Baldwin IV (980 – 30 May 1035), called the Bearded, was the

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 987 until his death. Baldwin IV was the son of Count Arnulf II of Flanders (c. 961 — 987) and

Rozala of Italy Rozala of Italy (also known as Rozala of Lombardy, Rozala of Ivrea or Susanna of Ivrea; 950–960 – 1003) was countess consort of Flanders by marriage to Arnulf II of Flanders, and queen of the Franks by marriage to Robert II of France. She w ...

(950/60 – 1003), of the House of Ivrea.Detlev Schwennicke, ''Europäische Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europäischen Staaten'', Neue Folge, Band II (Marburg, Germany: J. A. Stargardt, 1984), Tafel 5 He succeeded his father as Count of Flanders in 987, but with his mother Rozala as the regent until his majority. In contrast to his predecessors Baldwin turned his attention eastward, leaving the southern part of his territory in the hands of his

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

s the counts of

Guînes Guînes (; ; ) is a commune in the northern French department of Pas-de-Calais. Historically, it was spelt ''Guisnes''. On 7 January 1785, Jean-Pierre Blanchard, a French pioneer in hydrogen-balloon flight, completed the first aerial crossi ...

, Hesdin, and St. Pol. To the north of the county Baldwin was given

Zeeland Zeeland (; ), historically known in English by the Endonym and exonym, exonym Zealand, is the westernmost and least populous province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the southwest of the country, borders North Brabant to the east ...

as a

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

by the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

Henry II, while on the right bank of the

Scheldt The Scheldt ( ; ; ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of Netherlands, the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to Old Englis ...

river he received

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

(1013) and parts of the Cambresis as well as

Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; ; Picard: ''Saint-Onmé'') is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Sa ...

and the northern Ternois (1020).Heather J Tanner, ''Families, Friends, and Allies: Boulogne and Politics in Northern France and England c. 879–1160'' (Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2004), pp. 73, 75-6, 77–8 In his French territories, the supremacy of Baldwin remained unchallenged. A great deal of colonization of marshland was organized along the coastline of Flanders and the harbour and city of Brugge were enlarged. Baldwin first married Ogive, daughter of Frederick of Luxembourg,Douglas Richardson, ''Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families'', Vol.V, Royal Ancestry Series, Salt Lake City, Utah (2013), p. 497 by whom he had a son and heir, Baldwin V (1012 – 1067). He later married

Eleanor Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It was the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages">Provençal dialect ...

, daughter of Richard II of Normandy,Philip Grierson, 'The Relations between England and Flanders before the Norman Conquest', ''Transactions of the Royal Historical Society'', Vol. 23 (1941), pp. 109-110 by whom he had a daughter, Judith (1033 – 1094). Baldwin IV died on 30 May 1035.

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{{Authority control 980 births 1035 deaths 10th-century counts of Flanders 11th-century counts of Flanders House of Flanders Margraves of Valenciennes Medieval child monarchs

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