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The assassination of Franz Ferdinand

How did a conspiracy to kill Archduke Franz Ferdinand set off a chain of events ending in the First World War? Explore what sparked the July Crisis.

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Franz Ferdinand approaching his Gräf & Stift car

To understand the importance of this event, imagine the Prince of Wales and his wife being assassinated while visiting a dominion of the British Empire.

This outrageous act of brutality was aimed at undermining the Austro-Hungarian Empire which had annexed Bosnia into its multi-ethnic Empire in 1908.

The murder of the royal couple ushered in the so-called July Crisis which ended with the outbreak of war in August 1914.

The assassination has been described as the spark that would set light to a continent that was riddled with international tensions.

However, a European war was not inevitable. Right until the last moment, some European statesmen were desperately trying to avoid an escalation of the crisis by advocating mediation, while others did everything in their power to ensure that a war would break out.

Ethnicities of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1910

The murder of the Archduke caused widespread international outrage even though assassinations of prominent individuals were rather more common than they are today: for example, the Austrian Emperor, Kaiser Franz Joseph, nearly succumbed to an assassin in Sarajevo in May 1910, while an Italian anarchist had murdered his wife Empress Elizabeth.

Other royal assassination victims included the Serbian King Alexandar and his wife in 1903, the Italian King Umberto in 1900, and the Greek King George I in 1913.

However, we do not remember these acts of violence because their consequences were less serious; on the other hand, we remember the date and place of this infamous assassination in Sarajevo because the events that followed it led directly into the First World War.

Why did the Archduke become a victim of a violent conspiracy?

The assassins can be traced back to the Serbian capital Belgrade, where each of the six young men who waited for the hapless Archduke in Sarajevo along the pre-published official route were radicalised by Serbian nationalist and irredentist organizations.

Serbia had been a threat and irritant to Austria-Hungary, particularly since it won the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913 and as a consequence had nearly doubled its territory and increased its population from 3 to 4.5 million.

The government’s aim was to unite even more Serbian territory and people with Serbia—and those people happened to live in multi-ethnic Austria-Hungary, including Bosnia, which had been annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908.

Three of the young conspirators had left impoverished lives in Sarajevo for Belgrade. Trifko Grabež, Nedeljko Čabrinović and Gavrilo Princip were all members of the revolutionary organisation Mlada Bosna (Young Bosnia). In the Serbian capital they succumbed to the anti-Habsburg propaganda of several underground organisations such as the ‘Black Hand’ (its official title was ‘Union or Death’), a conspiratorial officers’ group which stood for the idea of a greater Serbia.

Franz Ferdinand's Gräf & Stift open-roofed car

It was not known at the time that one of the instigators of this act was indeed a member of the Serbian establishment: the head of the Serbian military intelligence service, Dragutin Dimitrijević (also known as Apis), and members of the ‘Black Hand’ were behind the assassination just as they had been behind the unsuccessful attempt to kill Kaiser Franz Joseph in 1910.

The would-be assassins were trained in the use of weapons in Belgrade and equipped with four revolvers and six small bombs from the Serbian state arsenal in Kragujevac.

In Bosnia, they were joined by three more conspirators: Danilo Ilić, Veljko Čubrilović, and Civijetko Popović. The youngest of their group was just seventeen.

They lined up along the previously announced route that Franz Ferdinand and his wife would take on that Sunday morning, travelling from the train station to Sarajevo’s Town Hall.

However, the first attempt to kill the Archduke failed. Nedeljko Čabrinović threw his bomb on the Appel Quay, but it bounced off the open convertible car.

It exploded underneath the car behind, injuring a few of the passengers and some spectators. The Archduke was unhurt while his wife suffered a small wound on the cheek.

Gavrilo Princip assassinates Franz Ferdinand

A fateful change of plan

But Franz Ferdinand ignored advice to cancel the rest of the tour and insisted the couple visited some of the injured in the hospital before continuing with the official programme.

As a compromise, it was agreed that the convoy should follow a different route and not, as planned, travel down Franz-Joseph-Strasse.

However, tragically, this change of plan appears not to have been communicated to the driver in the first car, who turned into the street as previously arranged.

In the hastily conducted reverse manoeuvre, the Archduke’s car came to a halt right in front of Gavrilo Princip who had positioned himself, by chance, at the exact same spot.

A few metres away from his target he managed to shoot the Archduke in the neck and his wife in the abdomen. Sophie died in the car, and Franz Ferdinand shortly after reaching the residence of the Governor.

The conspirators could not know, and certainly had not planned, that a world war would result from this act of violence, but in the weeks that followed, decisions were made in Europe’s capitals that ensured that the death of this one man would lead to the deaths of millions.

Next: read about the reactions to the assassinations in The July Crisis: Immediate Reactions

This page is part of our collection about the origins of the First World War .

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The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, 1914

The assassination of an Austrian Archduke was the trigger for World War I , yet things were so nearly different. His death set off a chain reaction, as mutual defense alliances mobilized a list of countries, including Russia, Serbia, France, Austria-Hungary, and Germany, to declare war.

An Unpopular Archduke and an Unpopular Day

In 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand was heir to both the Habsburg throne and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He was not a popular man, having married a woman who – while a Countess – was deemed far below his station, and their children had been barred from the succession. Nevertheless, he was the heir and had both interests in the state and state commitments, and in 1913 he was asked to visit newly annexed Bosnia-Herzegovina and inspect their troops. Franz Ferdinand accepted this engagement, as it meant his usually sidelined and insulted wife would officially be with him.

Ceremonies were planned for June 28th, 1914 in Sarajevo, the couple’s wedding anniversary. Unfortunately, this was also the anniversary of the First Battle of Kosovo, the struggle in 1389 which Serbia had convinced itself saw Serbian independence crushed by their defeat to the Ottoman Empire. This was a problem, because many in the newly independent Serbia claimed Bosnia-Herzegovina for themselves, and fumed at Austria-Hungary’s recent annexation.

One man in particular who took particular umbrage at this event was Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb had devoted his life to protecting Serbia, no matter the consequences. Assassinations and other politically charged murders were not out of the question for Princip. Despite being more bookish than charismatic, he managed to enlist the support of a small group of friends, who he convinced to kill Franz Ferdinand and his wife on June 28th. It was to be a suicide mission, so they wouldn’t be around to see the result.

Princip claimed to have originated the plot himself but he did not have trouble finding allies for the mission: friends to train. The most important group of allies was the Black Hand, a secret society in the Serb army, who provided Princep and his co-conspirators with pistols, bombs, and poison. Despite the complexity of the operation, they managed to keep it under wraps. There were rumors of a vague threat that reached all the way up to the Serbian Prime Minister, but they quickly dismissed.

The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

On Sunday June 28th, 1914, Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie traveled in a motorcade through Sarajevo; their car was open topped and there was little security. The would-be assassins positioned themselves at intervals along the route. Initially, one assassin threw a bomb, but it rolled off the convertible roof and exploded against the wheel of a passing car, causing only minor injuries. Another assassin couldn’t get the bomb out of his pocket because of the crowd’s density, a third felt too close to a policeman to try, a fourth had an attack of conscience over Sophie and a fifth ran off. Princip, away from this scene, thought he’d missed his chance.

The royal couple continued with their day as normal, but after the display at the Town Hall Franz Ferdinand insisted he visit the mildly injured members of his party in the hospital. However, confusion led to the driver heading to their original destination: a museum. As the vehicles stopped in the road to decide which route to take, Princip found himself next to the car. He drew his pistol and shot the Archduke and his wife at point-blank range. He then tried to shoot himself, but the crowd stopped him. He then took poison, but it was old and simply caused him to vomit; the police then arrested him before he was lynched. Within half an hour, both targets were dead.

The Aftermath

No one in Austria-Hungary’s government was particularly upset by Franz Ferdinand’s death; indeed, they were more relieved he was not going to cause any more constitutional problems. Across the capitals of Europe, few other people were overly upset, except the Kaiser in Germany, who had tried to cultivate Franz Ferdinand as a friend and ally. As such, the assassination didn’t seem to be a major, world-changing event. But Austria-Hungary had been looking for an excuse to attack Serbia, and this provided them with the cause they needed. Their actions would soon trigger World War I, leading to years of bloody slaughter on a largely static Western Front , and repeated failures by the Austrian army on the Eastern and Italian Fronts. At the end of the war the Austro-Hungarian Empire had collapsed, and Serbia found itself the core of a new Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes .

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ASSASSINATION OF FRANZ FERDINAND

Life until 1914

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Franz Ferdinand, archduke of Austria-Este

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Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, duchess of Hohenberg

Franz Ferdinand, archduke of Austria-Este , German Franz Ferdinand, Erzherzog von Österreich-Este , also called Francis Ferdinand , (born December 18, 1863, Graz , Austria—died June 28, 1914, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria-Hungary [now in Bosnia and Herzogovina]), Austrian archduke whose assassination (1914) was the immediate cause of World War I .

Franz Ferdinand was the eldest son of the archduke Charles Louis, who was the brother of the emperor Franz Joseph . The death of the heir apparent, Archduke Rudolf , in 1889 made Franz Ferdinand next in succession to the Austro-Hungarian throne after his father, who died in 1896. But because of Franz Ferdinand’s ill health in the 1890s, his younger brother Otto was regarded as more likely to succeed, a possibility that deeply embittered Franz Ferdinand. His desire to marry Sophie, countess of Chotek , a lady-in-waiting, brought him into sharp conflict with the emperor and the court. Only after renouncing his future children’s rights to the throne was the morganatic marriage allowed in 1900.

In foreign affairs he tried to restore Austro-Russian understanding without endangering the alliance with Germany . At home he thought of political reforms that would have strengthened the position of the crown and weakened that of the Magyars against the other nationalities in Hungary . His plans were based on the realization that any nationalistic policy pursued by one section of the population would endanger the multinational Habsburg empire . His relationship with Franz Joseph was exacerbated by his continuous pressure on the emperor, who in his later years left affairs to take care of themselves but sharply resented any interference with his prerogative . From 1906 onward Franz Ferdinand’s influence in military matters grew, and in 1913 he became inspector general of the army.

Witness the beginning of World War I with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914

On June 28, 1914, Franz Ferdinand was in the Austro-Hungarian province of Bosnia and Herzegovina accompanied by his wife, Sophie. He was there as inspector general of the imperial army. The visit was not a popular one. Balkan politics were turbulent, and the neighbouring Kingdom of Serbia coveted Bosnia. Moreover, the date chosen for this imperial visit and Hapsburg show of force was June 28, a black date in Serbian history: it was the anniversary of the Turkish victory over Serbia at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. This fanned the flames of dissent among Serbian nationalists even further.

View historical footage and photographs surrounding Gavrilo Princip's assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The royal couple was travelling in a motorcade through Sarajevo in an open-topped car , ignorant of the fact that several would-be assassins awaited along the route of their preannounced stops. Shortly after 10 am , amid cheering crowds lining the wide avenue called Appel Quay, one of the attackers, Nedjelko Cabrinovic, threw a grenade at the royal couple’s car. The bomb bounced off the back of the vehicle and exploded behind them, injuring members of the entourage who were in the next car and peppering bystanders with shrapnel.

After completing the planned reception at City Hall, the shaken royal couple insisted on changing their schedule and visiting the hospital to check on one of the officers injured in the morning attack. Confusion among the drivers in the motorcade followed, with the drivers starting off in the wrong direction, down the very avenue where the conspirators were still present. When the royal motorcade entered a side street and stopped to turn around, a compatriot of Cabrinovic, 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip , seized his opportunity. Approaching the royal couple’s open car, he shot both Franz Ferdinand and Sophie with a Browning pistol . The driver of the couple’s car then sped off for medical help. Sophie died en route and Franz Ferdinand died shortly after. Princip tried to shoot himself but was apprehended by bystanders. All of the conspirators were eventually found and arrested. Exempted from the death penalty because of his young age, Princip was sentenced to 20 years in prison, where he died from tuberculosis in 1918.

Anti-Serb protests and riots followed throughout Austria-Hungary in the wake of the assassination. One month later, on July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on the country seemingly behind the murders, Serbia . This set the Triple Alliance (Austria-Hungary, Germany , and Italy ) against Serbia’s allies in the Triple Entente ( Russia , France , and Britain ). Momentum became unstoppable, sparking one of the deadliest conflicts in history— World War I .

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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, is assassinated in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. His murder precipitates the start of the massive armed conflict in Europe now known as the World War I , or the First World War.

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Franz Ferdinand

(1863-1914)

Who Was Franz Ferdinand?

Archduke Franz Ferdinand was born in 1863 in Austria. In 1900, Ferdinand gave up his children's rights to the throne in order to marry a lady-in-waiting. While in power, he attempted to restore Austro-Russian relations while maintaining an alliance with Germany. In 1914, a Serb nationalist assassinated him. One month later, Austria declared war on Serbia and World War I began.

