Eastern Dynasties

The Byzantine Patriarchate was far more politically autonomous, but less influential, than the Papacy. The Armenian nobility married into the Byzantine power structure. There are two other lines of Armenian Royalty, the former from Ani and the latter from Vaspurakan: one married into northern Italians, and the second into the Spanish lines (and less reliably documented). The rulers of Jerusalem, Cyprus and the Templars were adventurers who were able to attain a higher station. The Rurikind founders of the Russian monarchy were continuous through Novgorod, Kiev, Vlad, and finally Moscow. The Crusader states magnified adventurers into sovereigns, elevating these select families into higher-status marriages.