William-Jordan

William II Jordan (died 1109) was the count of Berga from 1094, count of Cerdanya from 1095, and regent of the county of Tripoli from 1105.

He was the son of William I of Cerdanya and Sança, daughter of Ramon Berenguer I of Barcelona. William accompanied Raymond IV of Toulouse, one of the leaders of the First Crusade, to the Holy Land. Raymond died in the east in 1105, leaving his young son Alfonso-Jordan as lord of Mons Peregrinus and Tortosa and nominal count of Tripoli (which had not yet been captured by the crusaders). Since Alfonso-Jordan was still a child, Raymond's soldiers chose William-Jordan as regent.

Meanwhile in Toulouse, Raymond's elder son Bertrand was ruling in his absence. After Raymond's death the barons of Toulouse chose Alfonso to replace Bertrand, who, now overthrown, travelled to the east, arriving at Mons Peregrinus in 1108 to claim it for himself. There, he quarrelled with William over the inheritance of the Raymond's lordship, and over the regency of still-unconquered Tripoli. William allied himself with Tancred, Prince of Galilee, at the time regent of the Principality of Antioch, while and Bertrand asked Baldwin I of Jerusalem to intervene. Baldwin I, Baldwin of Bourcq, and Joscelin of Courtenay allied with Bertrand and William and Tancred were forced to compromise. Tancred was forced to give up his claim to the County of Edessa (but was allowed to keep Antioch); William and Bertrand divided Tripoli between them, recognizing Tancred and Baldwin I as their respective overlords.

With the dispute settled, the crusader armies marched on Tripoli and besieged it, with assistance from the Genoese fleet. On July 12, 1109 they captured the city. A short time later William died of an arrow wound sustained during the siege, and the county passed to Bertrand alone.

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