Early Life and Marriage

Franz Ferdinand was born in Graz, Austria, on December 18, 1863, the oldest son of Archduke Karl Ludwig, who was the younger brother of Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Joseph. Franz Ferdinand was a member of the House of Hapsburg, rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Spanish Empire. He began his military career at age 12 and was quickly promoted through the ranks becoming a major general at age 31. After the suicide of the emperor's son, Crown Prince Rudolf, in 1889, and his own father's death from typhoid fever in 1896, Franz Ferdinand was groomed to inherit the throne.

In 1894, Franz Ferdinand met Countess Sophia Chotek and the couple quickly fell in love. However, marriage to a Hapsburg required that one be a member of a reigning or formally reigning dynasty of Europe, and the Choteks were neither. The deeply in love Franz Ferdinand refused to marry anyone else, however, so the couple kept their relationship secret. After the family was informed of the relationship, Emperor Franz Joseph refused to give his permission to the marriage. Eventually, several influential European leaders, including Pope Leo XIII, argued on behalf of the love-sick Franz, stating that the disagreement was undermining the stability of the monarchy. Franz Joseph finally agreed on the condition that no descendants of Franz and his new wife succeed to the throne. The couple married on July 1, 1900.

Archduke of Austria-Hungary

Austria-Hungary was a polyglot empire of different ethnic groups at odds with each other over religion and politics, and united to a flag that wasn't theirs. The only thing the divergent ethnic people hated more than each other was Hapsburgs. Archduke Franz Ferdinand's public persona was cold, sharped-tongued and short-tempered. He was also rumored to be insane due to the inbreeding of the Hapsburg family. One matter is clear: Franz Ferdinand understood that the empire was disintegrating and, thusly, that something needed to be done.

At one point, Franz Ferdinand proposed changing the Austro-Hungarian rule with a triple monarchy of Slavs, Germans and Magyars, each having an equal voice in government. However, this idea was unpopular with the ruling elite, further stirring doubts of Franz Ferdinand's sanity. He also considered forming a federal government of 16 states, calling it the United States of Greater Austria. This idea was in direct conflict with the Serbian nationalists who had designs of breaking off with Bosnia and Herzegovina to form an independent state. Though he cared little for their nationalist ambitions, he advocated for a careful approach with the Serbs, warning his military leaders that harsh treatment toward them could cause an open conflict with Russia.

Assassination

In the summer of 1914, Franz Ferdinand and wife Sophie accepted an invitation to visit the capital of Bosnia, Sarajevo. He had been informed of terrorist activity conducted by the nationalist organization the "Black Hand," but ignored the warnings. On the morning of June 28, 1914, the royal couple arrived by train and a six-car motorcade drove them to city hall for an official reception. The archduke and his wife were in the second car with the top rolled back in order to give the crowds a good view.

At 10:10 a.m., as the motorcade passed the central police station, a Black Hand agent, Nedjelko Cabrinovic, hurled a hand grenade at the archduke's car. The driver accelerated when he saw the flying object, and the bomb exploded underneath the wheel of the next car, injuring two of its occupants along with a dozen spectators. Franz Ferdinand is reputed to have shouted in anger to local officials, "So, you welcome your guests with bombs?!" He also reportedly stated, "What is the good of your speeches? I come to Sarajevo on a visit, and I get bombs thrown at me. It is outrageous."

On the route back to the palace, the archduke's driver took a wrong turn into a side street, where 19-year-old nationalist Gavrilo Princip was waiting. As the car backed up, Princip approached and fired his gun, striking Sophie in the abdomen and the archduke in the neck. Both died before reaching the hospital.

Aftermath: Beginning of WWI

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand gave the hardliners in Austria-Hungary the opportunity to take action against Serbia and put an end to their fight for independence. In July 1914, the situation escalated. After demanding impossible reparations and failing to receive them, Austria-Hungary declared war against Serbia. As was expected, the complex web of alliances was activated as Russia declared war on Austria-Hungary, Germany declared war on Russia, and France and Britain declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. World War I had begun.

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The assassination that sparked World War I, a century later

June 28, 2014 / 12:25 PM / CBS News

One hundred years ago today, the course of history changed in a single, violent instant.

On June 28, 1914, Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of the Austro-Hungarian empire, and his wife were were assassinated by a serbian nationalist in Sarajevo. The event triggered the start of World War I and ushered in decades of war and political upheaval throughout Europe and across the globe.

