Pons, Count of Tripoli

Who was Pons, Count of Tripoli?

Pons of Tripoli was the son of Bertrand of Tripoli, and was count of Tripoli from 1112 to 1137.

Pons married Cecile of France, the widow of his mentor Tancred, Prince of Galilee, and daughter of Philip I of France. This marriage helped to reconcile the Norman and Provençal Crusaders, who had fallen out during the Siege of Antioch.

In 1118 he allied with Baldwin II, the new king of Jerusalem, and in 1119 the two marched north to aid Roger of Salerno against an invasion by Il-ghazi. Roger decided not to wait for them, and he and his army were slaughtered at the Battle of Ager Sanguinis; Baldwin II was later taken hostage.

In 1124, after Baldwin had been released, Pons helped capture Tyre, one of the last coastal cities remaining in Muslim hands. In 1125 he aided in the Crusader victory at the Battle of Azaz. In 1131 Pons came into conflict with Fulk of Jerusalem, who had ascended the throne that year, and was defeated at the Battle of Rugia.

In 1137 Tripoli was invaded by the sultan of Damascus, and Pons was taken prisoner and later executed with most of the other Frankish prisoners. He was succeeded by his son Raymond II.