Bernhard III, Margrave of Baden-Baden (7 October 1474 – 29 June 1536) inherited in 1515 part of his father's margraviate 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 ...

. He ruled his part from 1515 until 1536. His two brothers,

Ernest Ernest is a given name derived from the Germanic languages, Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious", often shortened to Ernie. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), ...

and

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male name derived from the Macedonian Old Koine language, Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominen ...

inherited the other parts; after Philip died, he and Ernest each inherited half of Philip's part. This created two lines of rulers: * "Bernhardine line" (Catholic) ruled

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 ...

* "Ernestine line" (Protestant) ruled

Baden-Durlach The Margraviate of Baden-Durlach was an early modern territory of the Holy Roman Empire, in the upper Rhine valley, which existed from 1535 to 1771. It was formed when the Margraviate of Baden was split between the sons of Margrave Christopher I ...

The Bernhardine line died out in 1771, allowing Margrave Charles Frederick of the Ernestine line to reunite the Margraviate of Baden. Bernard was brought up at the court of Emperor Maximilian I and went to Spain with his friend, Maximilian's son

Philip I Philip(p) I may refer to: * Philip I of Macedon (7th century BC) * Philip I Philadelphus (between 124 and 109 BC–83 or 75 BC) * Philip the Arab (c. 204–249), Roman Emperor * Philip I of France (1052–1108) * Philip I (archbishop of Cologne) ( ...

. Philip was appointed

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in 1504. Margrave Bernhard tended in his later years to

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

and introduced the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

into the upper Margraviate.

Marriage and issue

Bernhard III married in 1535, two years before his death, Franziska of Luxemburg, Countess of Brienne and Ligny (d. 17 June 1566), the daughter of

Charles I, Count of Ligny Charles I, Count of Ligny, (1488–1530) was the ruling Count of Ligny and Brienne. Early life Born as the son of Anthony I, Count of Ligny, and his second wife, Françoise of Croÿ-Chimay. He belonged to the collateral branch of the House o ...

. They had two sons; the younger, Christopher, was born after Bernard's death: * Philibert (born: 22 January 1536, died: 3 October 1569) *

Christopher Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...

(born: 26 February 1537; died: 2 August 1575) Bernhard, however, had numerous extra-marital children, of whom six sons (Bernard, Philip, John, George, Caspar, and Melchior) are known. In 1532, Emperor Charles V declared George, Caspar and Melchior to be legitimate princes, and later, Bernhard and Philip as well. These sons were not entitled to inherit, but they received a maintenance payment after their father's death.Johann Christian Sachs: ''Einleitung in die Geschichte der Marggravschaft und des marggrävlichen altfürstlichen Hauses Baden'', Karlsruhe 1764–1770, vol. 3, p. 214

Ancestors

References and sources

* * Johann Christian Sachs: ''Einleitung in die Geschichte der Marggravschaft und des marggrävlichen altfürstlichen Hauses Baden'', Karlsruhe 1764–1770, vol. 3, p. 195–214

Footnotes

Margraves of Baden-Baden 1474 births 1536 deaths 15th-century German people 16th-century German nobility House of Zähringen Burials at Stiftskirche, Baden-Baden {{Germany-margrave-stub

Marriage and issue

Ancestors

See also

References and sources

Footnotes