Incumbents

National level

Kaiser – Wilhelm II
Chancellor – Bernhard von Bülow

State level

Kingdoms

Grand duchies

Principalities

Schaumburg-Lippe – George, Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt – Günther Victor, Prince of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen – Karl Günther, Prince of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
Principality of Lippe – Alexander, Prince of Lippe (with Ernest II, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld as regent)
Reuss Elder Line – Heinrich XXIV, Prince Reuss of Greiz (with Heinrich XIV, Prince Reuss Younger Line as regent)
Reuss Younger Line – Heinrich XIV, Prince Reuss Younger Line
Waldeck and Pyrmont – Friedrich, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont

Duchies

Colonial governors

Cameroon (Kamerun) – Jesko von Puttkamer (8th term)
Kiaochow (Kiautschou) – Oskar von Truppel
German East Africa (Deutsch-Ostafrika) – Gustav Adolf von Götzen
German New Guinea (Deutsch-Neuguinea) – Albert Hahl (2nd term)
German Samoa (Deutsch-Samoa) – Wilhelm Solf
German South-West Africa (Deutsch-Südwestafrika) – Theodor Leutwein
Togoland – Waldemar Horn

Events

13 February – Venezuelan crisis. After agreeing to arbitration in Washington, Britain, Germany and Italy reach a settlement with Venezuela, resulting in the Washington Protocols. The naval blockade that began in December 1902 will be lifted, and Venezuela commit 30% of its customs duties to settling claims.
16 June – German federal election, 1903: The Centre Party remains the largest party in the Reichstag.^[1] Shortly after the election, the National-Social Association is dissolved by its leader Friedrich Naumann, and its members join the Free-minded Union.^[2]

Undated

German company August Storck is founded.

Births

7 January – Albrecht Haushofer, German geographer, diplomat and writer (died 1945)
18 January – Werner Hinz, German actor (died 1985)
10 February – Karl Deichgräber, classical philologist (died 1984)
24 February – Franz Burda I, German publisher (died 1986)
6 March
- Erna Herchenröder, German trade unionist and politician (died 1977)^[3]
- Franz Wessel, German judge (died 1958)
24 March – Adolf Butenandt, German chemist (died 1995)
26 April – Alex Möller, German politician (died 1985)
27 April – Karl Maron, German politician (died 1975)
8 June – Eduard Brücklmeier, German diplomat (died 1944)
10 June:
- Robert A. Stemmle, German film director and screenwriter (died 1974)
- Theo Lingen, German actor, screenwriter and film director (died 1978)
16 July – Fritz Bauer, German judge (died 1968)
22 July:
- Willi Dehnkamp, German politician (died 1985)
- Anton Saefkow, German politician (died 1944)
26 July – Kurt Mahler, German mathematician (died 1988)
31 July – Emil Hirschfeld, German athlete (died 1968)
29 August – Ernst Kreuder, German writer (died 1972)
3 August – Rudolf Wolters, German architect (died 1983)
11 September:
- Theodor W. Adorno, German philosopher (died 1969)^[4]
- Carl Joseph Leiprecht, German bishop of Roman-Catholic Church (died 1981)
11 October – Hans Söhnker, film actor (died 1981)
3 October – Werner Klingler, German film director and actor (died 1972)^[5]
5 December – Johannes Heesters, German actor (died 2011)
26 December – Herbert Albert, German conductor (died 1973)
Date unknown – Ernst David Bergmann, German-born Israeli nuclear scientist and chemist (died 1975)

Deaths

13 April – Moritz Lazarus, German philosopher (born 1824)^[6]
14 June – Carl Gegenbaur, German anatomist (born 1826)^[7]
8 August – Adolf Schiel, German-born Boer army officer (born 1858)
4 September – Hermann Zumpe, German conductor (born 1850)
1 November – Theodor Mommsen, German classical scholar, historian, jurist, journalist, politician, archaeologist (born 1817)^[8]

References

^ Nohlen, D & Stöver, P (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p762 ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7
^ Kurlander, Eric (2007). The Landscapes of Liberalism: Particularism and Progressive Politics in Two Borderland Regions. Localism, Landscape, and the Ambiguities of Place: German-speaking Central Europe, 1860–1930. University of Toronto Press. p. 125.
^ "Detailansicht der Abgeordneten Erna Herchenröder" [Detailed view of MP Erna Herchenröder]. Landtag of North Rhine-Westphalia (in German). Retrieved 24 September 2023.
^ Doohm, Stefan (2005). Adorno : a biography. Cambridge, UK Malden, MA: Polity Press. p. 479. ISBN 9780745631080.
^ Vazzana, Eugene (2001). Silent film necrology. Jefferson, N.C: McFarland. p. 289. ISBN 9780786410590.
^ This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Lazarus, Moritz". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 314.
^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Gegenbaur, Carl" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
^ Carter, Jesse Benedict. "Theodor Mommsen," The Atlantic Monthly, Vol. XCIII, 1904.

v t e Years in Germany (1871–present)
19th century	Pre-1871 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900
20th century	1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
21st century	2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

v t e 1903 in Europe
Sovereign states	Andorra Austria-Hungary Baden Belgium Bulgaria Denmark France Germany Greece Italy Liechtenstein Luxembourg Monaco Montenegro Netherlands Norway Ottoman Empire Portugal Prussia Romania Russia San Marino Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom
Dependencies, colonies and other territories	Cyprus Gibraltar Guernsey Isle of Man Jersey Malta