (presumed) [first] wife would not have been taken as a prisoner to Constantinople in 1139, and secondly because the Chronicle of Vahran Rabuni of Edessa states that Lewon's sons Mleh, Stephané (and Kostand) "went to their maternal uncle [Joscelin II de Courtenay] in Edessa" when Lewon himself and his younger sons were taken in captivity to Constantinople. Although this statement could imply that Lewon's other sons did not share the same "maternal uncle", it could also mean simply that the older sons were able to escape while their father and brothers were captured. It should also be noted that the younger son Thoros sought refuge with Joscelin as well after he escaped from Constantinople. One difficulty with using this statement to corroborate the fact of Lewon's supposed second marriage is that Joscelin de Courtenay was the first cousin of the brothers, not their maternal uncle, assuming that it is correct that he was the son of their father's sister Beatrice. Lewon I's supposed second marriage should be viewed with caution. Assuming this second marriage is correct, nothing is known about this wife except that she must have died after 1139 assuming that she was the wife who was taken with Lewon to Constantinople in captivity.]

  Lewon & his [first] wife had [seven] children: