Baldwin
IV "the Bearded" (Baudouin IV le Barbu, Balduinus
Barbatus) Baldwin
IV "the Bearded" (Baudouin IV le Barbu, Balduinus
Barbatus)Baldwin IV was still a minor when he succeeded his father Arnulf II as count in 987 or 988. In 1006, Baldwin invaded and took Valenciennes, but was driven out in 1007 by the emperor Heinrich II [see, e.g., Thietmar, Chronicon, vi, 22, MGH SS 3: 813-4; Annales Quedlinburgenses, s.a. 1006-7, MGH SS 3: 79; Ann. Bland., s.a. 1007, Grierson (1937), 23; Franz (1940), 238], but not long afterward, Baldwin received Valenciennes as fief from the emperor. Baldwin IV was temporarily driven out of Flanders during a rebellion by his son Baldwin (later Baldwin V), but they were reconciled through the influence of duke Robert of Normandy [GND vi, 6 (vol. 2, pp. 52-5)]. Peace was restored at Audenarde in 1030 ["Comes Balduinus, qui dictus est Barbatus, congregatis marchisiae suae sanctorum corporibus, Bavonis, Wandregisili, Amandi, Vedasti, Bertini, Winnoci, cum aliis innumerabilis sanctorum reliquiis, presente Hugone Noviomensi episcopo cum aliis pluribus episcopis et abbatibus, congregatis totius regni sui primatibus apud Aldenardum, pacem ab omni populo coniuratum firmari fecit." Interpolation to the chronicle of Sigebert of Gembloux, s.a. 1030, Sigeb. auctarium Affligemense, MGH SS 6: 399]. His son Baldwin V succeeded in 1035. Baldwin IV's most common epithet is Barbatus (the Bearded) [Genealogia comitum Flandriae Bertiniana, MGH SS 9: 305], but he is also called Pulchra barba [Flandria generosa, MGH SS 9: 318] or Magnus ["... a Balduino comite, qui ob magnitudinem virium suarum Magnus vel ad distantiam antessorum suorum equivocorum ob proceritatem barbae Barbatus dictus est, ..." Simonis gesta abbatum S. Bertini Sithiensum i, 1, MGH SS 13: 636].
Date of Birth: Say 980×5.
Given that his father was probably not born before 960,
this would be a reasonable estimate.
Place of Birth: Unknown.
Date of Death: 29 or 30 May 1035.
["Obiit Balduinus, gloriosus marchisus" Ann.
Bland., s.a. 1035, 25 (& Ann. Formos., 126,
incorrectly in 1034); "Obiit comes Balduinus Barbatus,
gloriosus marchysus; in Blandinio sepultus est, et filius eius
Baldwinus regnare cepit." Annales Elmarenses,
s.a. 1035, 90; "Obiit Balduinus comes, filius Susannæ."
Annales Elnonenses, s.a. 1035, 154] The necrology of St.
Michael's, Lüneburg, gives 29 May as the date of death [Althoff
(1984), 399 (G 55)]. His supposed epitaph gives 30 May, and reads
as follows: "I. Hoc tumulo tegitur
Balduinus; maxima magni / Arnulphi proles hoc tumulo tegitur. /
Quem Susanna sibi genuit regina superbum, / Edidit et puberem
quem Susanna sibi. / Maximus heroum regali schemate prodit, / Vir
virtute potens, maximus heroum. / Defensor fuerat, vel amator hic
monachorum, / Ecclesiaeque Dei defensor fuerat. / Decessit medius
trinas Junii ante kalendas: / He! he! cito nimium decessit
medius. / Dicito praeteriens: Jesu miserere miselli, / Daque pius
veniam, dicito praeteriens. / II. Junius ante suas triduo
cecidisse kalendas / Balduinum deflet, quo patre mundus eget: /
Ipse fuit princeps Flandrorum sive monarcha, / Inclytus et
fortis, regibus ortus avis. / Fama praeclarus, nulli pietate
secundus, / Cujus opum nullus aut modus aut numerus. / Nutrivit
acies, inimicos terruit orbis, / Praevaluit gladio, nec minus
ingenio. / Cultor justitiae, corrector legis iniquae, / Defensor
patriae, filius ecclesiae. / Saevus et immanis raptoribus atque
superbis, / Sed pius ac mitis multibus atque piis. / Pulchre
barbatus, oculis vagus, ore venustus, / Pollens ingenio, blandus
et eloquio. / Plorantes igitur nos te, bone Christe, precamur, /
Defuncto famulo propitiare tuo." [Adrien de Budt, Chronicon
Flandriae, Corpus Chron. Fland. 1: 274-5]
Place of Death: Unknown.
Father: Arnulf II, d. March 988, count of Flanders, 965-988.
Mother:
Rozala alias Susanna,
d. 13 December 1003, daughter of Berengar II, king of Italy.
["Arnulfus, filius eius ex priori marito
Balduino, duxit filiam Berengeri regis Langobardorum, Ruzelam
quae et Susanna, ex qua suscepit Balduinum Barbatum." Genealogia
comitum Flandriae Bertiniana, MGH SS 9: 306; "Post
immaturum Arnulfi iunioris marchionis mortem, cuius avus Magnus
exstitit Arnulfus, Balduinus, filius eius, cum matre Rozala
derelictus est parvulus. Hic enim est qui postea Prolixae-barbae
dictus est Balduinus, cuius mater Rozala filia fuit Berengarii
regis Italiae, quae post mortem Arnulfi principis Roberto regi
Francorum nupsit, et Susanna dicta mutato nomine, regina
regnavit." Ex vita Bertulfi Renticensis, c.
33, MGH SS 15, part 2: 638].
Spouses:
(1) m. Otgiva of Luxemburg, d. 21 February 1030.
