Louis II (; 15 August 1824 – 22 January 1858) was

Grand Duke of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden () was a German polity on the east bank of the Rhine. It originally existed as a sovereign state from 1806 to 1871 and later as part of the German Empire until 1918. The duchy's 12th-century origins were as a margravi ...

from 24 April 1852 to his death in 1858. He was the son of

Leopold I, Grand Duke of Baden Leopold (29 August 1790 – 24 April 1852) succeeded in 1830 as the Grand Duke of Baden, reigning until his death in 1852. Although a younger child, Leopold was the first son of Margrave Karl Friederich of Baden by his second, morganatic wife, ...

, and Princess Sophie of Sweden.

Early life

Louis was born on 15 August 1824 as a son of Leopold, Hereditary Prince of Baden (later Grand Duke Leopold I), and Princess Sophie of Sweden. At his birth, the

was his paternal uncle,

Louis I Louis I may refer to: Cardinals * Louis I, Cardinal of Guise (1527–1578) Counts * Ludwig I, Count of Württemberg (c. 1098–1158) * Louis I of Blois (1172–1205) * Louis I of Flanders (1304–1346) * Louis I of Châtillon (died 13 ...

. As the future heirs to the throne, Louis and his younger brother,

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...

, received a modern education and often travelled to northern Italy and the Netherlands on family trips during their childhood. At the age of seven, Louis' father acceded to the throne of Baden. From December 1842 to May 1843, Louis and Frederick met high Austrian officials during a stay in Vienna. Louis later studied at the

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

Reign

Louis succeeded his father as Grand Duke of Baden on 24 April 1852. His brother, Frederick, acted as regent, as Louis had a mental illness. In 1856, Frederick became Grand Duke, as Louis' mental illness was deemed irreversible and permanent. He was an honorary citizen of

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

. Louis died on January 22, 1858.

Ancestry

References

House of Zähringen Nobility from Karlsruhe 1824 births 1858 deaths Grand dukes of Baden Hereditary princes of Baden German royalty and nobility with disabilities Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Royal reburials {{Germany-royal-stub