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It is (not only) the will of god»: the king-doms of Cyprus and Cilician Armenia... 161

toward the Templars by objecting to the new government and taking
arms against the knights, eventually forcing the Templars to sell their
new investment, only recently purchased from Richard .
33
In 1192, Guy of Lusignan’s rule began in these conditions. He had
to keep the rebellious population under control, strengthen his au-
thority and give alms to those who had lost their lands in the Eastern
Mediterranean and settled in Cyprus . To take the population under
34
control, Guy and his successors adopted a policy of avoiding offense
to the native residents of the island . Economically, however, Guy’s
35
fiscal policies and significant donations endangered the financial state
of the island - a situation that Aimery had to face when he succeeded
his brother. As a suzerain, Aimery was obliged to protect and assist
his inferiors in an atmosphere in which economic conditions were al-
ready fragile and in which total economic collapse could easily ruin
the chances of the Lusignan venture. The great majority of the Greek
nobility on the island had fled and only a small proportion of those
who remained continued as local leaders under the new government .
36
Therefore, it was necessary to support the only remaining institution
with genuine, socially-embedded power in Cyprus, the Church . To
37
secure its political, economic, and administrative position in the East-
ern Mediterranean, the establishment of the Latin Church and a col-
laborative relationship between the nobility and clergy was an abso-
lute must for the Lusignan family, and Aimery was smart enough to
see the advantages of cooperation with the papacy to this end .
38
While Aimery focused on strengthening his position, high on the
papacy’s agenda and a matter of great urgency for it was restoring the
Kingdom of Jerusalem. The acquisition of Cyprus was an opportunity
to achieve this end. Additionally, Saladin’s sultanate had hitherto been
in turmoil but was now stabilizing as his two sons succeeded him in
1196, which changed political conditions in favor of the Muslims.

33 For the sale of the island, see Rhc Occ., pp. 189-190; M.R. Morgan, (ed.), La Con-
tiunation de Guillaume de Tyr 1184-1197, Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres,
Paris, 1982, pp. 134-137; N. Coureas, The Latin Church in Cyprus cit., pp. 121-122; For
the Templar rule and the Greeks on the island, see, P. Edbury the Templars in Cyprus
cit., pp. 189-195. For the documentation on the conquest of Cyprus see P. Edbury, The
1191 Conquest of Cyprus Revisited, cit.
34 J. Phillips, The Latin East, 1098-1291 in J. Riley-Smith, (ed.), The Oxford Illus-
trated History of The Crusades, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2001, pp. 126-127.
35 A. Nicolaou-Konnari, C. Schabel, Introduction to Cyprus Society and Culture, p. 13.
36 N. Coureas, The Latin Church in Cyprus cit., p. 3; For a detailed discussion on the
Orthodox Church at the time of the beginning of the Frankish rule on the island, see C.
Schabel, Religion cit., pp. 184-218.
37 N. Coureas, The Latin Church in Cyprus cit., p. 3.
38 In 1195, Aimery granted some lands including a chapel in Nicosia, see Rrh, n. 723.

Mediterranea - ricerche storiche - Anno XIX - Aprile 2022
ISSN 1824-3010 (stampa) ISSN 1828-230X (online)