Hethum I of Armenia

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Image:Hetoum_and_Zabel.jpeg


King Hetoum (right) and Queen Zabel (left) on a silver dram

Hethum (or Hetoum) I of Armenia (Armenian: Հեթում Առաջին) ruled the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia from 1226 to 1270. He was the son of Constantine, Lord of Babaron and Partzapert (a third-cousin of Leo II of Armenia).

In 1226 he became the second husband of Isabella of Armenia (died c.1252). The marriage, which was against Isabella's will, took place on June 14, 1226 and resulted in Hethum becoming co-ruler. The couple had six children:

  1. Leo III (died 1289)
  2. Thoros (died in 1266 fighting the Mamluks)
  3. Sibylle (died 1290), who married Bohemund VI of Antioch
  4. Euphemie (died 1309), who married to Julien Grenier, Lord of Sidon
  5. Rita
  6. Maria, who married Guy d'Ibelin

His sister Maria married John of Ibelin around 1240. During Hethum's reign, he formed an alliance with the Mongols against the Sultans of Aleppo and Egypt. However, during the last years of his reign the Kingdom battled against the Mamluks, with Antioch (virtually an Armenian dependency) being overrun in May 1268. He abdicated in 1270, and lived out the rest of his life in a monastery.

[edit] Bibliography

  • Boase, T. S. R. (1978). The Cilician Kingdom of Armenia. Edinburgh: Scottish Academic Press. ISBN 0707301459.
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