crusader state · Anatolia and the Levant

Lordship of Ibelin

1141 CE – 1187 CE · capital Ibelin

A small Crusader lordship whose castle gave its name to the Ibelins, the most powerful noble family of Outremer and Cyprus.

Origins

In 1141 King Fulk built a castle at Yibna (Yavne), on the coastal plain south of Jaffa, as one of a ring of forts to contain the Fatimid garrison of Ascalon. He granted it to Barisan, constable of Jaffa, whose descendants took the name of Ibelin.

Rule and society

The lordship itself was small, but the family rose quickly through marriage, gaining Ramla, Mirabel and Nablus. Barisan's sons Hugh, Baldwin and Balian of Ibelin were leading barons; Balian married the dowager queen Maria Komnene. The castle lost its military purpose after Ascalon fell in 1153.

Decline and legacy

Ibelin was lost to Saladin in 1187, the year Balian negotiated the surrender of Jerusalem. The family survived the catastrophe and in the 13th century dominated Beirut, Jaffa, Arsuf and the Kingdom of Cyprus.

Connections (2)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Lordship of Ibelin. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-ibelin
MLA
“Lordship of Ibelin.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-ibelin. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Lordship of Ibelin.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-ibelin.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Lordship of Ibelin’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-ibelin (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