2017 in Germany explained

This list details notable events occurring in 2017 in Germany. Major events included the death of Helmut Kohl, the legalization of same-sex marriage and the Alternative for Germany (AfD) enters the Bundestag for the first time.

Incumbents

• President:
  • Joachim Gauck (until 18 March 2017)
  • Frank-Walter Steinmeier (from 18 March 2017)
• Chancellor: Angela Merkel

Events

January

• January – 2016–2017 Tour de Ski
• January – 2016–2017 Biathlon World Cup – World Cup 4
• January – 2016–2017 Biathlon World Cup – World Cup 5
• 11 January – Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg opened.
• 20 January – Museum Barberini in Potsdam opened.

February

• 1–5 February – 2017 German Masters
• 9–18 February – 67th Berlin International Film Festival
• 9 February – Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017
• 12 February – 2017 German presidential election

March

• CeBIT in Hanover
• ITB Berlin in Berlin
• Leipzig Book Fair in Leipzig
• Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017
• In March 2017, French company Groupe PSA agreed to buy German company Opel and its English sister brand Vauxhall and their European auto lending business from General Motors for US$2.2 billion,
• 9 March – 2017 Düsseldorf axe attack
• 26 March – 2017 Saarland state election

April

• Hanover Messe in Hanover
• Deutscher Filmpreis in Berlin
• 7 April – Opening of Internationale Gartenausstellung 2017

May

• 7 May – 2017 Schleswig-Holstein state election
• 14 May – 2017 Nordrhein-Westfalen state election
• 29 May – 5 June – 2017 World Table Tennis Championships

June

• Kiel Week in Kiel
• Rosenhang Museum in Weilburg opened.
• 10 June – September Documenta 14
• Merger of German company The Linde Group and Praxair.
• 27 June – Armin Laschet become Minister-president of North Rhine-Westphalia.
• 28 June – Daniel Günther become Minister-president of Schleswig-Holstein.
• 30 June – The Bundestag voted to make same-sex marriage legal.

July

• 4 July – Manuela Schwesig become Minister-president of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
• 6 July - The Transparency in Wage Structures Act goes into effect.
• 7–8 July – 2017 G20 Hamburg summit
• 28 July – 2017 Hamburg attack
• 30 July – Konstanz shooting

August

• Hanse Sail in Rostock
• Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin in Berlin
• 15 August – Air Berlin files for bankruptcy.
• 18 August – Bain Capital and Cinven acquired German company Stada Arzneimittel.^[1]

September

• 24 September – 2017 German federal election
  • The (CDU/CSU), led by incumbent chancellor Angela Merkel, wins the highest percentage of the vote with 33%, though it suffered a large swing against it of more than 8%.
  • The Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) achieved its worst result since post-war Germany at 21%.
  • The Alternative for Germany (AfD), which was previously unrepresented in the Bundestag, became the third largest party in the Bundestag with 12.6% of the vote. It was the first time since 1957 that a party to the political right of the CDU/CSU gained seats in the Bundestag.
• ILA Berlin Air Show in Berlin
• Gamescom in Cologne
• Frankfurt Motor Show in Frankfurt
• September – October – Oktoberfest in Munich

October

• Frankfurt Book Fair in Frankfurt
• 15 October – 2017 Lower Saxony state election

December

• 1 December – 2017 World Women's Handball Championship
• December – German company Hamburg Süd is sold to Danish company Maersk.

Deaths

January

• 4 January: Heinz Billing, German physicist and computer scientist (b. 1914).^[2]
• 10 January: Roman Herzog, German politician, former president (born 1934)
• 13 January: Udo Ulfkotte, German journalist and political scientist (born 1960)
• 14 January: Herbert Mies, German politician (born 1929)
• 16 January: Franz Jarnach, German actor and musician. (born 1943)
• 20 January: Klaus Huhn, German journalist, writer and sports administrator (born 1928)
• 26 January: Michael Tönnies, German football player (born 1959)
• 27 January: Brunhilde Pomsel, German broadcaster and secretary to Joseph Goebbels (b. 1911).^[3]

February

• 6 February: Inge Keller, German actress (born 1923)
• 15 February: Manfred Kaiser, German footballer (born 1929)

March

• 12 March: Horst Ehmke, German politician (born 1927)
• 23 March: Ingeborg Rapoport, German paediatrician (b. 1912)^[4]
• 28 March: Christine Kaufmann, German actress (born 1945)

