Baldwin IV of Jerusalem

About Baldwin IV of Jerusalem

Baldwin IV, who reigned as King of Jerusalem from 1174 to 1185, is recognized for his staunch defense of the Crusader states against the formidable power of Saladin. Despite suffering from leprosy from a young age, which forced him to be crowned early and ultimately led to his death at only 24, his political and military acumen prevented the collapse of the Kingdom of Jerusalem for over a decade. This significant, albeit localized, historical impact earns him an HPI Rank of #575 among the most influential figures in global history.

In the context of modern internet attention, Baldwin IV is receiving significantly more focus than his historical importance warrants. With 2.0 million annualized Wikipedia views in 2025, his attention score is approximately +6x higher relative to his HPI ranking. For comparison, this figure attracts comparable attention to major 20th-century politicians like Richard Nixon (#748 importance, 4.2M views) or George H. W. Bush (#788 importance, 4.4M views), illustrating a clear modern overattention bias toward this medieval ruler.

Interestingly, while this interest is high overall, the trend shows a recent decline, with his pageviews dropping by -18.0% year-over-year. However, a recent surge in interest is indicated by a +20% momentum change when comparing Q1 to Q3 of 2025, suggesting recent cultural touchpoints may be driving temporary spikes in curiosity.