count of Blois and of Chartres (from 1102) and count of Champagne (from 1125) as Theobald II. He was the grandson of Theobald III of Blois and William the Conqueror. Theobald IV reunited Champagne with Blois and thus again made his house a threat to the royal domains of France from both east and west; he promoted the fairs of Champagne, which were then growing into the premier economic institutions of northern Europe. He became in effect the second person of France, alternatively the ally and the enemy of Louis VI and Louis VII. He helped his brother Stephen become king of England (1135). The countship was at the zenith of its power.