 Born in the castle in Graz on 9 July 1578, Ferdinand was the son of Charles II, Archduke of Austria, and Maria of Bavaria.Charles II, who was the youngest son of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, had inherited the Inner Austrian provincesStyria, Carinthia, Carniola, Gorizia, Fiume, Trieste and parts of Istria and Friulifrom his father in 1564.Being a daughter of Albert V, Duke of Bavaria, by Charles II's sister Anna, Maria of Bavaria was her husband's niece.