there were certain difficulties inherent in the designation of a ruler for the new state in Jerusalem. Raymond of Agiles reported that his master, Raymond of St Gilles, though offered the crown by a group of influential nobles, refused it because he would not allow himself to be crowned king in the city where Christ had been crucified as 'King of the Jews' and had worn the Crown of Thorns. Godfrey of Bouillon who (after some intrigue and a form of election which is still unclear) was appointed ruler, took the title of advocatus Sancti Sepulchri-'Protector of the Holy Sepulchre'--though later commentators, such as the great Palestinian-born historian William of Tyre, did consider him as the first king of Jerusalem. The new ruler's relationship with the other crusader principalities was also unclear. On Godfrey's death, his brother Baldwin, who had established a county in Edessa during the course of the crusade, was crowned king, thus transforming Edessa into a fief of the crown, to be granted out by the kings of Jerusalem, but Antioch and the county of Tripoli always remained more independent of the kingdom. It was only when their rulers were captured, too young to rule effectually, or female (and thus unable to lead the armies) that the king of Jerusalem was able to exert his influence. There was no doubt that the king was the feudal superior of the new nobility of the kingdom, for he it was who granted them out their fiefs, either in land, or, increasingly frequently in a country where fertile and safe territory was in short supply, in revenues, and recent research has shown that, until the middle of the twelfth century, the king of Jerusalem enjoyed considerable power. He was the commander-in-chief in time of war, held large amounts of territory in Judea and Samaria, controlled monopolies on dyeing, tanning, fishing, and copper-working, and enjoyed considerable revenues from port dues and various taxes on commercial activity and the passage of pilgrims. But by the mid-twelfth century, problems were beginning to arise. The descendants of those who had stayed after the First Crusade had now had time to consolidate their holdings and to intermarry, thus forming a recognizable noble 'class'. Newcomers from the west found it difficult to establish themselves and the
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