Baldwin IV was born in 1161, the son of King Amalric I of Jerusalem and Agnes of Courtenay, in a kingdom that lived on a knife’s edge. The Crusader States were surrounded by powerful Muslim rulers and torn internally by rival barons, ambitious clergy, and foreign knights whose loyalty could shift with politics and profit. The first warning sign came in childhood. His tutor, William of Tyre, describes a strange detail: Baldwin didn’t flinch when hurt during play. What looked like toughness was ac

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Baldwin IV was born in 1161, son of King Amalric I of Jerusalem and Agnes of Courtenay. The Crusader Kingdom sat precariously between powerful Muslim states and was riven by rival barons, clergy, and foreign knights. His tutor William of Tyre reports the first sign of trouble in childhood play: Baldwin did not flinch when hurt. Initially seen as curious, William realized the numbness signaled leprosy. Contrary to the usual tale of isolation, Baldwin’s life diverged. When Amalric died in 1174, th