Prince William of Baden

Prince Louis William Augustus of Baden (; 18 December 1829 – 27 April 1897) was a Prussian general and politician. Wilhelm received his formal education in the Prussian Army. From 1856, Wilhelm served as Major of the Guard Artillery and served as the last Major General and Commander of the Guards Artillery Brigade . The dissolution of the 8th Federal Corps began on 30 July 1866 when Wilhelm sent a flag of truce along with a letter to the Prussian headquarters at Marktheidenfeld. The letter stated that Wilhelm's father Leopold, Grand Duke of Baden, had entered into direct negotiations with Wilhelm I of Prussia and that King Wilhelm I granted the Baden troops permission to return to their homes.

Franco-Prussian War In the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, Wilhelm commanded the 1st Baden Brigade in the XIV Corps. The French had transported 10,000 men by rail and the citizens of Dijon, including women, joined in the defense of the city against the Germans.

Post-war career In 1895, Kaiser Wilhelm II promoted him à la suite to the Grenadier Regiment in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Battle of Nuits-Saint-Georges. Prior to the marriage, Wilhelm had traveled to England as a potential suitor of Princess Mary Adelaide of Cambridge.

Wilhelm and Maria had two children:

Princess Marie of Baden (26 July 1865 – 29 November 1939), later Duchess of Anhalt as the wife of Friedrich II, Duke of Anhalt (no issue) Prince Maximilian of Baden (10 July 1867 – 6 November 1929)

Candidate for the Greek throne The tomb of Prince Wilhelm of Baden in the Grand Ducal Crypt Chapel in Karlsruhe. Following the deposition of Otto of Greece and the Greek head of state referendum of 1862, Wilhelm was considered by Wilhelm I of Prussia and Otto von Bismarck as a candidate for the throne of the Kingdom of Greece. The Russian Empire's preferred candidate for the Greek throne fluctuated between Nicholas Maximilianovitch, 4th Duke of Leuchtenberg and Wilhelm, his brother-in-law. According to The New York Times on 16 March 1863, then recent purchases of Greek bonds in London were the result of a report that Wilhelm was to be formally recommended for the throne.

Following the death of his brother-in-law Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Wilhelm traveled to Schloss Reinhardsbrunn on 23 August 1893 to visit his widowed sister Alexandrine and greet the Duke's successor, Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. He attended the Duke's funeral procession and service in Coburg on 28 August 1893.

Wilhelm died in Karlsruhe on 27 April 1897 at the age of 67.

Foreign honours Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold French Empire: Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, June 1860 Knight of the Annunciation Grand Cross of the Order of Prince Danilo I Knight of St. Andrew Knight of St. Alexander Nevsky Knight of St. Anna, 1st Class Knight of St. George, 4th Class

Ancestry