John II of Beirut

Who was John II of Beirut?

John of Ibelin, often called John II, was the Lord of Beirut from 1254, named after his grandfather John I, the famous "Old Lord of Beirut". His parents were Balian of Ibelin and Eschiva de Montfaucon, daughter of Walter de Montfaucon de Montbéliard and Bourgogne de Lusignan of Cyprus.

In 1258, by "manipulat[ing] the complex regency laws", John and his compatriot John of Jaffa, succeeded in aligning the feudatories of Jerusalem with the Republic of Venice against that of Genoa in the War of Saint Sabas. He took part in a very large raid alongside the Templars into Galilee in 1260. They were defeated at the camp near Tiberias in a route by some Turcomen and John was taken captive along with John of Gibelet, James Vidal, and Thomas Bérard, Grand Master of the Knights Templar. His ransom alone was 20,000 bezants.

He married Alice de la Roche sur l'Ognon, by whom he had two daughters: Isabelle d'Ibelin and Eschive d'Ibelin.