1888 in Germany

1888 in Germany
Events in the year 1888 in Germany, the 'Year of the Three Emperors'.
Incumbents
National level
Kaiser – William I to 9 March, then Frederick III to 15 June, then Wilhelm II
Chancellor – Otto von Bismarck
State level
Kingdoms
King of Bavaria – Otto
King of Prussia – William I to 9 March, then Frederick III to 15 June, then Wilhelm II
King of Saxony – Albert
King of Württemberg – Charles
Grand Duchies
Grand Duke of Baden – Frederick I
Grand Duke of Hesse – Louis IV
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin – Frederick Francis III
Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz – Frederick William
Grand Duke of Oldenburg – Peter II
Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach – Charles Alexander
Principalities
Schaumburg-Lippe – Adolf I, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt – George Albert, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen – Karl Günther, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
Principality of Lippe – Woldemar, Prince of Lippe
Reuss Elder Line – Heinrich XXII, Prince Reuss of Greiz
Reuss Younger Line – Heinrich XIV, Prince Reuss Younger Line
Waldeck and Pyrmont – George Victor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont
Duchies
Duke of Anhalt – Frederick I, Duke of Anhalt
Duke of Brunswick – Prince Albert of Prussia (regent)
Duke of Saxe-Altenburg – Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg
Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha – Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Duke of Saxe-Meiningen – Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen
Colonial Governors
Cameroon (Kamerun) – Eugen von Zimmerer (1st term) to 17 January, then Julius Freiherr von Soden (2nd term)
German East Africa (Deutsch-Ostafrika) – Karl Peters (administrator) to 8 February, then Hermann Wissmann (commissioner) (1st term)
German New Guinea (Deutsch-Neuguinea) – Georg Freiherr von Schleinitz to 1 March, then Reinhold Kraetke (both Landeshauptleute of the German New Guinea Company)
German South-West Africa (Deutsch-Südwestafrika) – Heinrich Ernst Göring (acting commissioner)
Togoland – Jesko von Puttkamer (acting commissioner) (1st term) to 17 October, then Eugen von Zimmerer (commissioner)
Wituland (Deutsch-Witu) – Gustav Denhardt (resident)
Events
9 March – Emperor Wilhelm I dies at the age of 90 in Berlin. He is succeeded by his oldest son Friedrich Wilhelm, who becomes Friedrich III.
16 April – The German Empire annexes the island of Nauru
15 June – Wilhelm II becomes German Emperor after the death of his father, Friedrich III.
13 December – Heinrich Hertz presents his report on the discovery of electromagnetic radiation to the Berlin Academy of Sciences
Literature
'Theses on Feuerbach' by Karl Marx is published posthumously
Music
Johannes Brahms – Violin Sonata in D Minor (opus 108)
Max Reger – String Quartet in D minor (with double bass obbligato; without op.) (1888–89)
Joseph Rheinberger — Organ Sonata No. 12 in D-flat, Op. 154
Richard Strauss
Don Juan, Macbeth (first version)
Carl Maria von Weber's opera Die drei Pintos completed posthumously by Theodor Hell
Sport
Establishment of association football clubs BFC Germania, TGM SV Jügesheim and KBC Duisburg
Miscellaneous
First buildings of the Berufsgenossenschaftliches Universitätsklinikum Bergmannsheil opened
Births
Deaths
References
Years of the 19th century in Germany
Germany
Germany