Frederick I, Margrave of Baden

Conradin and Frederick hearing their death sentence, J.H.W. Tischbein, 1784

Frederick I of Baden (1249 – October 29, 1268, aged 19) was Margrave of Baden and claimant Duke of Austria from October 4, 1250 until his death. He was born at Alland, the only son of Margrave Herman VI of Baden and Gertrude of Babenberg, the niece and heiress of late Duke Frederick II of Austria.

When Duke Frederick II of Austria had been killed at the 1246 Battle of the Leitha River, the ducal line of the Babenberg dynasty had become extinct. Margrave Herman VI of Baden through his marriage had raised inheritance claims to the Babenberg possessions, he could however not prevail against the mighty King Wenceslaus I of Bohemia and his son Ottokar II Přemysl, who upon Herman's death in 1250 occupied the Austrian lands.

Young Frederick succeeded his father as Margrave of Baden, together with his uncle Rudolf I, and through his mother also as claimant to the Austrian and Styrian duchies. When Ottokar II moved into Austria, he had to flee and later grew up at the court of Duke Louis II of Bavaria together with his friend Conradin of Swabia, the son of German king Conrad IV and heir to the Imperial Hohenstaufen dynasty. From him Frederick expected support in enforcing his claims to power.

In 1267 he made the fatal decision to accompany Conradin on his Italian expedition, after Conradin's uncle King Manfred of Sicily had been killed at the 1266 Battle of Benevento by the troops of Charles of Anjou. Conradin's troops were defeated at the Battle of Tagliacozzo, whereafter he and Frederick passed into captivity on September 8, 1268 at Torre Astura, south of Anzio. Handed over by the Frangipani to Charles of Anjou, both remained in degrading imprisonment at the Castel dell'Ovo in Naples until publicly beheaded in the Piazza del Mercato on October 29.

Frederick's and Conradin's mortal remains were at first hastily buried, but later transferred to the church of Santa Maria del Carmine, at the behest of Conradin's mother Elisabeth of Wittelsbach.

References

Preceded by Herman VI	Margrave of Baden 1250–1268 with Rudolf I	Succeeded by Rudolf I
	Duke of Austria (claimant) 1250–1268	Succeeded by Ottokar II of Bohemia