Alice of Montferrat

Queen consort of Cyprus

Alice of Montferrat

Queen consort of Cyprus
Reign| 1229–1232

Died| c. 1232
Burial|

Cathedral of Saint Sophia

Spouse| Henry I of Cyprus
House| Aleramici
Father| William VI, Marquis of Montferrat
Mother| Berta of Clavesana

Alice of Montferrat (French: Alix, Italian: Alasia; died c. 1232) was a Lombard noblewoman who was the queen of Cyprus by marriage to King Henry I from 1229 until her death.

## Life

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Alice was the daughter of William VI of Montferrat and Berta of Clavesana, hailing from Piedmont in the Holy Roman Empire. It is not known when she was born.[1] Her father was one of the most loyal vassals of Emperor Frederick II,[2] and the House of Montferrat was closely associated with both the Hohenstaufen emperors and the Lusignan kings of Cyprus.[3]

### Marriage & death

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Frederick chose Alice to be the bride of the young King Henry.[4] Alice's royal match was a sign of the reconciliation of the emperor and her brother, Boniface II of Montferrat.[3] Alice and Henry were married by proxy in 1229,[5] and she was escorted to Cyprus by the emperor's supporters.[4] The emperor regarded himself as the overlord of the Kingdom of Cyprus but was opposed by the nobility headed by the House of Ibelin. The War of the Lombards ensued.[6] Once in Cyprus, Alice was crowned queen. Henry, then aged 12, was too young for the marriage to be consummated.[7]

Fortress of Kyrenia

Alice was in Kyrenia with the Lombard faction when the Ibelins laid a 10-month-long siege, while Henry joined the besiegers.[8] Loyal to Frederick's cause, Alice was in Kyrenia voluntarily. She became ill during the siege and died between 1231 and early 1232.[9] Fighting was interrupted so that her corpse could be ceremoniously handed over to Henry for royal burial.[4] She was interred in the Cathedral of Saint Sophia by the archbishop of Nicosia, Eustorgius of Montaigu.[9] Henry had never seen her living,[4] and the diplomatic relations between the houses of Montferrat and Lusignan lapsed.[9]

## References

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1. ^ Haberstumpf 1995, p. 123.
2. ^ Runciman 1989, p. 192.
3. ^ a b Haberstumpf 1995, p. 122.
4. ^ a b c d Runciman 1989, p. 202.
5. ^ Haberstumpf 1995, pp. 123–124.
6. ^ Runciman 1989, p. 85.
7. ^ Haberstumpf 1995, p. 124.
8. ^ Runciman 1989, pp. 202, 203.
9. ^ a b c Haberstumpf 1995, p. 125.

## Sources

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* Edbury, Peter W. (1994). The Kingdom of Cyprus and the Crusades. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-45837-5.
* Haberstumpf, Walter (1995). Dinastie europee nel Mediterraneo orientale: i Monferrato e i Savoia nei secoli XII-XV (in Italian). Scriptorium. ISBN 8886231253.
* Runciman, Steven (1989). A History of the Crusades, Volume III: The Kingdom of Acre and the Later Crusades. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-06163-6.

Royal titles

Vacant

Title last held by

Alice of Champagne |  Queen consort of Cyprus
1229–1232  | Vacant

Title next held by

Stephanie of Lampron

* v
* t
* e

Royal consorts of the Kingdom of Cyprus

* Eschiva of Ibelin
* Isabella I of Jerusalem
* Alice of Champagne
* Alice of Montferrat
* Stephanie of Lampron
* Plaisance of Antioch
* Isabella, Lady of Beirut
* Isabella of Ibelin
* Constance of Sicily
* Alice of Ibelin
* Eleanor of Aragon
* Valentina Visconti
* Helvis of Brunswick-Grubenhagen
* Anglesia Visconti
* Charlotte of Bourbon
* Amadea Palaiologina of Montferrat
* Helena Palaiologina
* Catherine Cornaro

*[c.]: circa
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