But fewer people may know the story of how it happened, and why a seemingly isolated act could set off a four year war with a staggering cost.

Dan Carlin, host of the popular podcast, "Hardcore History," explains how the assassination of two people transformed the planet.

"It reminds me of the Kennedy assassination, where you have a world leader in an open top car going down the street, the public on both sides of the street, and his wife next to him; killed by a gunman. But you have to imagine that John F Kennedy was shot at earlier in the day," Carlin told CBS News. "They survived, whisked the car off, saved his life, and another gunman got him later in the day."

Once the assassination occurred, Carlin explains that the consequent domino effect could not be stopped.

"Four years before the war broke out, the German chancellor Otto Von Bismark said that Europe was a powdered keg," Carlin told CBS News. "He described the leaders like men smoking in an arsenal."

100 years since Ferdinand's death sparked WWI

Carlin attests that if not for this assassination, history may have taken a completely different course.

"At the time this German guy named Von Helga said this conflict were about to get into will decide the fate of planet for the next 100 years. And here we are today, 100 years later.

World War I also redefined warfare, as weaponry and technology advanced at an eyeblink once the fighting began.

"The last time Europe had been in a general war was 90 years before this time period. At waterloo. Four years later [after WW1 began] they have poison, gas, heavy bombs bombing cities, submarines, machine guns, artillery, tanks," Carlin said. "I mean the transformation in the mere four years was like technology on steroids."

Carlin also emphasizes that it was the response to the attack, not the attack itself, that caused World War I.

"I think theres this attitude a little bit that a terrorist attack caused all this, really it was a response to the terrorist attack that lead to everything after this," Carlin said. "It could have been a regional war. There would have been no World War II without it, no communism without it, no modern Middle East."

The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

World War I Document Archive > 1914 Documents > The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

A tiny clipping from a newspaper, mailed without comment from a secret band of terrorists in Zagreb, capital of Croatia, to their comrades in Belgrade, was the torch which set the world afire with war in 1914. That bit of paper wrecked old, proud empires. It gave birth to new, free nations.

I was one of the members of the terrorist band in Belgrade which received it.

The little clipping declared that the Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand would visit Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia, June 28, to direct army maneuvers in the neighboring mountains. It reached our meeting place, the cafe called Zlatna Moruna , one night the latter part of April, 1914. To understand how great a sensation that little piece of paper caused among us when it was passed from hand to hand almost in silence, and how greatly it inflamed our hearts, it is necessary to explain just why the Narodna Odbrana existed, the kind of men that were in it, and the significance of that date, June 28, on which the Archduke dared to enter Sarajevo.

As every one knows, the old Austrio-Hungarian Empire was built by conquest and intrigues, by sales and treacheries, which held [...] men of the upper classes were ardent patriots. They were dissimilar in everything except hatred of the oppressor.

Such were the men into whose hands the tiny bit of newsprint was sent by friends in Bosnia that April night in Belgrade. At a small table in a very humble cafe, beneath a flickering gas jet we sat and read it. There was no advice nor admonition sent with it. Only four letters and two numerals were sufficient to make us unanimous, without discussion, as to what we should do about it. They were conived [sic] in Sarajevo all the twenty-two conspirators were in their allotted positions, armed and ready. They were distributed five hundred yards apart over the whole route along which the Archduke must travel from the railroad station to the town hall.

When Francis Ferdinand and his retinue drove from the station they were allowed to pass the first two conspirators. The motor cars were driving too fast to make an attempt feasible and in the crowd were many Serbians; throwing a grenade would have killed many innocent people.

When the car passed Gabrinovic, the compositor, he threw his grenade. It hit the side of the car, but Francis Ferdinand with presence of mind threw himself back and was uninjured. Several officers riding in his attendance were injured.

The cars sped to the Town Hall and the rest of the conspirators did not interfere with them. After the reception in the Town Hall General Potiorek, the Austrian Commander, pleaded with Francis Ferdinand to leave the city, as it was seething with rebellion. The Archduke was persuaded to drive the shortest way out of the city and to go quickly.

The road to the maneuvers was shaped like the letter V, making a sharp turn at the bridge over the River Milgacka. Francis Ferdinand's car could go fast enough until it reached this spot but here it was forced to slow down for the turn. Here Princip had taken his stand.

As the car came abreast he stepped forward from the curb, drew his automatic pistol from his coat and fired two shots. The first struck the wife of the Archduke, the Archduchess Sofia, in the abdomen. She was an expectant mother. She died instantly.

