Margrave William of Baden-Baden (30 July 1593 – 22 May 1677) was the ruler of

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the states of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos (river), Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the ...

between 1621 and 1677.

Life

Born in

, he was the eldest son of

Margrave Margrave was originally the Middle Ages, medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or a monarchy, kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain Feudal ...

Edward Fortunatus of

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

and Maria of Eicken. He was

Geheimrat was the title of the highest advising officials at the imperial, royal, or princely courts of the Holy Roman Empire, who jointly formed the ''Geheimer Rat'' reporting to the ruler. The term remained in use during subsequent monarchic reigns in Ge ...

Generalfeldmarschall ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (; from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire, (''Reichsgeneralfeldmarsch ...

and Imperial ''Kammerrichter'' of

Speyer Speyer (, older spelling ; ; ), historically known in English as Spires, is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in the western part of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located on the left bank of the r ...

, which gave him his nickname: ''Wilhelm der Kammerrichter''. Wilhelm was also a Knight in the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

. He raised his grandson and successor Ludwig Wilhelm. Wilhelm only received the Regency of Baden after the victory of

Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly (; ; ; February 1559 – 30 April 1632) was a field marshal who commanded the Catholic League's forces in the Thirty Years' War. From 1620 to 1631, he won an unmatched and demoralizing string of important victo ...

in the

Battle of Wimpfen The Battle of Wimpfen took place during the Palatinate campaign period of the Thirty Years' War on 6 May 1622 near Wimpfen. The combined forces of the Catholic League (German), Catholic League and the Spanish Empire under Marshal Johann Tsercl ...

over Georg Friedrich, Margrave of Baden-Durlach, whose brother

Ernst Friedrich Ernst Friedrich (25 February 1894 – 2 May 1967) was a German Anarcho-pacifism, anarcho-pacifist. Life Childhood and youth Ernst Friedrich was born in Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland) as the 13th child of a cleaning lady and a saddler. A ...

had occupied Baden-Baden in 1594. During the Regency of Wilhelm, Baden suffered from a terrible

witch-hunt A witch hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. Practicing evil spells or Incantation, incantations was proscribed and punishable in early human civilizations in the ...

. Between 1626 and 1631, some 244 people, mostly women, were charged and 231 were condemned and burned in the Baden-Baden witch trials.Martin Burkart: Hexen und Hexenprozesse in Baden. Durmersheim 2009. In 1631, Wilhelm lost Baden to the Swedish General Gustav Horn and regained control only after the

Peace of Prague (1635) The Peace of Prague, dated 30 May 1635 Old Style, was a significant turning point in the Thirty Years' War. Signed by John George I, Elector of Saxony, and Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, the terms ended Saxony's support for the anti-Imperi ...

and the

Peace of Westphalia The Peace of Westphalia (, ) is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought peace to the Holy Roman Empire ...

on 24 October 1648. During this fighting, Wilhelm was taken prisoner, but not recognized and released as an ordinary soldier. He died in Baden-Baden in 1677.

Family

First marriage: Wilhelm married on 13 October 1624 Princess Catherine Ursula of Hohenzollern-Hechingen (died 2 June 1640), daughter of Count John George of

Hohenzollern-Hechingen Hohenzollern-Hechingen () was a small principality in southwestern Germany. Its rulers belonged to the House of Hohenzollern#Swabian branch, Swabian branch of the House of Hohenzollern, Hohenzollern dynasty. History The County of Hohenzollern- ...

. *

Ferdinand Maximilian, Hereditary Prince of Baden-Baden Ferdinand Maximilian of Baden-Baden, ''Hereditary Prince of Baden-Baden'' (23 September 1625 – 4 November 1669) was the father of the famous general Louis William, Margrave of Baden-Baden. Born in Baden-Baden, he was the oldest son of Wil ...

(1625–1669), father of the famous general

Louis William, Margrave of Baden-Baden Louis William, Margrave of Baden-Baden (; 8 April 1655 – 4 January 1707) was the ruling Margrave of Baden-Baden in Germany, chief commander of the Imperial army and Reichsgeneralfeldmarschall of the Holy Roman Empire. He was also known as ''T ...

. * Leopold Wilhelm (1626–1671), Imperial field marshal * Philipp Siegmund (1627–1647),

Knight Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there u ...

* William Christopher (1628–1652), Canon at Cologne * Hermann (1628–1691) * Bernhard (1629–1648) * Isabella Eugenie Klara (1630–1632) * Catharina Franziska Henriette (1631–1691), a nun * Claudia (1633–1633) * Henriette (1634–1634) * Anna (1634–1708) * Maria (1636–1636) * Francis (1637–1637) * Maria Juliane (1638–1638) Second marriage: Wilhelm I married in 1650 Countess

Maria Magdalena of Oettingen-Baldern Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...

(1619–31 August 1688), daughter of Count Ernst of Oettingen-Baldern. * Philipp Franz Wilhelm (1652–1655) * Maria Anna Wilhelmine (1655–1701), married Ferdinand August, Prince of

Lobkowicz The House of Lobkowicz (''Lobkovicové'' in modern Czech, sg. ''z Lobkovic''; ''Lobkowitz'' in German) is an important Bohemian noble family that dates back to the 14th century and is one of the oldest noble families of the region. Over the ce ...

* Karl Bernhard (1657–1678), KIA at Rheinfelden * Eva * Maria

Ancestors

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:William, Margrave of Baden-Baden Margraves of Baden-Baden Roman Catholic monarchs German Roman Catholics 17th-century German people House of Zähringen 1593 births 1677 deaths People from Baden-Baden