Hugh VIII of Lusignan

Hugh VIII Lusignan

lord of Lusignan

Lusignan (46.4356, 0.1236)

1163

Hugh became lord of Lusignan, a strategically critical castle lordship in northern Poitou, in 1151. His arrival in the Latin East was mentioned by William of Tyre, who describes the advent of "certain nobles from the region of Aquitaine, Geoffrey who was known as Martel, the brother of the count of Angoulême, and Hugh the elder of Lusignan, who was known as 'Le Brun." In fact, Hugh VIII is not known to have been called 'Le Brun/Brunus' and epithet adopted by his grandson, Hugh IX. In 1164, Hugh took part in a major battle at Harim between the forces of Antioch, Tripoli, Byzantium, and Armenia, and the army of Nur ad-Din. Hugh was captured along with the other Latin commanders. While he is usually believed to have died in prison, it is also possible that he is identical to the Hugo de Lezinano who appears in a charter of 1168 making gifts to the Hospital in the county of Tripoli.

Geoffrey Martel of Angoulême

William of Tyre, Book XIX, chapter 8; RRR 820

Philip Handyside, The Old French Translation of William of Tyre, p. 72; Clément de Vasselot de Régné, "A Crusader Lineage from Spain to the Throne of Jerusalem: the Lusignans," Crusades 16 (2017).