Hugh VIII of Lusignan

Hugh VIII of Lusignan
Mail-coated Nur al-Din Zengi, with bare legs and an open helmet, fleeing on horseback from two knights (Geoffrey Martel and Hugh de Lusignan the elder) pursuing him on war horses, at the Battle of Harim. "Histoire d'Outremer" (1232-1261) - BL Yates Thompson MS 12
Born	1106–1110 or after 1125 Poitou, France
Died	1165 or 1171 Holy Land
Spouse	Bourgogne or Burgondie de Rancon
Children	Hugues de Lusignan Robert de Lusignan Geoffrey of Lusignan Pierre de Lusignan Aimery, King of Cyprus Guy, King of Jerusalem Guillaume of Lusignan
Parent(s)	Hugh VII Sarracena de Lezay

Hugh VIII the Old of Lusignan or (French: Hugues le Vieux) was the Seigneur de Lusignan, Couhé, and Château-Larcher on his father's death in 1151. He went on crusade, was captured at battle of Harim, and died in captivity.

Biography

Born in Poitou, Hugh was the eldest son of Hugh VII and of Sarracena de Lezay.^[1] He married Burgondie de Rancon, Dame de Fontenay,^[2] daughter of Geoffroy de Rancon, Seigneur de Taillebourg and wife Fossefie (Falsifie), Dame de Moncontour, by whom Hugh also became Seigneur de Fontenay: she died on April 11, 1169. He renounced the land of Jouarenne, stating by charter that it was the property of the abbey of Nouaille.^[3]

In 1163, Hugh went on crusade to the Holy Land and participated in the Battle of Harim, where he was taken prisoner.^[4] He died in captivity.^[4]

Children

Hugh and Burgondie had:

• Hugh de Lusignan, Co-Seigneur de Lusignan in 1164 (c. 1141–1169),^[2] married before 1162 Orengarde N, who died in 1169, leaving two sons who were infants at the time of his death
  • Hugh IX of Lusignan^[2]
  • Raoul I de Lusignan, Count of Eu^[2]
• Robert de Lusignan, died young c. 1150
• Geoffrey of Lusignan (bef. 1150 – May, 1216),^[2] Seigneur of Moncontour and Seigneur de Soubise, Seigneur de Vouvent, de Mervent by first marriage, Count of Jaffa and Ascalon on July 28, 1191 (he relinquished these titles upon his return from the Holy Land in 1193), who fought in the Siege of Acre. Married firstly Humberge de Limoges, daughter of Aimar V of Limoges and wife Sarra de Cornouailles, with whom he had a son named Hugo, and who probably died young. He married Eustache de Chabot, Dame de Vouvent et Dame de Mervent (d. after 1200).
• Peter de Lusignan (bef. 1155 – aft. December, 1174), witnessed a charter in Antioch in 1174, but is otherwise not documented. He died probably as a Priest.
• Aimery de Lusignan, born about 1145, died 1205. He succeeded his younger brother Guy as ruler of Cyprus; later he was crowned King of Cyprus, the first of the Lusignan dynasty, and eventually also became King of Jerusalem.^[2]
• Guy of Lusignan, died 1194. He was regent and afterwards King of Jerusalem. After the loss of Jerusalem he became Lord of Cyprus.^[2]
• William de Lusignan or de Valence, born after 1163, betrothed to Beatrix de Courtenay, daughter of Joscelin III of Edessa, in 1186. The marriage does not seem to have taken place. He died before 1208.

References

1. Painter 1957, p. 38.
2. Painter 1955, p. 376.
3. Painter 1957, p. 40.
4. Handyside 2015, p. 72.

Sources

• Painter, Sidney (1955). "The Houses of Lusignan and Chatellerault 1150-1250". Speculum. 30 (3 July). The University of Chicago Press: 374–384. doi:10.2307/2848076. JSTOR 2848076. S2CID 162997835.
• Painter, Sidney (1957). "The Lords of Lusignan in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries". Speculum. 32, No. 1, (Jan.) (1). The University of Chicago Press: 27–47. doi:10.2307/2849244. JSTOR 2849244. S2CID 161153870.
• Handyside, Philip (2015). The Old French William of Tyre. Brill.