The second bullet struck the Archduke close to the heart.

He uttered only one word, 'Sofia' -- a call to his stricken wife. Then his head fell back and he collapsed. He died almost instantly.

The officers seized Princip. They beat him over the head with the flat of their swords. They knocked him down, they kicked him, scraped the skin from his neck with the edges of their swords, tortured him, all but killed him.

The next day they put chains on Princip's feet, which he wore till his death....

I was placed in the cell next to Princip's, and when Princip was taken out to walk in the prison yard I was taken along as his companion...

Awakened in the middle of the night and told that he was to be carried off to another prison, Princip made an appeal to the prison governor:

'There is no need to carry me to another prison. My life is already ebbing away. I suggest that you nail me to a cross and burn me alive. My flaming body will be a torch to light my people on their path to freedom.'

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Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand: Topics in Chronicling America

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Two shots in Sarajevo ignited the fires of war and drew Europe toward World War I. Just hours after narrowly escaping an assassin’s bomb, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to Austro-Hungarian throne and his wife, the Duchess of Hohenberg, are killed by Gavrilo Princip. A month later, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia and Europe rapidly descends into chaos. Read more about it!

The information in this guide focuses on primary source materials found in the digitized historic newspapers from the digital collection Chronicling America .

The timeline below highlights important dates related to this topic and a section of this guide provides some suggested search strategies for further research in the collection.

How Did the Assassination of Franz Ferdinand Lead to World War I?

Two gunshots in Sarajevo started a war that drew Europe into World War I. Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, the Duchess of Hohenberg, were assassinated by Gavrilo Princip just hours after narrowly escaping an assassin’s bomb. After Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia a month later, chaos spreads across Europe very quickly.

Why Ferdinand’s assassination leads to WW I?

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand is widely considered the catalyst for the First World War. It was a bloody conflict that would result in tens of millions of deaths. Moreover, the assassination triggered diplomatic alliances between the great powers of Europe and brought the entire continent into conflict. The war would end in 1918, costing 15 million lives, and alter the face of the planet for decades to come.

The first chapter of the First World War was triggered by the assassination of Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914, in Sarajevo. The Archduke had arrived in Sarajevo to inspect the imperial armed forces and was warned of the potential for trouble. However, the Archduke was unaware that a radical Serbian nationalist organization threatened him. One of the Serbian nationalist organization members, Nedeljko Cabrinovic, had thrown a bomb at his car. The bomb bounced off the car and exploded below.

Black Hand Plot

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand led to World War I. The Archduke and his wife, Sophie the Duchess of Hohenberg, were assassinated by members of the Black Hand on July 28, 1914. The assassination occurred in Sarajevo when the motorcade was traveling to Sarajevo when a member of the Black Hand threw a bomb at the motorcade. Franz and Sophie died shortly after the assassination.

The assassins of Franz Ferdinand were tried in Sarajevo. Twenty-five people were indicted, including six men. Six of the conspirators were under twenty at the time of the assassination, but all were Austro-Hungarian citizens. Princip, one of the assassins, was convicted and sentenced to twenty years in prison. The five others were sentenced to death and hanged.

July Crisis

In the preceding years, international crises were settled through peace conferences or mediation. While many smaller states had become involved in armed conflicts, governments in the Great Powers avoided war at key junctures. In fact, the history of such “avoided wars” is important to understanding decision-making during the July Crisis of 1914. Here are three key aspects of this period.

Following the murder of Ferdinand, Austria-Hungary sought to avenge the death of its leader. But the threat of war by Serbia made Russia’s decision-makers extremely nervous. They agreed that a military strike against Serbia would provoke a war with Russia. They did not intend to take military action; instead, they sought to prevent war between the two countries. They argued that retribution against Serbia should be sought through diplomatic channels. In the meantime, a war with Serbia would likely lead to a general European conflict.

