Friedrich I von Baden. 5 mark, 1902 German Empire. Baden

FRIEDRICH I VON BADEN Grand Duke Friedrich I von Baden (1826–1907) was a modern ruler; he turned Baden into a kind of “liberal model country.“ He also supported his Prussian father-in-law in founding the German Empire and supported his appointment as the German emperor. WHY DID HE, AS SECOND-BORN SON, COME TO POWER? Friedrich’s older brother, Ludwig II, was mentally ill. In 1852, when his father died, Friedrich took over the regency. In 1856, he officially became the grand duke; Ludwig had declared himself unfit to rule. Friedrich I ruled for more than 50 years, and was a truly liberal ruler: among other actions, he championed the constitutional monarchy. As a grandchild of Grand Duke Karl Friedrich from his second, unsuitable marriage, he was given a modern and relatively bourgeois education. WHERE WAS HIS WIFE FROM? At the time, Baden had strong connections with Prussia. Friedrich I’s marriage to Prussian, Princess Luise, was based on real feelings, but the connectio