Conrad of Montferrat, King of Jerusalem, was stabbed to death in broad daylight on 28th April, 1192. He was king of the crusader kingdom by marriage, and had been unanimously elected on 20th April, 1192. Conrad was a respected warrior who had done much to save the kingdom from Saladin in 1187.
A week later, Conrad’s pregnant widow was married to Richard I’s nephew. Suspicions spread that Richard, one of the leaders of the Third Crusade, had plotted Conrad’s murder. On his return journey, Richard was arrested by Duke Leopold of Austria and handed to Heinrich VI, the Holy Roman Emperor, as a prisoner.
This extraordinary drama had a local impact when the monks of Meaux Abbey opened a staith at the mouth of the River Hull, to export a year’s worth of wool clippings from Yorkshire Cistercian monasteries to help pay the King’s ransom.
Baudouin de Béthune, a knight from Artois, supported King Richard during his imprisonment, and was rewarded with marriage to the formidable heiress, Hawise, Countess of Aumâle and Lady of Holderness. Music will add to this story: Baudouin’s brother, Conon, was one of the great trouvères (Northern French song-writers) of the time.
Dr. Marianne M Gilchrist is a researcher specialising in medieval and art history, with a strong interest in early music. She is a member of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East. Locally, she has worked on heritage projects at Hull Minster and the Castle Street excavations.
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