South Baden

South Baden (German: Südbaden), formed in December 1945 from the southern half of the former Republic of Baden, was a subdivision of the French occupation zone of post-World War II Germany. The state was later renamed to Baden and became a founding state of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany, today simply Germany) in 1949. In 1952, Baden became part of the modern German state of Baden-Württemberg.

Formation

At the Yalta Conference in 1945, France was allocated an occupation zone for the administration of post-war Germany. The south-west of Germany - previously consisting of Baden, Württemberg and the Prussian province of Hohenzollern - was divided between France in the south and the United States in the north. The border between the two zones was set so that the Autobahn connecting Karlsruhe and Munich (today the A8) was completely contained within the American zone; Bavaria was also placed under American administration. In the French zone, Hohenzollern and the southern half of Württemberg were merged to form Württemberg-Hohenzollern. The southern half of Baden was established as South Baden on 1 December 1945. Freiburg was designated as the capital of South Baden; the former capital of Baden (Karlsruhe) was in the American zone.