ANNE OF LUSIGNAN

The Sister of Lusignan
King John II (Cyprus)

| complete Lusignan genealogy |
| Sources, see: Bibliography, Cyprus |

395 AD - 1191
Cyprus becomes part of the Byzantine Empire
1191 - 1192
Rule by Richard  the Lionheart of England
1192 - 1489
Rule by the Frankish Lusignan dynasty
1489 - 1570
Venetian domination of the island
1571 - 1878
Conquest of Cyprus by the Ottoman Empire
The shroud belonged to the Charny family for years. lt seems that it had been acquired by one of their Templar ancestors when the Frankish Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade occupied and plundered Constantinople in 1204. lt must have been stolen from the chapel of the imperial palace at Vlachernae, where it was kept from the 6th century together with other Christian relics. The decision of Margaret of Charny to sell the shroud to the House of Savoy was primarily because of their great devotion to the Catholic Church, and also because of the long and friendly family ties that linked them.

The shroud acquired new splendour in the hands of the House of Savoy. lt was kept as a protector of the family, a precious amulet. They always took it with them during their travels so that they would be protected. Later on, an exact copy of the shroud was the banner of the Dukes of Savoy.

The reason why Anne was so keen to acquire the shroud can be found in her early life. Anne lived and grew up in Cyprus before her marriage, as she was the daughter of the royal family of the Lusignans. The royal family of Cyprus very frequently spent the summer at the castle of Saint Hilarion on the peak of the mountain above Lampousa, where the monastery of Acheiropoietos is. Every year on the 16th of August the Orthodox people of Cyprus celebrated the arrival of the Holy Handkerchief (Mandelion or Veronica) in Constantinople from Edessa.

The 16th of August was the day appointed by the Byzantine Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus in 945 to celebrate the arrival of the Holy Handkerchief in Constantinople and its being placed in the church of the Palace of Vlachernao. This great Orthodox feast was celebrated in Cyprus every year without a break from 945 until 1974. (The monastery of Acheiropoietos and the chapel of Saint Evlalios are now located in Northern Cyprus and the last office to be chanted there was on the 16th of August, 1973.). There were Grand Vespers and a mass the next day, together with a festival which was allowed to take place in the courtyard of the church of Acheiropoietos at Lampousa, the old Byzantine city in Kyreneia district that succeeded the ancient city of Lapithos.

This church, as is indicated by its name, is consecrated to the Holy Handkerchief (the Veronica), the image of Christ made without hands. According to the tradition, the church was founded by the Bishop of Edessa Evlalios, who came to Cyprus and lived in solitude as a monk. He established Acheiropoietos in memory of the Holy Handkerchief with the image of Christ that existed in Edessa. Near the church of Acheiropoietos in Lampousa there is a small Byzantine chapel dedicated to Saint Evlalios, built in his memory.

When the Lusignan kings spent their summers at Saint Hilarion, it seems that they took part in the celebrations of the 16th of August. When the Duchess of Savoy, Anne of Lusignan, heard from Margaret of Charny the events and history of the Holy Shroud and how it had come to Savoy, she must have associated it with her early memories and what she had heard in Cyprus about the Holy Handkerchief. She had a great belief in this Christian relic, and considered it as a present sent by God for her family to acquire, and that was what happened.