Assassination of the Archduke
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Nedeljko Čabrinović, Gavrilo Princip, Trifko Grabež, Danilo Ilić, Muhamed Mehmedbašić, Vaso Čubrilović, and Cvjetko Popović were the seven men chosen to assassinate the Archduke of Austria-Hungary, Franz Ferdinand. Each man was armed with a makeshift bomb, a handgun and a cyanide pill (so they could kill themselves after the assassination).
"The archduke traveled to Sarajevo in June 1914 to inspect the imperial armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Ottoman territories in the turbulent Balkan region that were annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908 to the indignation of Serbian nationalists, who believed they should become part of the newly independent and ambitious Serbian nation." -History.com, 2014 Right: Franz Ferdinand shaking hands with an associate Source: TheGuardian.com |
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On June 28th 1914, as the archduke and his pregnant wife Sophie drove towards the capitol building, the seven assassins positioned themselves along the archduke's route. The archduke first approached Mehmedbašić, whose grenade failed to blow up in the car after ricocheting off the Archduke's shoulder. Panic among the other six members ensued, they quickly went into hiding in the City. Upon arriving at the capitol building, the archduke was furious, and insisted on leaving as soon as possible. Unfortunately shortly after leaving, their driver took a wrong turn, and the car stalled, right in front of Gavrilo Princip, who had stopped to eat outside a cafe with an old friend. Princip drew his gun and fired two shots. He hit the archduke in the neck and his wife Sophie in the abdomen..
"I aimed at the Archduke. I do not remember what I thought at that moment." -Gavrilo Princip, 1914 Left: The 100th anniversary painting of Franz Ferdinand's assassination Source: Huffington Post |
Reaction of the Assassination The news hit newspaper headlines around the globe, and the world responded with shock. One month after the assassination took place, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia, They demanded Serbia comply with their terms or war would ensue.
"A dark cloud of Fate seems to overhang the fortunes of the House of Habsburg... The circumstances are so peculiar that it is very difficult to understand the reasons for the crime or the exact motives of the murderer... His death is, we believe, a serious loss to Europe at large, as well as to Austria-Hungary herself... At a period when the world suffers from a lack of great personalities, the death of a man so strong and self-reliant as the Archduke Franz Ferdinand is a real disaster, of which it is difficult to overestimate the importance." -The Daily Telegraph, June 29th, 1914 Right: Franz Ferdinand and his wife arriving at the Sarajevo City Hall Source: Washington Post |
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After the Assassination
Shown below are the documents that Austria-Hungary and Serbia exchanged prior to the war. These show AH's discontent towards Serbia and their aggression in response. These documents were the political means to allow Austria-Hungary to eventually declare war on Serbia.
Austria-Hungarian Ultimatum to Serbia
Serbia's Response
-Both galleries above came from lib.byu.edu
World War I Begins
Because Russia, France and many other European countries had signed mutual protection pacts, most all of Europe was soon forced to join the war.
"As Russia supported Serbia, an Austro-Hungarian declaration of war was delayed until its leaders received assurances from German leader Kaiser Wilhelm that Germany would support their cause in the event of a Russian intervention–which would likely involve Russia's ally, France, and possibly Britain as well. On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, and the tenuous peace between Europe's great powers collapsed. Within a week, Russia, Belgium, France, Great Britain and Serbia had lined up against Austria-Hungary and Germany, and World War I had begun." -History.com, 2014
source: deccanchronicle.com
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source: telegraph.uk
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