Godfrey of Bouillon

Godfrey of Bouillon was duke of Lower Lorraine and led a substantial contingent on the First Crusade with his brothers Eustace and Baldwin. He participated in the sieges of Nicaea and Antioch and became one of the principal commanders during the assault on Jerusalem in July 1099. Contemporary and later sources praised his military ability and personal piety.

After the capture of Jerusalem, Godfrey was chosen to govern the new Latin state. He used the title Defender of the Holy Sepulchre rather than king and defeated a Fatimid army at Ascalon. He died in Jerusalem in 1100. Later crusade literature transformed him into an ideal Christian knight, obscuring the political negotiations and violence through which the new regime was established.

In Richard Foreman’s Jerusalem, Godfrey of Bouillon and Raymond of Toulouse cooperate in the assault but also compete for authority over the city they hope to capture. The city’s commander Iftikhar al-Dawla has strengthened the defences and expects relief, while the western leaders know that retreat is impossible. Edward Kemp enters the final siege carrying intelligence that might secure his fortune and return him to England.