The authority governed by the district president was introduced in Prussia in 1808 under the Prussian Reform Movement.
Up to the dispersal of the Prussian state in 1947 the simplification of the medium level administration was an ongoing issue since the allocation of responsibilities to the Oberpräsident and the district president was not precise.
During the time of the German Reich especially the larger federal states had district presidents as administrative middle level authorities.
Sometimes the designation of the allocated regional entity was a different one: In Bavaria and Württemberg they were called Kreise (districts), Provionzen (provinces) in Hesse, Landeskommissärbezirk in Baden and Kreishauptmannschaften in Saxony.
In Nazi Germany the official title of the head of the authority was unified to Regierungspräsident, following the Prussian denomination.