Johann Baptist Verda von Verdenberg

Johann Baptist Verda, Baron von Verdenberg from 1623 (c. 1582–1648), was an imperial diplomat, the first court chancellor for Upper, Inner and Lower Austria, and confidant of Ferdinand II. Educated by the Jesuits in Graz with a law doctorate from Pavia, he entered Ferdinand's service in 1607 and became court chancellor in 1619, helping draft Bohemia's absolutist constitution after White Mountain.

During the Thirty Years' War he negotiated with Wallenstein in 1630 and delivered his dismissal, later negotiating his reinstatement. He also helped negotiate with Saxony towards the Peace of Prague of 1635. Resigning at Ferdinand's death in 1637, he died in Vienna in 1648.