Baldwin VII (1093 – 17 July 1119) was

Count of Flanders The count of Flanders was the ruler or sub-ruler of the county of Flanders, beginning in the 9th century. Later, the title would be held for a time, by the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Spain. During the French Revolution, in 1790, the c ...

from 1111 to 1119. Baldwin was the son of Count Robert II of Flanders and

Clementia of Burgundy Clementia of Burgundy (c. 1078 – c. 1133) was countess of County of Flanders, Flanders by marriage to Robert II of Flanders. She acted as regent of Flanders from 1096 until 1100, while her spouse was on crusade, and in the name of their son Baldwi ...

. He succeeded his father as count when he died on 5 October 1111.

Reign

Baldwin succeeded his father as count when he died on 5 October 1111. He was under the influence of his powerful mother

. He tried to assert independence from her, but she still remained influential behind the scenes. Baldwin was an impetuous and impulsive young man, extremely hostile towards

Henry I of England Henry I ( – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in 1087, Henr ...

. The inexperienced new count solicited the advice of his cousin,

Charles the Good Charles the Good (10842 March 1127) was Count of Flanders from 1119 to 1127. His murder and its aftermath were chronicled by Galbert of Bruges. He was beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1882 through ''cultus'' ''confirmation''. Early life Charles ...

, who was several years older. It was Baldwin who arranged the marriage of Charles to the heiress of the

County of Amiens The County of Amiens (also: ''Amiénois'') was a feudal state centred on the city of Amiens, northern France, that existed from the 9th century until 1077 when the last count became a monk and the county reverted to the French crown. In 1185 the cou ...

, Margaret of Clermont, in 1118. Baldwin invaded

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

in 1118 and raided many towns. In 1105, Baldwin married Hawise of Brittany (also called Havide), daughter of Duke Alan IV of Brittany. The groom was twelve and the bride nine. The union, in all probability, was never consummated. They were divorced in 1110. Baldwin did not remarry. Baldwin and Hawise had no known issue.

Death

He died after being wounded in 1118, hit on the head by a lance at the Battle of Bures-en-Bray, where he was fighting

, on behalf of

Louis VI of France Louis VI (1 December 1081 – 1 August 1137), called the Fat () or the Fighter (), was List of French monarchs, King of the Franks from 1108 to 1137. Like his father Philip I of France, Philip I, Louis made a lasting contribution to centralizing ...

. When he was dying in 1119 at Eu, Baldwin declared his cousin Charles his heir. he died on 17 June 1119. Charles became the new count of Flanders after his death.

References

www.genealogie-mittelalter.de
* Bram Brutsaert: ''Boudewijn VII Hapkin, een Witte Ridder uit de 12de eeuw, graaf van Vlaanderen (1111–1119)''. Dissertation 2003–2004 in the University of Louvain, see online

{{Authority control 1093 births 1119 deaths 12th-century counts of Flanders House of Flanders Military personnel killed in action