Leo II, King of Armenia

Leo II or Leon II (occasionally numbered Leo III;

Early life

Leo was born in 1236, the son of King Hetoum I and Queen Isabella. Hetoum and Isabella's marriage in 1226 had been forced on them by Hetoum's father Constantine of Baberon, who had cleared the way for Hetoum by arranging the murder of Queen Isabella's first husband. They had six children, of which Leo was the eldest. One of his sisters was Sibylla of Armenia, who was married to Bohemond VI of Antioch to bring peace between Armenia and Antioch.

In 1262, Leo married

In 1266, while their father king Hetoum I was away to visit the Mongol court, Leo and his younger brother Thoros fought to repel a massive army of

"The king [Leo II] properly maintains justice in his land, and is a vassal of the Tartars. There are many cities and villages, and everything in abundance.(...) In the past, men were courageous at war, but today they are vile and chetive, and don't have other talents than drink properly."

— Marco Polo "Le Livre des Merveilles"[4]

In 1275, the Mamluk sultan Baybars invaded Cilicia for a second time. The following year, Armenia fought off an invasion by the Turkoman tribes, but the Constable Sempad, Leo's uncle, was killed in combat.

Mongol alliance

In 1281, Leo joined the Mongols in their invasion of Syria, but they were vanquished at the Second Battle of Homs. Leo had to sue for peace, and in 1285 obtained a 10-year truce in exchange for important territorial concessions in favour of the Mamluks.^[5]

Leo died in 1289 from arsenic, and was succeeded by his son

Descendants

During twenty-one years of marriage Leo had sixteen children by his wife

1. Son (b. 15 January 1262/14 January 1263 – d. young).
2. Constantine (b. June 1265 – d. young).
3. Fimi [Euphemia] (b. ca. 14 January 1266 – d. young).
4. Hethum II (b. ca. 13 January 1267 – murdered 7 November 1307), King of Armenia (ruled 1289 to 1293, 1294 to 1297, 1299 to 1307).^[6]
5. Isabella [Zabel] (b. 13 January 1269/12 January 1270 – d. bef. 1273).
6. Thoros III (b. October 1270 – murdered 23 July 1298), King of Armenia (ruled 1293 to 1298).^[6]
7. Ruben (b. 13 January 1272/12 January 1273 – d. young)
8. Isabella [Zabel] (b. 12 January 1273/11 January 1274 – d. bef. 1276)
9. Sempad (b. 12 January 1276/11 January 1277 – d. 1310 or 1311), King of Armenia (ruled 1297 to 1299).^[6]
10. Isabella [Zabel] (b. 12 January 1276/11 January 1277 – murdered May 1323), twin with Sempad; married in 1293 with Amalric of Lusignan, Lord of Tyre, son of King Hugh III of Cyprus.^[6]
11. Constantine I (b. 11 January 1277/10 January 1278 – d. aft. 1308), King of Armenia (ruled 1299).^[6]
12. Andronicus II Palaeologus
    .
13. Theophanu (b. 11 January 1278/10 January 1279 – d. 1296), twin with Rita; renamed Theodora upon her betrothal; she died en route to marry Theodore, son of
    Thessaly
    .
14. Nerses (b. 11 January 1279/10 Jan 1280 – d. 26 May 1301), a priest.
15. Oshin (b. 10 January 1283/9 January 1284 – murdered 20 July 1320), King of Armenia (ruled 1308 to 1320).^[6]
16. Alinakh (b. 10 January 1283/9 January 1284 – d. 28 August 1310), twin with Oshin; Lord of Lampron and Tarsus.

Notes

References

• Boase, T. S. R. (1978). The Cilician Kingdom of Armenia. Edinburgh: Scottish Academic Press.
  ISBN 0-7073-0145-9
  .
• Chahin, Mack (2001). The Kingdom of Armenia: A History. Richmond: Curzon.
  ISBN 0700714529
  .
• Edwards, Robert W. (1987). The Fortifications of Armenian Cilicia: Dumbarton Oaks Studies 23. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University.
  ISBN 0-88402-163-7
  .
• Runciman, Steven (1954). A History of the Crusades, Volume III: The Kingdom of Acre and the Later Crusades. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Toumanoff, C. (1966). "Armenia and Georgia". Cambridge Medieval History, vol. IV.
• Stewart, Angus Donal (2001). The Armenian Kingdom and the Mamluks: War and diplomacy during the reigns of Het'um II (1289–1307).
  ISBN 90-04-12292-3
  .