For most of the early modern period, the Baden lands were divided into two parts, one ruled by the Catholic Margraves of Baden-Baden, and the other by the Protestant Margraves of Baden-Durlach. In 1771, the main Baden-Baden line became extinct, and all of the Baden lands came under the rule of Baden-Durlach. During the Napoleonic era, in the imperial reorganisation of 1803, Baden gained a great deal of additional territory, and its rulers were made one of the few prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. However, this pre-eminent dignity lasted only for three years, until the end of the Empire in August 1806, eight months after the crushing Battle of Austerlitz. Consequently, in that year, the Margraves took on the title of Grand Duke of Baden, and gained additional territory. 

In 1815 it joined the German Confederation. During the Revolutions of 1848 in the German states, Baden was a center of revolutionist activities. In 1849 it was the only German state that became a republic for a short while, under the leadership of Lorenzo Brentano. Finally the revolution in Baden was suppressed mainly by Prussian troops, the Grand Duchy of Baden remained a sovereign country until it joined the German Empire in 1871. After the revolution of 1918 Baden became part of the Weimar Republic as the Republic of Baden. 

The History of the House of Zähringen

The earliest known member of the family was Berthold I, Count in the Breisgau (died 982), who was first mentioned in 962. Earlier ancestors, such as the Ahalolfings are suspected. Bertholds's great-grandson Duke Berthold I (d. 1078) was count of Zähringen and was related to the early Hohenstaufen family. Emperor Henry III had promised his liensman Berthold of Zähringen the Duchy of Swabia, but this was not fulfilled as upon Henry's death his widow Agnes of Poitou in 1057 appointed Count Rudolf of Rheinfelden. In compensation Berthold was made duke of Carinthia in 1061.

Although this dignity was a titular one, Berthold actually lost it when in the course of the Investiture Controversy he joined the rising of his former rival Rudolf of Rheinfelden against German king Henry IV in 1073. His son Berthold II, who like his father fought against Henry IV, inherited a lot of the lands of Rudolf's son Count Berthold of Rheinfelden in 1090 (though not his comital title, that stayed with the family von Wetter-Rheinfelden) and in 1092 was elected Duke of Swabia against Frederick I of Hohenstaufen. In 1098 he reconciled with Frederick, renounced all claims to Swabia and instead concentrated on his possessions in the Breisgau region, assuming the title of a "Duke of Zähringen". He was succeeded in turn by his sons, Berthold III (d. 1122) and Conrad (d. 1152).

In 1127 Conrad upon the assassination of his nephew Count William III claimed the inheritance of the County of Burgundy against Count Renaud III of Mâcon. Renaud prevailed, though he had to cede large parts of the eastern Transjuranian lands to Conrad, who thereupon was appointed by king Lothair III of Supplinburg a "rector" of the Imperial Kingdom of Arles or Burgundy. This office was confirmed in 1152 and held by the Zähringen dukes until 1218, hence they are sometimes called "Dukes of Burgundy", although the existing Duchy of Burgundy was not an Imperial but a French fief. Berthold IV (d. 1186), who followed his father Conrad, spent much of his time in Italy in the train of Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa; his son and successor, Berthold V, showed his prowess by reducing the Burgundian nobles to order. This latter duke was the founder of the city of Bern, and when he died in February 1218 the main line of the Zähringen family became extinct.

After the extinction of the main line, much of their extensive territory in the Breisgau and modern-day Switzerland returned to the crown, except for their allodial titles, which were divided between the Counts of Urach (who subsequent called themselves "Counts of Freiburg") and the Counts of Kyburg, both of whom had married sisters of Berthold V. Less than fifty years later, the Kyburgs died out and large portions of their domains were inherited by the House of Habsburg. Bern achieved the status of a free Imperial city. Some Zähringer titles in Germany were retained by the descendants of Margrave Hermann I of Baden, who was the elder son of duke Berthold II of Carinthia.

Now more commonly known as the House of Baden, Hermann's descendants ruled successively as margraves, electors (1803-1806) and Grand Dukes of Baden until the end of monarchy in 1918. The current holder of the title Margrave of Baden, Duke of Zähringen is Maximilian, Margrave of Baden (b. 1933), a grandson of the last chancellor of the German Empire, Prince Max von Baden, who seems to have revived the Zähringen title after it apparently had not been in official usage since the death of Berchtold V. Another branch were the Dukes of Teck, descendants of Duke Conrad's son Adalbert, whose line became extinct in 1439. 

The Grand Duchy of Baden was a hereditary monarchy with executive power vested in the Grand Duke while the legislative authority was shared by him with a representative assembly (Landtag) consisting of two chambers. The upper chamber included all the princes of the ruling family of full age, the heads of all the mediatized families, the Archbishop of Freiburg, the president of the Protestant Evangelical Church, a deputy from each of the universities and the technical high school, eight members elected by the territorial nobility for four years, three representatives elected by the chamber of commerce, two by that of agriculture, one by the trades, two mayors of municipalities, and eight members (two of them legal functionaries) nominated by the Grand Duke. 

The lower chamber consisted of 73 popular representatives, of whom 24 were elected by the burgesses of certain communities, and 49 by rural communities. Every citizen of 25 years of age, who had not been convicted and was not a pauper, had a vote. The elections were, however, indirect. The citizens selected the Wahlmänner (deputy electors), the latter selecting the representatives. The chambers met at least every two years. The lower chambers were elected for four years, half the members retiring every two years.

The executive consisted of four departments: The interior, foreign and grand-ducal affairs, finance, and justice, and ecclesiastical affairs and education. The chief sources of revenue were direct and indirect taxes, the railways and domains. The railways were operated by the state, and formed the only source of major public debt, about 22 million pounds sterling. The supreme courts lay in Karlsruhe, Freiburg, Offenburg, Heidelberg, Mosbach, Waldshut, Konstanz, and Mannheim, whence appeals passed to the Reichsgericht (the supreme tribunal) in Leipzig. 

List of the Grand Dukes of Baden

• 1806-1811: Charles Frederick (* 1728; † 1811)
• 1811-1818: Charles (* 1786; † 1818)
• 1818-1830: Louis I (* 1763; † 1830)
• 1830-1852: Leopold (* 1790; † 1852)
• 1852-1858: Louis II (* 1824; † 1858)
• 1858-1907: Frederick I (* 1826; † 1907)
• 1907-1918: Frederick II (* 1857; † 1928)

Heads of the Grand Ducal House of Baden

• Frederick II, 1918-1928.
• Maximilian of Baden, 1928-1929.
• Berthold of Baden, 1929-1963.
• Maximilian of Baden, since 1963.
  • Heir: Bernhard, Hereditary Prince of Baden (born 1970)

The Family Titles and Styles