Events in the year 1897 in Germany. Incumbents National level Kaiser – Wilhelm II Chancellor – Chlodwig, Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst State level Kingdoms King of Bavaria – Otto of Bavaria King of Prussia – Kaiser Wilhelm II King of Saxony – Albert of Saxony King of Württemberg – William II of Württemberg Grand Duchies Grand Duke of Baden – Frederick I Grand Duke of Hesse – Ernest Louis Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin – Frederick Francis III to 10 April, then Frederick Francis IV Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz – Frederick William Grand Duke of Oldenburg – Peter II Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach – Charles Alexander 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 Prince Adolf of Schaumburg-Lippe to 17 July, then Ernest II, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld, as regent) Reuss Elder Line – Heinrich XXII, Prince Reuss of Greiz Reuss Younger Line – Heinrich XIV, Prince Reuss Younger Line Waldeck and Pyrmont – Friedrich, 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 – Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Duke of Saxe-Meiningen – Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen Colonial Governors Cameroon (Kamerun) – Theodor Seitz (2nd term) to 10 September, then Jesko von Puttkamer (5th term) from 11 September German East Africa (Deutsch-Ostafrika) – Eduard von Liebert German New Guinea (Deutsch-Neuguinea) – Curt von Hagen to 13 August, then Albert Hahl (acting) (1st term) to 11 September, then Hugo Skopnik (all Landeshauptleute of the German New Guinea Company) German South-West Africa (Deutsch-Südwestafrika) – Theodor Leutwein (Landeshauptleute) Togoland – August Köhler (Landeshauptleute) Events 10 May – The Handelsgesetzbuch (HGB) is passed by the Reichtstag. The HGB will come into force together with the Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch (BGB) on 1 January 1900. 10 August – Rudolf Diesel builds his first working prototype Diesel engine in Augsburg. 10 October – Chemists working at Bayer AG create a synthetically altered version of salicin which the company names Aspirin. Undated David Hilbert unifies the field of algebraic number theory with his treatise Zahlbericht. The Daimler Victoria—the world's first meter-equipped (and gasoline-powered) taxicab—was built by Gottlieb Daimler in 1897. Births 9 January – Karl Löwith, German philosopher