Conrad of Montferrat

Conrad of Montferrat (c. 1146 – 28 April 1192) was an Italian nobleman, one of the major participants in the Third Crusade. He was the de facto King of Jerusalem (as Conrad I) by virtue of his marriage to Isabella I of Jerusalem from 24 November 1190, but officially elected only in 1192, days before his death. He was also the eighth Marquess of Montferrat from 1191.

Conrad was the second son of William V of Montferrat and Judith of Babenberg. In his early career, he established himself as a skilled diplomat and general in the Byzantine Empire. After fighting on their behalf against Frederick Barbarossa, Conrad was awarded the title of Caesar by Isaac II Angelos. However, having previously sworn to take the cross, he left for the Kingdom of Jerusalem in 1187 shortly after the Battle of Hattin.

Upon his arrival in Tyre, Conrad organized the city's defenses and successfully repelled Saladin's forces. When Guy of Lusignan, the king of Jerusalem by right of his wife Queen Sibylla, was released from captivity in 1189, Conrad refused to allow him to enter the city. He was convinced to join Guy at the Siege of Acre later that year.

When Sibylla died of disease in 1190, Guy no longer had a claim to the throne, whose heiress was Sibylla's half-sister Isabella. The nobility consequently forced Isabella to annul her marriage to Humphrey IV of Toron so that she could marry Conrad instead. The succession of the kingdom would finally be settled in 1192, when Conrad was formally elected king. Just days later, however, Conrad would be killed by the Order of Assassins.

Source: Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conrad_of_Montferrat