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Description: Levon I, 1198-1219 AD. Tank Copper. Sis Mint. Cilicia, Armenia.

History: Levon I (Levon The Magnificent , Leo I), was born in 1150. He was the first king of a unified Armenia in 1198. Before this, he served as the Lord of Cilicia (1187-1198). Levon I established his nation as a unified Christian state. The nation benefited greatly from travelers during the First, Second, and Third crusades by furnishing them with supplies, guides, scouts, animals, and more services.
During his reign from 1198-1219, Levon I rallied Armenians after their dispersion by the Seljuq Turks and consolidated the kingdom in Clicia. Levon I fostered friendly relations with German emperors Frederick I Barbarossa and Henry VI. He was crowned by Pope Celestine III’s legate, Cardinal Conrad von Wittelsbach, and allied Lesser Armenia to the West, despite overtures from the Byzantine emperor.
Levon I was a skilled diplomat and wise politician, which helped him establish alliances with many contemporary rulers such as the Hospitallers and the Teutonic Knights.
Leo I married Isabelle, a daughter of a borther of Sibylle in 1189 and divorced in 1206. In 1195, they had a child by the name of Rita who would go on to marry King John I of Jerusalem. Levon I remarried in 1211 to Sibylla, a daughter of King Amalric I of Cyprus and Isabella I of Jerusalem. Sibylla gave birth to Queen Isabella I of Cilicia. Levon I died in 1219 at age 68-69. His body was buried in Sis and his heart and entrails was buried in the Covent of Akner.