Editing Kingdom of Jerusalem (section)

=== Edessa, Damascus, and the Second Crusade ===
{{main|Second Crusade}}
[[File:Croisés.jpg|thumb|Depiction of Crusaders from a 1922 edition of ''[[Petit Larousse]]'']]
Fulk was an experienced [[Crusades|crusader]] and had brought military support to the kingdom during a [[Christian pilgrimage|pilgrimage]] in 1120. He brought Jerusalem into the sphere of the [[Angevin Empire]], as the father of [[Geoffrey V of Anjou]] and grandfather of the future [[Henry II of England]]. Not everyone appreciated the imposition of a foreigner as king. In 1132 Antioch, Tripoli, and Edessa all asserted their independence and conspired to prevent Fulk from exercising the suzerainty of Jerusalem over them. He defeated Tripoli in battle, and settled the regency in Antioch by arranging a marriage between the countess, Melisende's niece [[Constance of Antioch|Constance]], and his own relative [[Raymond of Poitiers]].{{sfn|Mayer|1988|pages=83–85}} Meanwhile, in Jerusalem, the native crusader nobles opposed Fulk's preference for his Angevin retinue. In 1134 [[Hugh II of Jaffa]] revolted against Fulk, allying with the Muslim garrison at Ascalon, for which he was convicted of treason {{lang|la|in absentia}}. The Latin patriarch intervened to settle the dispute, but an assassination attempt was then made on Hugh, for which Fulk was blamed. This scandal allowed Melisende and her supporters to gain control of the government, just as her father had intended.{{sfn|Mayer|1988|pages=83–84}} Accordingly, Fulk {{qi|became so uxorious that...not even in unimportant cases did he take any measures without her knowledge and assistance.}}<ref>William of Tyre, vol. II, bk. 14, ch. 18, pg. 76.</ref>

Fulk was then faced with a new and more dangerous enemy: the atabeg [[Imad ad-Din Zengi|Zengi]] of Mosul, who had taken control of [[Aleppo]] and had set his sights on [[Damascus]] as well; the union of these three states would have been a serious blow to the growing power of Jerusalem. A brief intervention in 1137–1138 by the Byzantine emperor [[John II Comnenus]], who wished to assert imperial suzerainty over all the crusader states, did nothing to stop the threat of Zengi; in 1139 Damascus and Jerusalem recognized the severity of the threat to both states, and an alliance was concluded which halted Zengi's advance. Fulk used this time to construct numerous castles, including [[Ibelin (castle)|Ibelin]] and [[Kerak]].{{sfn|Mayer|1988|pages=86–88}} After the death of both Fulk and Emperor John in separate hunting accidents in 1143, Zengi invaded and [[Siege of Edessa (1144)|conquered Edessa]] in 1144. Queen Melisende, now regent for her elder son Baldwin III, appointed a new constable, [[Manasses of Hierges]], to head the army after Fulk's death, but Edessa could not be recaptured, despite Zengi's own assassination in 1146.{{sfn|Mayer|1988|page=92}} The fall of Edessa shocked Europe, and a [[Second Crusade]] arrived in 1148.

After [[Council of Acre|meeting in Acre]] in June, the crusading kings [[Louis VII of France]] and [[Conrad III of Germany]] agreed with Melisende, Baldwin III and the major nobles of the kingdom to attack [[Damascus]]. Zengi's territory had been divided amongst his sons after his death, and Damascus no longer felt threatened, so an alliance had been made with Zengi's son [[Nur ad-Din Zangi|Nur ad-Din]], the emir of Aleppo. Perhaps remembering attacks launched on Jerusalem from Damascus in previous decades, Damascus seemed to be the best target for the crusade, rather than Aleppo or another city to the north which would have allowed for the recapture of Edessa. The subsequent [[Siege of Damascus (1148)|Siege of Damascus]] was a complete failure; when the city seemed to be on the verge of collapse, the crusader army suddenly moved against another section of the walls, and was driven back. The Crusaders retreated within three days. There were rumours of treachery and bribery, and Conrad III felt betrayed by the nobility of Jerusalem. Whatever the reason for the failure, the French and German armies returned home, and a few years later Damascus was firmly under Nur ad-Din's control.<ref>Jonathan Phillips, ''The Second Crusade: Extending the Frontiers of Christendom'' ([[Yale University Press]], 2007), pp. 216–227.</ref>