Leopold (Baden)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Grand Duke Leopold
Grand Duke Leopold I of Baden
Leopold von Baden on Gulden, year 1839

Karl Leopold I. Friedrich von Baden (born August 29, 1790 in Karlsruhe ; † April 24, 1852 there ) was Grand Duke of Baden from 1830 until his death .

Life

Leopold was born as the first son of Margrave Karl Friedrich von Baden and his second wife Luise Karoline . Since Luise Karoline Geyer von Geyersberg was not equal to the Zähringer noble family , the sons from this marriage were not intended for an inheritance in the margravial house. Leopold von Baden, who carried the name Leopold von Hochberg after his mother was allowed to call herself Baroness von Hochberg, was therefore not brought up with a view to assuming the position of sovereign. In 1809, Leopold von Hochberg began studying political science and economics in Heidelberg , traveled to Europe and, at the age of 24, took part in the war against France , which is why he was promoted to major general.

After the succession regulation of the House of Baden was changed in 1818 in favor of the sons from the second marriage of Margrave Karl Friedrich, Leopold von Hochberg assumed the rank of Hereditary Prince and the following year, befittingly married the Swedish Princess Sophie Wilhelmine von Holstein-Gottorp , a great-granddaughter his fathers. With her and his fast-growing family, he regularly spent the summer months in Baden-Baden , where in 1824 he acquired a house outside the city walls that had been generously designed by Friedrich Weinbrenner . Hereditary Prince Leopold can easily have a significant influence on the transformation of the small medieval spa town into a contemporary and high-quality “Capitale d'été” ( summer capital ).

In 1830 he took over the business of government as the fourth Grand Duke of the state and further enhanced the value of the former royal seat of the margraviate of Baden-Baden by exchanging the New Palace , which Grand Duchess Stéphanie had been granted as a widow's residence in 1843 , but was rarely used by her, for his summer palace. Extensive expansion and renovation work on the New Palace ensured comfortable accommodation for the grand ducal family and made Baden-Baden the summer residence of the sovereign.

Act

At the beginning of his reign, Grand Duke Leopold aroused high expectations of a political change among the people, as he had appointed a new government cabinet with progressive-minded members and passed a press law at Christmas 1831 that was unparalleled in Germany. Grand Duke Leopold was unable to withstand the pressure to withdraw in 1832. In the following years he had to deal with the growing resentment in the population, which escalated in the Baden revolution in 1848 . On May 13, 1849, the grand ducal family fled into exile in Koblenz. The Grand Duke applied for federal aid to restore constitutional order. Prussian troops, predominantly under the command of the Prince of Prussia, crushed the revolution. On August 18, 1849, Grand Duke Leopold moved back into the royal seat of Karlsruhe with the victors and accepted, without significant contradiction, that Prussia, who was responsible for many of the 27 death sentences against those involved in the Baden revolution, exercised control over the country .

Last years

If Leopold von Baden had to struggle with health problems before the revolution, these worsened after his return from exile and led to the fact that on February 21, 1852 he handed over the deputy and thus the management of government affairs to his second son Friedrich. His eldest son Ludwig II became Grand Duke of Baden after his death. Since he was also ill, the affairs of government were continued until 1856 by Leopold's second son Friedrich , now as Prince Regent. On September 5, 1856, Prince Regent Friedrich then proclaimed himself as Friedrich I as the new Grand Duke of Baden.

In Baden-Baden, the town's central square between the Kurhaus and the baths and a street across from the Festspielhaus are a reminder of the regent, to whom the town owes a lot.

Marriage and offspring

Sophie Wilhelmine von Holstein-Gottorp, 1831 (painting by Franz Xaver Winterhalter )

Leopold married Sophie Wilhelmine von Holstein-Gottorp (* May 21, 1801 - July 6, 1865) on July 25, 1819 , the daughter of the Swedish King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden and granddaughter of Leopold's half-brother Karl Ludwig . From this marriage there were eight children:

ancestors

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Charles III Wilhelm of Baden-Durlach (1679–1738)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Friedrich Hereditary Prince of Baden (1703–1732)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Magdalena Wilhelmine of Württemberg (1677–1742)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Karl Friedrich Grand Duke of Baden (1728–1811)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Johann Wilhelm Friso of Nassau-Dietz (1687–1711)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Anna of Nassau-Dietz-Oranien (1710–1777)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Marie Luise of Hessen-Kassel (1688–1765)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Leopold Grand Duke of Baden
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ???
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Baron Ludwig Heinrich Philipp Geyer von Geyersberg
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ???
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Luise Karoline von Hochberg (1767–1820)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Johann Rudolf Reichsgraf von Sponeck
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Maximiliana Christina, b. Countess von Sponeck (1730–1804)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Wilhelmine Luise von Hoff (1704–1780)
 
 
 
 
 
 

literature

Web links

Commons : Leopold (Baden)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Lothar Machtan: Star Monarch or Model Monarchy? On the political system of rule of the Grand Duchy of Baden in the long 19th century. In: Detlef Lehnert (Ed.): Constitutionalism in Europe. Development and interpretation. Cologne / Weimar / Vienna 2014. pp. 257–286. On the succession in Baden between 1852 and 1856, especially pages 264–268.
predecessor Office successor
Ludwig I. Grand Duke of Baden
1830–1852 		Ludwig II.
personal data
SURNAME Leopold
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Leopold of Baden
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Grand Duke of Baden
DATE OF BIRTH August 29, 1790
PLACE OF BIRTH Karlsruhe
DATE OF DEATH April 24, 1852
Place of death Karlsruhe