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Kingdom of Jerusalem map
Map of Kingdom of Jerusalem. Kingdom of Jerusalem map (Israel) to print. Kingdom of Jerusalem map (Israel) to download. Kingdom of Jerusalem, a state formed in 1099 from territory in Palestine wrested from the Muslims by European Christians during the First Crusade and lasting until 1291, when the two surviving cities of the kingdom succumbed to attacks by Muslim armies as its shown in the Kingdom of Jerusalem map. The rulers of the neighbouring Crusader states of Antioch, Edessa, and Tripoli were the king of Jerusalem’s vassals; in return for their loyalty and military service, he provided them with aid and protection. The kingdom proper, which corresponded roughly to present Israel, southern Lebanon, and southwestern Jordan, included four great baronies: the county of Jaffa and Ascalon, the lordship of Krak or Montréal, the principality of Galilee, and the lordship of Sidon. Jerusalem and its surrounding territory plus the cities of Tyre (Ṣūr, Lebanon) and Acre (ʿAkko, Israel) composed the royal domain.
Economically, the Kingdom of Jerusalem was not wealthy, depending on trade with the Muslims, banking activities, and taxes on pilgrims to keep the government operating and to provide for defense. Though there were some fertile districts, much was barren, and in bad years grain had to be imported from Syria to feed the Christians. The early kings of Jerusalem, Baldwin I (reigned 1100–18) and Baldwin II (1118–31), secured the kingdom by capturing the coastal towns and building new fortifications to safeguard the interior of Palestine and the northern territories as its mentioned in the Kingdom of Jerusalem map. Subsequently, the kings tried to expand into the south, abandoning the earlier policy and indirectly contributing to the Muslim conquest of Edessa (1144).