Background
He was the son of the Protestant Margrave Philibert of Baden-Baden and the Catholic Mechthild of Bavaria.
He was the son of the Protestant Margrave Philibert of Baden-Baden and the Catholic Mechthild of Bavaria.
At the University of Ingolstadt, Philip was educated in the spirit of the Counter Reformation.
Philip"s father, Philibert, died in early in October 1569 during the Battle of Montcontour. Albert gave Philip a strictly Catholic education. After he took up government, Philip"s first decree was that all citizens of Baden-Baden had to visit church services, under threat of severe penalties.
Philip dismantled the New Castle at Baden-Baden (the one built in 1579) and built a more magnificent, Renaissance style, castle on the same spot.
This increased his debts considerably. An inventory made in 1582 brought to light, in addition to 218 musical instruments, a debt of 200000guilders.
Philip tried to recude these debts by rearraging the commercial sector and increasing taxes. Thus, the economy of the margraviate gradually came to resemble a planned economy.
A dark chapter in the history of Baden-Baden are the witch-hunts, that took place during his reign.
They began during the Bavarian regency, but their number increased considerably during Philips"s reign. The last witch hunt under Philip II took place in 1580. 18 women were burnt at the stake in the districts of Rastatt, Baden-Baden and Kuppenheim.
Philip was buried in the Collegiate Church in Baden-Baden.