Ali ibn al-Athir
Baldwin V died unexpectedly in Acre during the summer of 1186. Joscelin III convinced Raymond to go to Tiberias to make preparations for a general assembly and let the Templars deliver the young king's body to Jerusalem. Taking advantage of Raymond's absence, Joscelin took control of Acre and seized Beirut. Raymond summoned the barons to Nablus, the fief of Balian of Ibelin (one of his main supporters). According to Arnold of Lübeck and Ali ibn al-Athir, Raymond tried to seize the throne at the assembly. The reliability of their reports is questionable; neither was at the meeting, and they wrote their allegations years after the events. The reports, however, are clear evidence of a "widespread belief" in Raymond's ambitions to seize the crown.