Dirk IV (ca. 1020/1030 – 13 January 1049) was Count of Holland from 1039 to 1049 (which was called Frisia at that time). Dirk's date of birth is unknown but it was probably ca. 1030 or shortly before, he was described as "adolescent" at the time of his death. His base of operations was the stronghold his father built at

Vlaardingen Vlaardingen () is a city in South Holland in the Netherlands. It is located on the north bank of the Nieuwe Maas river at the confluence with the Oude Maas. The municipality administers an area of , of which is land, with residents in . Geog ...

. Contemporary chroniclers referred to him (in Latin) as "''Theodericus de Phlardirtinga''" (Vlaardingen) and as

margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Em ...

thereof. The exact extent of his domain is not known, but at one time or another it stretched north to at least

Rijnsburg Rijnsburg () is a village in the eastern part of the municipality of Katwijk, in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The name means Rhine's Burg in Dutch. History The history starts way before the 2th century when there wa ...

and east to roughly Aalburg. Dirk IV continued the policy of his father Dirk III to enlarge his possessions, developing and colonizing the low-lying

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient ...

areas of Holland and Utrecht. As a result, he came into conflict with the bishop of Utrecht, other bishops and monasteries in the surrounding area. Because of this, Emperor Henry III personally led an expedition against him in 1046, forcing Dirk to return some areas he had occupied. Shortly after the emperor had left however, Dirk started to plunder the territories of the bishops of Utrecht and Liège and made alliances with

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and the counts of Hainaut and

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...

. After this, in 1047, the emperor returned and occupied the stronghold at Rijnsburg, which was completely destroyed. During, the retreat however, the imperial army suffered severe losses, causing Dirk's allies to rise in open revolt as well in his support. On 13 January 1049 Dirk was ambushed near Dordrecht by a force of the bishops of Utrecht, Liège and

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...

and killed. Dirk IV never married and died childless. He was succeeded by his younger brother Floris.

References

*
Count Holland and Frisia, Chapter 2. COUNTS OF HOLLAND (900)-1299
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dirk Iv, Count Of Holland 1049 deaths Counts of Holland Medieval child rulers People from Vlaardingen Year of birth unknown