["Obiit Odgiva comitissa." Ann. Bland.,
s.a. 1030, 25; similarly in Ann. Elmarenses, s.a. 1030,
90, Ann. Formos., s.a. 1031, 126]. Her claimed epitaph,
which gives a death date of 21 February (9. kal. Mar.), reads as
follows: "Preteriens miserere mei, qui vis misereri, /
Atque mihi requiem tu deposce piam. / Nona dies Martis me
sustulit ante kalendas, / Odgiva iuncta fui Balduino domino."
[MGH Poetae Latini 5: 300]. The necrology of St. Michael,
Lüneburg, has an entry "Gera com" under 21
February, which Althoff would interpret as "Geva com",
and would identify her with Otgiva, noting that her husband
Baldwin IV also appears in the necrology [Althoff (1984), 391 (G
17), 399 (G 55)]. See Otgiva's page for a detailed discussion of
her parentage.
(2) m. NN, daughter of Richard
II, duke of Normandy.
[GND iv, 13 (vol. 2, pp. 28-9); Genealogia comitum Flandriae
Bertiniana (Continuatio Leidensis et Divionensis),
MGH SS 9: 307]
No good supporting evidence has been presented for the names of
Eleanor [Alienora, e.g., MGH SS 9: 307, n. 19] or Judith
[e.g., Grierson (1941), 96, n. 2] sometimes supplied for her.
Children:
by Otgiva of Luxemburg:
[Genealogia comitum Flandriae
Bertiniana, MGH SS 9: 306 (see above)]
Baldwin V, d. 1 September 1067, marquis of Flanders, m. Adèle
of France.
by NN of Normandy:
Judith, d. 5 March 1094, m. (1) Tostig, earl
of Northumbria; m. (2) Welf, duke of Bavaria.
See the page on Judith for a detailed discussion of the documentation for her
case.
Conjectured daughter:
NN, m. Henri I, count
of Brabant.
This conjecture is due to Vanderkindere
[Vanderkindere (1902), 2: 114-5; see also Depoin (1911), 20-1].
It is based on a charter of Baldwin IV's grandson Baldwin VI,
from 1065, in which Baldwin VI mentioned his neptis
Adèle, countess of Thuringia, evidently a daughter of Henri I,
count of Brabant ["tertiam partem allodiorum comitissæ
de Toringa, neptis meæ Adelæ, quam mihi legitime tradidit in
Alost et in Lede et in Hesinghem(?) ex hac parte aquæ nomine
Tenre" Vanderkindere (1902), 2: , n. 2]. Since it does
not appear chronologically feasible to make Adèle a niece of
Baldwin VI, it was conjectured that she was a first cousin, her
mother being a daughter of Baldwin IV and Otgive. As onomastic
support for the conjecture, Vanderkinder and Depoin mentioned
that the names given to the three daughters of Henri I of
Brabant, Adélaïde, Cunégonde, and Adèle, were all borne by
ancestors of either Baldwin IV or Otgive. This conjecture is
reasonable, but unconfirmed.
Falsely attributed children:
Gisèle, m. Raoul,
advocate of Saint-Pierre de Gand, lord of Alost.
André Du Chesne conjectured that Gisèle was a daughter of
Baldwin IV of Flanders by Otgive, based on the names Baldwin and
Giselbert among Raoul's sons [Du Chesne (1631), 112]. However,
Gisèle was probably a sister of Otgive, wife of Baldwin IV. See
the page of Otgive for details.
Ermengarde, m. Adalbert,
count of Gand.
[See Vanderkindere (1902), 1: 297]
Althoff (1984) = Gerd Althoff, Adels- und Königsfamilien im Spiegel ihrer Memorialüberlieferung (Munich, 1984).
Corpus Chron. Fland. = J.-J. de Smet, Corpus Chronicorum Flandriae, 4 vols. (Brussels, 1837-1865).
Depoin (1911) = Joseph Depoin, Lambert a-la-Barbe comte de Louvain et les origines de sa dynastie (Paris, 1911).
Du Chesne (1631) = André Du Chesne, Histoire genealogique des maisons de Guines, d'Ardres, de Gand, et de Coucy (Paris, 1631).
Franz (1940) = Hildegard Franz geb. Reinhold, "Die Marken Valenciennes, Eename und Antwerpen im Rahmen der kaiserlichen Grenzsicherungspolitik an der Schelde im 10.-11. Jahrhundert." Rheinische Vierteljahrsblätter 10 (1940), 229-276.
GND = Guillaume de Jumièges, Gesta Normannorum Ducum, as edited in Elisabeth van Houts, ed. & trans., The Gesta Normannorum Ducum of William of Jumièges, Orderic Vitalis and Robert of Torigni, 2 vols., (Oxford, 1992). Citation is by book and chapter of Guillaume's work, with the volume and page number of the edition by van Houts in parentheses.
Grierson (1937) = Philip Grierson, ed., Les Annales de Saint-Pierre de Gand et de Saint-Amand (Brussels, 1937). [Annales Blandinienses, Annales Elmarenses, Annales Formoselenses, Annales Elnonenses]
Grierson (1941) = Philip Grierson, "The relations between England and Flanders before the Norman Conquest", Transactions of the Royal Historical Society 4th ser., 23: 71-113.
MGH = Monumenta Germaniae Historica.
MGH SS = Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores Series.
Vanderkindere (1902) = Léon Vanderkindere, La Formation Territoriale des Principautes Belge au Moyen Age (2 vols., 2nd ed., Brussels, 1902, reprinted 1981).
Compiled by Stewart Baldwin
Originally uploaded 12 October 2006.
Minor revision uploaded 2 June 2008: added data on conjectured and falsely attributed children and corrected minor errors.