In the lateByzantine period, Edessa became the centre of intellectual life within theSyriac Orthodox Church. As such it also became the centre for the translation ofAncient Greek philosophy intoSyriac, which provided a stepping stone for the subsequent translations intoArabic. When thecrusades arrived, it was still important enough to tempt a side-expedition after thesiege of Antioch.
Baldwin of Boulogne, the firstcount of Edessa, becameking of Jerusalem, and subsequent counts were his cousins. Unlike the other Crusader states, the county was landlocked. It was remote from the other states and was not on particularly good terms with its closest neighbor, thePrincipality of Antioch. Half of the county, including its capital, was located east of theEuphrates, far to the east, rendering it particularly vulnerable. The west part of the Euphrates was controlled from the stronghold ofTurbessel. The eastern border of Edessa was theTigris, but the County may not have extended quite that far.
Thefall of Edessa in 1144 was the first major setback forOutremer and provoked theSecond Crusade. All the later Crusades, however, were troubled by strategic uncertainties and disagreements. The Second Crusade did not even try to recover Edessa, calculating it to be strategically better to takeDamascus. But the campaign failed and Edessa was lost for theChristians.
In 1098,Baldwin of Boulogne left the main Crusading army, which was travelling south towardsAntioch andJerusalem. He went first south intoCilicia, then east to Edessa, where he convinced its lord,Thoros, to adopt him as son and heir. He also married Thoros' daughter,Arda of Armenia, who eventually became the first queen of Jerusalem. Thoros was a Christian of Armenian origin but ofGreek Orthodox religion and largely disliked by hisArmenian Apostolic subjects, which led to his removal from power in March 1098. Different sources claim he wasassassinated or abdicated, and it is debated whether Baldwin played a role in this. Nonetheless, Baldwin succeeded Thoros as ruler, taking the title of count (having beenCount of Verdun as a vassal of his brother in Europe).
In 1100, Baldwin became King of Jerusalem when his brother,Godfrey of Bouillon, died. The County of Edessa passed to his cousinBaldwin of Bourcq. He was joined byJoscelin of Courtenay, who became lord of the fortress of Turbessel on the Euphrates, an important outpost against theSeljuk Turks.
The Frankish lords formed a good rapport with theirArmenian subjects, and there were frequent intermarriages; the first three counts all married Armenians. Count Baldwin's wife had died inMarash in 1097, and after he succeeded to Edessa he marriedArda, a granddaughter of the ArmenianRoupenid PrinceConstantine.Baldwin of Bourcq marriedMorphia, a daughter ofGabriel of Melitene, andJoscelin of Courtenay married a daughter of Constantine.
Baldwin II quickly became involved in the affairs of northernAssyria andAsia Minor. He helped secure the ransom ofBohemond I of Antioch from theDanishmends in 1103, and, with Antioch, attacked the Byzantine Empire in Cilicia in 1104. Later in 1104, Edessa was attacked byMosul, and both Baldwin and Joscelin were taken prisoner after their defeat at theBattle of Harran. Bohemond's cousinTancred became regent in Edessa (althoughRichard of Salerno actually governed the territory), until Baldwin and Joscelin were ransomed in 1108. Baldwin had to fight to regain control of the city; Tancred was eventually defeated, though Baldwin had to ally with some of the local Muslim rulers.
In 1110, all lands east of theEuphrates were lost toMawdud of Mosul. This was not followed by an assault on Edessa itself as the Muslim rulers were more concerned with consolidating their own power.
Baldwin II became King of Jerusalem (also as Baldwin II) when Baldwin I died in 1118. AlthoughEustace of Boulogne had a better claim as the late Baldwin's brother, he was inFrance and did not want the title. Edessa was given to Joscelin in 1119. Joscelin was taken prisoner once again in 1122; when Baldwin came to rescue him, he too was captured, and Jerusalem was left without its king. Joscelin escaped in 1123, and obtained Baldwin's release the next year.
Joscelin was gravely injured during a siege in 1131 and was succeeded by his sonJoscelin II. By this time,Zengi had unitedAleppo andMosul and began to threaten Edessa. Meanwhile, Joscelin II paid little attention to the security of his county, and argued with thecounts of Tripoli who then refused to come to his aid. Zengibesieged the city in 1144, capturing it on 24 December that year. Joscelin continued to rule his lands west of the Euphrates, and he also managed to take advantage of the death of Zengi in September 1146 to regain and briefly hold his old capital. The city wasagain lost in November, and Joscelin barely escaped. In 1150 he was captured by Zengi's sonNur ad-Din, and was kept a prisoner in Aleppo until he died in 1159. His wife sold Turbessel and what was left of the county to the Byzantine EmperorManuel I Comnenus, but these lands were conquered byNur ad-Din and the Sultan ofRum within a year. Edessa was the first Crusader state to be created, and also the first to be lost.
Edessa was one of the largest of theCrusader states in terms of territory but had one of the smallest populations. Edessa itself had about 10,000 inhabitants. The rest of the county consisted mostly of fortresses. The county's territory extended from Antioch in the west to across the Euphrates in the east at its greatest extent. It also often occupied land as far north asArmenia proper. To the south and east were the powerful Muslim cities of Aleppo and Mosul, andthe Jazira (northernIraq). The inhabitants were mostlyAssyrian Orthodox andArmenian Orthodox Christians,[2] with someGreek Orthodox Christians andArab Muslims. Although the numbers of Latins always remained small, there was aRoman Catholic archbishop. The fall of the city was the catalyst for theSecond Crusade in 1146.
Turbessel was firstly the lordship of Joscelin I when he was not yet the count of Edessa. It controlled the area west of the Euphrates, and held the border against Antioch. It then was a special holding of Courtenay counts of Edessa, and again became their seat after the loss of the city of Edessa. It was sold with the remaining parts of the county to the Byzantines just before it was conquered by Muslims. After the sale, the wife and family of Joscelin II moved with the proceeds to theKingdom of Jerusalem, nearAcre.
^ Ferdinandi, Sergio (2017). La Contea Franca di Edessa. Fondazione e Profilo Storico del Primo Principato Crociato nel Levante (1098–1150). Pontificia Università Antonianum – Rome.ISBN978-88-7257-103-3.
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