Inheritances Odo succeeded his elder brother,
Hugh V, in 1315. Odo defended the rights of his niece
Joan against
Philip the Tall, another uncle, after Louis X's death in 1316. In 1318, Odo married Philip's eldest daughter,
Joan III, Countess of Burgundy (1308 – 1347). Thus allying himself with Philip V, who had become king of France. On the death of his brother,
Louis in 1316, Odo became titular king of Thessalonica. By 1320, Odo was complaining to the pope of the Angevins' usurpation of Thessalonica, yet later sold his rights as
King of Thessalonica and
Prince of Achaea to
Louis, Count of Clermont. Odo's wife inherited the domains of her mother in 1330: the county of
Artois and the county of Burgundy, the so-called
Free County. Her claim to the County of Artois was challenged by
Robert III of Artois, who at that time was a close friend and advisor of King Philip VI. The dispute ended abruptly when in December 1330 the documents used by Robert of Artois to support his claim were found to be forged on his instructions.
War with England Odo was a loyal vassal of his brother-in-law, Philip of Valois, after he succeeded to the French throne as
Philip VI. He belonged to Philip VI’s small circle of trusted advisors. He fought in many theatres of French warfare: the
Low Countries,
Brittany,
Aquitaine. He fought the Flemings and was wounded at the
Battle of Cassel in 1328. In 1340, Odo first fought in
Hainaut, helped capture the town of
Antoing and later defended
Saint-Omer in
the battle there against Robert III of Artois. During the summer the French government became aware of plans for an Anglo-Flemish army under Robert of Artois to attack on Saint-Omer. The Duke entered Saint-Omer 15 July with several thousands men-at-arms and began preparing the defences of the city. The slow progress of the English army also allowed further reinforcements led by
John I, Count of Armagnac to arrive. On 26 July Robert of Artois offered battle to the garrison of Saint-Omer. Contrary to orders some hotheads charged out, their attack was beaten off, but their flight caused the Flemings to abandon their defensive works in pursuit. The Duke of Burgundy now decided to sally with the Count of Armagnac. During the battle the Duke got into a fierce fight with the English and Brugeois contingents and barely escaped back behind the walls. Meanwhile, however the Count of Armagnac had scattered the enemy left flank. The loss of most of his Flemish troops forced Robert of Artois to flee back to Flanders. He took part in the
War of the Breton Succession as a partisan of
Charles of Blois serving as advisor to his nephew
John, Duke of Normandy, during the latter’s campaign in Brittany in the autumn 1341. He served together with the Duke of Normandy and the Chancellor of France, Guillaume Flote, as French ambassadors to a peace conference at Avignon in the summer 1344. The conference was however actively sabotaged by the English.
Henry, Earl of Derby who had been announced as the head of the English delegation, claimed once he arrived at Avignon to be there only in a private capacity for devotional reasons and the minor English officials who were officially there had no instructions. In 1346, he was in
Guyenne combatting the
English. In spring that year, the French government decided to field so far the strongest army in the south-west. The Duke of Burgundy followed John of Normandy south together with a substantial number of northern nobles and such dignitaries as
Raoul II of Brienne, Count of Eu, the
Constable of France, both
Marshals and the
Master of Crossbowmen. In April, Normandy laid siege to the town of
Aiguillon, which controlled the confluence between the
Lot and the
Garonne. There they still remained in August, when John of Normandy was urgently recalled to the north to help stop Edward III, who had landed in Normandy. The French 1346 campaign in the south ended, having accomplished nothing. In September, Edward III laid siege to
Calais. As Artois became the main theatre of the war, relations between the Duke and King Philip VI plummeted. The Duke governed Artois on behalf of his wife, but the royal government increasingly disregarded local officials and even began making its own appointments. In December 1346, Philip suspended the Duke’s government altogether.
Death and legacy Odo was present at the coronation of
Pope Clement VI at
Avignon on 19 May 1342. Perhaps the greatest legacy of Odo IV is seen in the subsequent Burgundian court of the Valois dukes, for Odo was a patron of the arts and the church and sponsored many young artists. He also endeavoured to establish good political connections and by marrying a French royal princess assured good relations with the king. The premature death of his son Philip made his four-year-old grandson the
heir presumptive. He succeeded Odo IV as
Philip I after Odo died of the plague. Most sources place his death at
Sens, on Friday, 3 April 1349. Some sources give the year as 1350. ==Family==