Jordan-Rozwadowski was born in Babin, near Kałusz, Galicia, which formed part of the Austrian Empire (Austria-Hungary from 1867). The Jordan-Rozwadowski family, traceable to a Polish Bishop and his brothers ca. 900 AD, was a member of the Polish nobility, and a part of Traby clan (see Trąby Coat of Arms). The Jordan commemorates a distant ancestor who fought in the crusades and as legend has it was the first Pole to explore the Jordan River valley. He was also descended from the Polish Patriot Kasimierz Jordan-Rozwadowski, who fought against the last partition of Poland. The family obtained the title of count from the Habsburg Emperor Joseph II in 1783 in the nobility of the Holy Roman Empire and the Austrian nobility.