Christoph II of Baden-Rodemachern (26 February 1537 – 2 August 1575,

Rodemachern Rodemack (; German: ''Rodemachern''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Ruedemaacher''/''Roudemaacher'') is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Localities of the commune: ''Esing'', ''Faulbach'', ''Semming''. Persona ...

) was the first

Margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Emp ...

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...

-Rodemachern. He was the second son of Bernhard III of Baden-Baden and his wife Countess Franziska of Brienne and Luxembourg. When Christopher II came of age in 1556, he renounced his right to a part of Baden-Baden to his older brother Philibert in exchange for an annual allowance of 4000 guilders. He also received

as an

apanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...

, making him the founder of the elder Baden-Rodemachern line. He started travelling. From 1557 to 1561, he was in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, where he joined the campaigns of the Spanish Army. He went to Sweden in 1564, where he married a sister of King

Eric XIV of Sweden Eric XIV ( sv, Erik XIV; 13 December 153326 February 1577) was King of Sweden from 1560 until he was deposed in 1569. Eric XIV was the eldest son of Gustav I (1496–1560) and Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg (1513–1535). He was also ruler of Es ...

. He then returned to Rodemachern, where he built himself a palace and led a wasteful life. In 1565, he travelled to London, where Queen

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

received him honorably. However, he heaped debt upon debt and when he tried to leave in 1566, he found he couldn't leave the country until the Queen had provided surety. Also in 1566, he inherited the Lordships of

Useldange Useldange ( lb, Useldeng ; german: Useldingen) is a commune and small town in western Luxembourg, in the canton of Redange. , the town of Useldange, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 1965. Other towns within the commune ...

Pettingen Pettingen () is a village in the commune of Mersch, in central Luxembourg. In 2005, the village had a population of 198. Pettingen Castle in the centre of the village is one of the best preserved fortified castles in the country.Roußzy. He continued to spend too much, and his country suffered from religious unrest. His debts mounted. He went to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, where he served in the army and fought against

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. His brother-in-law King

John III of Sweden John III ( sv , Johan III, fi, Juhana III; 20 December 1537 – 17 November 1592) was King of Sweden from 1569 until his death. He was the son of King Gustav I of Sweden and his second wife Margaret Leijonhufvud. He was also, quite autonomous ...

enfeoffed In the Middle Ages, especially under the European feudal system, feoffment or enfeoffment was the deed by which a person was given land in exchange for a pledge of service. This mechanism was later used to avoid restrictions on the passage of ti ...

him with the island of

Ösel Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring . The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and west of Muhu island, and belongs to the West Estonian Archipelago. The capital of the island i ...

. After several years in Sweden, he returned to Rodemachern, where he died in 1575. His was succeeded by his son

Edward Fortunatus Edward Fortunatus (or in German Eduard Fortunat) of Baden (17 September 1565 – 8 June 1600) was Margrave of Baden-Rodemachern and Baden-Baden. Life and work Born in London, Edward was the son of Christopher II, Margrave of Baden-Rodemacher ...

who was a minor at the time.

Marriage and issue

Margrave Christoph II married on 11 November 1564

Princess Cecilia of Sweden Cecilia of Sweden (Swedish: ''Cecilia Gustavsdotter Vasa'') (16 November 1540 in Stockholm – 27 January 1627 in Brussels), was Princess of Sweden as the daughter of King Gustav I and his second wife, Margaret Leijonhufvud, and Margravine of ...

(born: 6 November 1540; died: 27 January 1627), the daughter of King

Gustav I of Sweden Gustav I, born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family and later known as Gustav Vasa (12 May 1496 – 29 September 1560), was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death in 1560, previously self-recognised Protector of the Realm ('' Riksföre ...

. They had the following children: *

(born: 17 September 1565; died: 18 June 1600), Margrave of Baden-Rodemachern and later of Baden-Baden * Christopher Gustav (born: 13 August 1566; died: 18 January 1609) * Philip III (born: 15 August 1567; died: 6 November 1620, Margrave of Baden-Rodemachern * Charles (born: 7 March 1569; died: 1590) * Bernhard (born: December 1570; died: February 1571) * John Charles (born: 1572, died: 29 January 1599), joined the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...

Ancestors

References and sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Christopher 02 Baden Rodemachern Margraves of Baden 1537 births 1575 deaths 16th-century German people House of Zähringen