April

• 9 April: Dieter Kottysch, German boxer (born 1943)
• 11 April: Michael Ballhaus, German cinematographer (born 1935)

May

• 2 May: Heinz Kessler, German politician, military officer and a convicted felon (born 1920)
• 15 May: Karl-Otto Apel, German philosopher (born 1922)
• 16 May: Gunnar Möller, German actor (born 1928)
• 20 May: Paul Falk, Germann pair skater (born 1921)

June

• 1 June: Tankred Dorst, German playwright and storyteller (born 1925)
• 11 June: Alexandra Kluge, German actress and physician (born 1937)
• 16 June: Helmut Kohl, German politician, former chancellor (born 1930)
• 22 June: Gunter Gabriel, Germann singer, musician and composer (born 1942)

July

• 10 July: Peter Härtling, German writer, poet, publisher and journalist. (born 1933)
• 20 July: Andrea Jürgens German singer (born 1967)
• 22 July: Fritz Hellwig, German politician (born 1912)
• 26 July: Constantin Heereman von Zuydtwyck, German politician (born 1931)

August

• 5 August: Martin Roth, German museum director (born 1955)
• 10 August: Ruth Pfau, German physician and nun (born 1929)
• 15 August: Eberhard Jäckel, German historian (born 1929)
• 19 August: Karl Otto Götz, German painter (b. 1914)^[5]
• 20 August: Margot Hielscher, German actress and singer (born 1919)
• 20 August: Wilhelm Killmayer, German composer of classical music, a conductor and an academic teacher (born 1927)
• 24 August: Axel Bernstein, German politician (born 1974)

September

• 8 September: Karl Ravens, German politician (born 1927)
• 12 September: Heiner Geißler, German politician (born 1930)
• 15 September: Albert Speer Jr., German architect (born 1934)
• 27 September: Joy Fleming, German singer (born 1944)
• 28 September: Andreas Schmidt, German actor (born 1963)

October

• 7 October: Hugo Budinger, German field hockey player (born 1927)
• 11 October: Karl-Heinz Kipp, German entrepreneur (born 1924)

November

• 5 November: Lothar Thoms, German track cyclist (born 1956)
• 6 November: Karin Dor, German actress (born 1938)
• 7 November: Hans-Michael Rehberg, German actor (born 1938)
• 7 November: Hans Schäfer, German footballer (born 1927)
• 20 November:, German actor (born 1940)^[6]
• 21 November: Peter Berling, German actor (born 1934)

December

• 3 December: Elmar Faber, German book publisher (born 1934)
• 25 December: Erich Kellerhals, German businessman (born 1939)
• 30 December: Bernd Spier, German singer (born 1944)

See also

• 2017 in German television

Notes and References

1. Web site: Manager-Magazin.de: Bain Capital und Cinven gelingt Kauf von Stada (German) . 18 August 2017 . 21 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191221220055/https://www.manager-magazin.de/unternehmen/artikel/stada-bain-capital-und-cinven-gelingt-kauf-a-1163470.html . live .
2. Web site: Computerpionier Heinz Billing ist tot. https://web.archive.org/web/20190830101122/https://www.bild.de/regional/aktuelles/bayern/computerpionier-heinz-billing-ist-tot-49653080.bild.html. dead. 30 August 2019. bild.de.
3. News: Brunhilde Pomsel, secretary to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels, dies at 106 . . 5 April 2019 . 29 January 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170129190520/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/brunhilde-pomsel-secretary-to-nazi-propaganda-minister-joseph-goebbels-dies-at-106/2017/01/29/ab645200-dcf6-11e6-ad42-f3375f271c9c_story.html . live .
4. Web site: Germany: Doctorate recipient who defied Nazis dies at 104 . 6 April 2019 . 6 April 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190406104241/https://www.wbal.com/article/228878/130/germany-doctorate-recipient-who-defied-nazis-dies-at-104 . live .
5. Web site: Im Alter von 103 Jahren: Jahrhundertmaler Karl Otto Götz gestorben. https://archive.today/20170822061029/http://www.rp-online.de/kultur/kunst/karl-otto-goetz-jahrhundertmaler-im-alter-von-103-jahren-gestorben-aid-1.7025955. dead. RP. ONLINE. 21 August 2017. 22 August 2017. RP ONLINE.
6. Web site: 23 November 2017 . Verstorbener "In aller Freundschaft"-Star soll seine Krankheit verheimlicht haben . focus.de.