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The nearly botched assassination of Franz Ferdinand
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, 100 Years Ago
Does Political Violence Generate Real Change?
100 years since the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand: How did shot spark the First
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
On This Day In 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand Was Assassinated (PHOTOS)

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From Trenches to Treaty: The Story of World War I
The Assassination Of Franz Ferdinand
WORLD WAR 1
The Assassination of Franz Ferdinand (Heavily Abridged)
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand and Sophie
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand

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The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
The start of World War I, the so-called "Great War" of 1914 to 1918, was triggered when a teenage Serbian revolutionary shot Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the presumptive heir to the...
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand 60 languages View history Events leading to World War I Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were assassinated on 28 June 1914 by Bosnian Serb student Gavrilo Princip.
Open University
On 28 June 1914, Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian nationalist, assassinated the Austrian heir to the throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo. To understand the importance of this event, imagine the Prince of Wales and his wife being assassinated while visiting a dominion of the British Empire.
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand 1914
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand On Sunday June 28th, 1914, Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie traveled in a motorcade through Sarajevo; their car was open topped and there was little security. The would-be assassins positioned themselves at intervals along the route.
Austria's Archduke Ferdinand assassinated
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Sophie are shot to death by a Bosnian Serb nationalist during an official visit to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo on June 28, 1914. The...
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand
The assassination of Franz Ferdinand was one of the most significant events of the 20th century, because it was the event that began World War I . Franz Ferdinand was the Archduke of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the heir apparent to replace Franz Joseph.
Did Franz Ferdinand's Assassination Cause World War I?
Although the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand was the spark that caused Austria-Hungary to strike the first blow, all the European powers quickly fell in line to defend their alliances,...
A Brief History of Franz Ferdinand's Assassination
On the morning of June 28 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, was driving through the streets of Sarajevo on an official visit. It was on this fateful day that an assassin would shoot and kill the Archduke, setting in motion a series of events which would ultimately lead to the First World War.
The Aftermath of the Assassination of Franz Ferdinand
The Assassination of Franz Ferdinand After the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Austria sought counsel from its powerful ally Germany. The two countries drafted a strongly-worded ultimatum to be delivered to the Serbian government.
Franz Ferdinand, archduke of Austria-Este
Witness the beginning of World War I with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914 See all videos for this article On June 28, 1914, Franz Ferdinand was in the Austro-Hungarian province of Bosnia and Herzegovina accompanied by his wife, Sophie. He was there as inspector general of the imperial army.
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
On this date, Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, precipitating WWI. June 28, 1914. On this date, Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, precipitating WWI. ... Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. April 24, 1915 The Armenian Genocide. July 01, 1916 Battle of the Somme. May 07 ...
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife Sophie in Sarajevo (the capital of the Austro-Hungarian province of Bosnia-Herzegovina) on 28 June 1914 eventually led to the outbreak of the First World War.
Franz Ferdinand
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand gave the hardliners in Austria-Hungary the opportunity to take action against Serbia and put an end to their fight for independence. In July 1914,...
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand Cartoon
The death of the heir apparent, Archduke Rudolf, in 1889 made Franz Ferdinand next in succession to the Austro-Hungarian throne after his father, who died in 1896. But because of Franz...
The assassination that sparked World War I, a century later
Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated 100 years ago Saturday, which was the event that triggered World War I World War I, a century later 03:47 One hundred years ago today, the course of ...
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Borijove Jevtic, one of the leaders of the Narodna Odbrana who was arrested with Gavrilo Princip immediately after the assassination, gave this firsthand account of the killing. The English translation, "The Murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo, 28 June 1914" appeared in the New York World, 29 June 1924.Reprinted in John Carey, ed., Eyewitness to History (New York: Avon, 1987 ...
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand #shorts #trending #viral
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A Brief History of Franz Ferdinand's Assassination
This was unacceptable to a number of groups, including the Black Hand, a secret Serbian Nationalist society. In the months leading up to June 1914, the group began to lay the foundations for the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, working to get hold of weapons and training those who would carry out the plan.
Introduction
Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife are killed by an assassin's bullets just hours after they escaped another assassination attempt. Gavrilo Princip is immediately arrested for the shooting and Nedjelko Cabrinovic is caught fleeing after the bomb attempt. June 29, 1914: Martial law is declared in Sarajevo in the wake of the assassination.
How Did the Assassination of Franz Ferdinand Lead to World War I?
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand led to World War I. The Archduke and his wife, Sophie the Duchess of Hohenberg, were assassinated by members of the Black Hand on July 28, 1914. The assassination occurred in Sarajevo when the motorcade was traveling to Sarajevo when a member of the Black Hand threw a bomb at the motorcade.
The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Discuss the worksheet with the class: participation and completion grade. Read students the Memoir of Count Franz von Harrach, then show the video of bodies arriving at the funeral. Get the students reaction to these and what they find interesting about them. Show students map of Franz Ferdinand's route and where the assassins were located.