EncyclopediaBaldwin II
Baldwin II (Baldwin of Le Bourg), d. 1131, Latin king of Jerusalem (1118–31), count of Edessa (1100–1131); cousin and successor of Baldwin I. He accompanied Godfrey of Bouillon on the First Crusade and was captured (1104) by the Muslims. He was released in 1108. As king of Jerusalem, he spent most of his reign warring with the Turks in N Syria. He was a prisoner from 1123 to 1124; Eustace Garnier, his regent during his captivity, captured Tyre. In Baldwin's reign the Latin principality of Antioch was reduced to dependence on the kingdom of Jerusalem. Baldwin's daughter Melisende married (1129) Fulk of Anjou, who succeeded Baldwin.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
