Richard the Lionheart was headed to Jerusalem when a storm separated his ship from his fiance's. The local despot who had taken control of Cyprus from the Byzantine Empire took the fiance's ship prisoner and plundered its treasury. Richard tried to parley but the despot was such an asshole that Richard wound up having to conquer him instead. When he arrived at the capital, [[the Cypriots shaved their beards to show allegience to Richard the Lionheart]]. He eventually managed to give away leadership of the island because it was an unnecessary entanglement; he basically plundered it and then moved on toward the work of recapturing Jerusalem as quickly as possible. ## References - [Richard the Lionheart and The Accidental Conquest of Cyprus by Michael Goodyear](https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Richard-Lionheart-Accidental-Conquest-Cyprus/)