[1] He was born at the Ettlingen Palace and was the son of Louis William, Margrave of Baden-Baden and his wife, Princess Sibylle of Saxe-Lauenburg.
[1] At the age of 16 years, the young prince was in love[clarification needed] with Marie Leszczyńska, daughter of the former king of Poland but the couple were never to unite.
As an unmarried prince, in the summer of 1720 he and his mother travelled to Prague where he would meet his future spouse (first of two) at the Schloss Hluboka nad Vltavou.
His mother travelled to Vienna in order to seek permission from Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor.
She was the daughter of Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor and his Austrian wife Archduchess Maria Amalia.
[citation needed] Maria Anna Josepha retired to Munich where she died in 1776 and was buried at the Theatine Church.