Baldwin III of Jerusalem and Melisende and Fulk reconciled and conceived a second child, Baldwin III's brother Amalric. Baldwin III was 13 years old when his father Fulk died in a hunting accident in 1143, and Baldwin III was crowned as co-ruler alongside his mother, echoing Melisende's own crowning alongside her father as his heir. Yet Baldwin showed little interest in the intricacies of governance. With a woman and a child ruling Jerusalem, the political situation was somewhat tense; the northern crusader states of Tripoli, Antioch, and Edessa increasingly asserted their independence, and there was no king to impose the suzerainty of Jerusalem as
Baldwin I of Jerusalem his homeland. The crusaders stopped at the frontier of Hungary in September. Godfrey left Baldwin in charge of his troops during his conference with Coloman, King of Hungary, regarding the conditions of the crusaders' march across the country. He agreed to hand over Baldwin, along with Baldwin's wife and retainers, as hostages to ensure their troops' good conduct. Baldwin and Godehilde were released soon after the crusaders left Hungary, and entered the Byzantine Empire in late November. The crusaders reached Constantinople on 23December 1096. The Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos demanded an oath of allegiance from their leaders and imposed