The Kaiserpreis auto race, named after Emperor Wilhelm II, was held in 1907. Like his brother's Prinz-Heinrich-Fahrt

Prinz-Heinrich-Fahrt

The Prinz-Heinrich-Fahrt , named after Prince Albert Wilhelm Heinrich of Prussia, was an automobile contest held from 1908 to 1911 and a precursor to the German Grand Prix...

 held from 1908 to 1911, it was a precursor to the German Grand Prix

German Grand Prix

The German Grand Prix is an annual automobile race.Because Germany was banned from taking part in international events after World War II, the German GP only became part of the Formula One World Championship in 1951...

.

As Camille Jenatzy

Camille Jenatzy

Camille Jenatzy was a Belgian race car driver. He is known for breaking the land speed record three times and being the first man to break the 100 km/h barrier....

 had won the Gordon Bennett Cup in auto racing

Gordon Bennett Cup in auto racing

As one of three Gordon Bennett Cups established by James Gordon Bennett, Jr., millionaire owner of the New York Herald, the automobile racing award was first given in 1900 in France....

 in 1903 with a Mercedes

Mercedes (car)

Mercedes was a brand of the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft . DMG which began to develop in 1900, after the death of its co-founder, Gottlieb Daimler...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 had to stage the 1904 event. A 117 km (72.7 mi) long track in the Taunus

Taunus

The Taunus is a low mountain range in Hesse, Germany that composes part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. It is bounded by the river valleys of Rhine, Main and Lahn. On the opposite side of the Rhine, the mountains are continued by the Hunsrück...

 mountains was selected, from Oberursel

Oberursel

Oberursel is a town in Germany. It is located to the north west of Frankfurt, and is the second largest town in the county of Hochtaunuskreis and the 14th largest town in Hessen.-Extent of municipal area:...

 to Weilburg

Weilburg

Weilburg is, with just under 14,000 inhabitants, the third biggest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, after Limburg an der Lahn and Bad Camberg.- Location :...

 and back. The Cup was won by Léon Théry

Léon Théry

Léon Théry, , was a French racing driver who won the premier European race, the Gordon Bennett Cup, twice in 1904 and 1905.-Career:...

 in a Richard-Brasier

Richard-Brasier

Richard-Brasier was the successor of the early French automobile maker Georges Richard from 1902. The firm made large chain-driven cars.Léon Théry drove the cars to victory in the Gordon Bennett Cup races in 1904 and 1905...

, and the Gordon Bennett race returned to France for 1905 and 1906, but was not continued as such in 1907, as Grand Prix motor racing

Grand Prix motor racing

Grand Prix motor racing has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as far back as 1894. It quickly evolved from a simple road race from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car and driver...

 evolved.

On the same track as the Gordon Bennett three years earlier, Germany staged its second large international event in 1907, the Kaiserpreis auto race (after sailing and rowing events were also named so). Entries were limited to touring car

Touring car

A touring car, or tourer, is an open car seating five or more. Touring cars may have two or four doors. Often, the belt line is lowered in the front doors to give the car a more sportive character. They were often fitted with a folding roof and side curtains. Engines on early models were either in...

s with engines of less than eight litres. The race was won by Italian Felice Nazzaro

Felice Nazzaro

Felice Nazzaro was an Italian racecar driver, a native of Turin. He won the Kaiserpreis in 1907 as well as the French Grand Prix in 1907 and 1922 and Targa Florio in 1907 and 1913. His European wins in 1907 resulted in an invitation to compete in the 1908 American Grand Prize in Savannah, Georgia,...

 in a Fiat

Fiat

FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...

, against competition from Opel

Opel

Adam Opel AG, generally shortened to Opel, is a German automobile company founded by Adam Opel in 1862. Opel has been building automobiles since 1899, and became an Aktiengesellschaft in 1929...

, Mercedes

Mercedes (car)

Mercedes was a brand of the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft . DMG which began to develop in 1900, after the death of its co-founder, Gottlieb Daimler...

, Eisenach

Automobilwerk Eisenach

The Automobilwerk Eisenach was an automobile manufacturer in Eisenach, Germany.-Fahrzeugfabrik Eisenach:Heinrich Ehrhardt founded the Fahrzeugfabrik Eisenach in Eisenach on 3 December 1896 as a stock company...

, Adler

Adler (automobile)

Adler was a German automobile and motorcycle manufacturer from 1900 until 1957. Adler is German for eagle.-History:The Adler factory produced bicycles, typewriters, and motorcycles in addition to cars...

 and others.

In 1908, the Prinz-Heinrich-Fahrt

Prinz-Heinrich-Fahrt

The Prinz-Heinrich-Fahrt , named after Prince Albert Wilhelm Heinrich of Prussia, was an automobile contest held from 1908 to 1911 and a precursor to the German Grand Prix...

resumed until 1911.

External links

• http://www.gpracing.net192.com/history/golden_age.cfm
• http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif.snellman/gpw1.htm