Constantine of Baberon
Constantine of Baberon (died c. 1263) was a powerful Armenian noble of the Het‛umid family. He was the son of Vassag and the father of King Het‛um I, who ruled the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia from 1226 to 1270. Constantine played a pivotal role in placing his son on the throne by engineering the murder of Philip, the husband of Isabella, Queen of Armenia. He tricked Philip’s father, Bohemond IV of Antioch, to search for his son at Amouda rather than at Sis, where he was being tortured and poisoned. He then took his army to the gates of Silifke Castle, forced its Frankish lords to surrender Isabella, and arranged the marriage, making his son the first Het‛umid ruler of the Armenian Kingdom.[1]
Constantine began construction on the elaborate baronial apartments at Baberon (Çandır Castle), which were still standing in 1979.[1] Nearby, at a site known today as Kız Kilisesi near Gösne, he built a monastic retreat with an ornate chapel whose dedicatory inscription is dated to 1241.[2][3]
Constantine, also known as the Grand Baron Constantine, was married to Alix Pahlavouni[4] (a third-cousin of Leo II), with whom he fathered:
- Hethum I of Armenia
- Sempad the Constable
- John the Bishop of Sis
- Ochine of Korykos, father of the historian Hayton of Corycus
- Maria, who married John of Ibelin, Count of Jaffa and Ascalon, the famous jurist
- Stephanie, married in 1237 to King Henry I of Cyprus[5]
Notes
- 1 2 Edwards, Robert W. (1987). The Fortifications of Armenian Cilicia: Dumbarton Oaks Studies XXIII. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University. pp. 59, 102–110, 224, pls.53a–56b, 292b–295a. ISBN 0-88402-163-7.
- ↑ Robert W. Edwards, “Ecclesiastical Architecture in the Fortifications of Armenian Cilicia: First Report,” Dumbarton Oaks Papers 36, 1982, pp.172-173, pls.36-37.
- ↑ Robert W. Edwards, “Ecclesiastical Architecture in the Fortifications of Armenian Cilicia: Second Report,” Dumbarton Oaks Papers 37, 1983, pp.144-145, pls.86-91.
- ↑ In the Dictionary of the Middle Ages she is referred to as "Dame Alise", and Constantine is "Constantine Payl"
- ↑ Edbury, John of Ibelin and the Kingdom of Jerusalem, p. 66, 100
References
- "Le Royaume Armenien de Cilicie", Claude Mutafian, Editions CNRS, Paris, ISBN 2-271-05105-3, p. 80
- American Council of Learned Societies (1989). "Smbat Sparapet". Dictionary of the Middle Ages. Charles Scribner's Sons, reproduced in History Resource Center.