Short answers, pulled from the story.
Baden is a historical territory in southwestern Germany, lying east of the Upper Rhine. It stretches from Lake Constance in the south to Mannheim in the north, bordered by France's Alsace to the west, Switzerland to the south, and the Black Forest to the east.
Hermann II of Baden first claimed the title of Margrave of Baden in 1112. The ruling dynasty originated from the House of Zähringen, whose residence at Hohenbaden Castle in Baden-Baden gave the territory its name.
Baden was divided in 1535 into the Margraviates of Baden-Durlach and Baden-Baden following a succession arrangement within the ruling family. The two halves remained separate for over two centuries until Margrave Charles Frederick reunited them in 1771.
Baden was elevated to an electorate in 1803 and then became the Grand Duchy of Baden in 1806, gaining additional territory in the process. This transformation occurred during the Napoleonic Wars.
After 1945, Baden was divided into two occupation zones: South Baden under French control and Württemberg-Baden under American control. In 1952, both zones merged with Württemberg-Hohenzollern to form the modern Federal State of Baden-Württemberg.
The Wespentaille, meaning "wasp's waist" in German, is a narrow stretch of Baden near Gaggenau where the distance from the Black Forest to the Rhine is only 18 kilometers. It is the narrowest point of the entire region.