Bouchard IV was the lord of Avesnes and Étrœungt

Étrœungt

-References:*...

. He was the son of James of Avesnes

James of Avesnes

James was a son of Nicholas d'Oisy, lord of Avesnes and Matilda de la Roche. He was the lord of Avesnes, Condé, and Leuze from 1171. He participated in the Third Crusade as leader of a detachment of French, Flemish, and Frisian soldiers which arrived in the Holy Land in 1189...

 and Adela of Guise and brother of Walter, Count of Blois

Count of Blois

The County of Blois was originally centred on Blois, south of Paris, France. One of the chief cities, along with Blois itself, was Chartres. Blois was associated with Champagne, Châtillon , and later with the French royal family, to whom the county passed in 1391...

 by marriage.

Bouchard began his career as a cantor

Cantor (church)

A cantor is the chief singer employed in a church with responsibilities for the ecclesiastical choir; also called the precentor....

 and subdeacon

Subdeacon

-Subdeacons in the Orthodox Church:A subdeacon or hypodeacon is the highest of the minor orders of clergy in the Orthodox Church. This order is higher than the reader and lower than the deacon.-Canonical Discipline:...

 in the church of Laon

Laon

Laon is the capital city of the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.-History:The hilly district of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held strategic importance...

. In 1212, he was named bailiff

Bailiff

A bailiff is a governor or custodian ; a legal officer to whom some degree of authority, care or jurisdiction is committed...

 of Hainaut

County of Hainaut

The County of Hainaut was a historical region in the Low Countries with its capital at Mons . In English sources it is often given the archaic spelling Hainault....

. In this capacity, he served as tutor and guardian of the young Margaret, sister of Joanna, Countess of Flanders

Jeanne, Countess of Flanders

right|thumb|Statue of Joan of FlandersJoan, called of Constantinople was countess of Flanders and Hainaut....

 and Hainault. Soon he married Margaret, though she was only ten years old and the marriage could not be consummated. Neither did Joanna or Count Ferdinand give their consent.

Bouchard lived a war-like life. He invaded the territory of his brother Walter, who had received most of their patrimony. He then invaded Flanders and forced Joanna and Ferdinand to recognise his marriage to Margaret. He then fought at the Battle of Bouvines

Battle of Bouvines

The Battle of Bouvines, 27 July 1214, was a conclusive medieval battle ending the twelve year old Angevin-Flanders War that was important to the early development of both the French state by confirming the French crown's sovereignty over the Angevin lands of Brittany and Normandy.Philip Augustus of...

 in 1214, under the (losing) Flemish banner. Philip Augustus, the king of France and victor of Bouvines, then councilled the pope

Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...

, Innocent III, to declared the marriage of Bouchard and Margaret illegal. Innocent eventually excommunicated the couple on 19 January 1216. They took refuge in Luxembourg

Luxembourg

Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

. Bouchard was captured in combat and imprisoned in Ghent

Ghent

Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...

 for two years. To obtain his liberation, Margaret accepted the dissolution of the marriage and Bouchard left for Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 to fight for the Holy See

Holy See

The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...

. Upon his return, he was decapitated at Rupelmonde

Rupelmonde

Rupelmonde is a town in the municipality of Kruibeke, in the Belgian province of East Flanders. It stands on the bank of the river Schelde opposite the confluence of the eponymous Rupel, and is famed for its sundials as well as having what is probably Belgium's only tidemill...

 on the orders of Joanna.

Bouchard and Margaret had three children, who played an important part in the War of the Succession of Flanders and Hainault

War of the Succession of Flanders and Hainault

The War of the Succession of Flanders and Hainault was a series of feudal conflicts in the mid-thirteenth century between the children of Margaret II, Countess of Flanders...

:

• Baldwin (1217 - 1219), took refuge with his parents in Luxembourg
• John I
  John I of Avesnes
  John I of Avesnes was the count of Hainaut from 1246 to his death. Born in Houffalize, he was the eldest son of Margaret II of Flanders by her first husband, Bouchard IV of Avesnes...
  
   (1218 – 1257), later Count of Hainault
• Baldwin (1219 – 1295), Lord of Beaumont
  Beaumont, Belgium
  Beaumont is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut.On January 1, 2006 Beaumont had a total population of 6,698. The total area is 92.97 km² which gives a population density of 72 inhabitants per km²....