The
assassination of the Archduke Ferdinand on June 28th 1914, is widely believed to have precipitated
the start of the First World War, bringing into play a complex and extensive
series of alliances that drew all the big European nations, and then their
allies, into the deadly vortex.
In itself
the event was comparatively minor – but it took place in an environment that
was already primed for conflict and acted as a trigger that finally unleashed
the dogs of war.
In June
1914 Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of the Austro Hungarian Empire, embarked on a
tour of the Balkans to inspect military establishments in the area that had
been annexed by the Empire in 1908. This annexation had outraged Serbian
nationalists who had been agitating for an independent nation ever since.
On June 28th
the Archduke and his wife Sophie visited Sarajevo, the Bosnian capital, and
toured the city in an open car – a dangerous venture in view of the volatile
situation.
The Archduke and his wife emerging from the Sarajevo Town
Hall and about to enter their car. The photograph was taken only a few minutes
before the assassination. (Image form Wikipedia Commons)
A Serbian
nationalist, 19 year old Gavrilo Princip was waiting with a gun and seizing his
chance fired at the car, hitting both the Archduke and his wife. He then
attempted to turn the gun on himself but was wrestled to the ground by other
onlookers and was taken away by police.
The car
carrying Ferdinand and his wife lying critically wounded inside, sped away from
the scene seeking medical assistance.
However both died of their wounds soon after.
This set
off a rapidly escalating series of events – Austria and Hungary accused the
Serbian Government of being behind the assassination and declared war on Serbia
in July. Russia and its allies, France and Britain, supported Serbia, and
Germany came down on the side of Austria/Hungary.
The fragile
peace that had held Europe together over the previous decade collapsed like a
house of cards and the world was plunged into the greatest global conflict ever
seen up until that time. The First World War had begun.
For a large amount of information about World War 1 you can check out the weekly updates on Foxtel Australia's History Channel Website at
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