15.2.1

Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

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The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The rivalries between the Great Powers were so intense that Europe was on the brink of war. The trigger was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in June 1914 AD in Sarajevo, Bosnia.

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The assassination

  • Archduke Ferdinand was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne.
  • 28 June 1914 AD: the Archduke and his wife were in Bosnia, the area annexed by Austria-Hungary. They were there to inspect the army.
  • During the visit, the Archduke and his wife were shot by a Bosnian Serb called Gavrilo Princip.
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The political response

  • The assassination of the Archduke was nothing new for the Austro-Hungarians. Two royals had been assassinated in the past 20 years.
  • The difference was how politicians responded in the next six weeks.
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Consequences of the assassination

  • Austria-Hungary wanted to use the assassination to attack Serbia.
  • They believed that the Serbian government had secretly helped the assassins.
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Austria-Hungary and Germany

  • Austria-Hungary asked for Germany's help to attack Serbia.
  • 5 July 1914 AD: Austria-Hungary received full German support in the ‘blank cheque’.
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Serbia and Russia

  • In response, Serbia asked for Russian support against the threat of Austria-Hungary and Germany.

Jump to other topics

1The Medieval World: 450-1450 AD

1.1Anglo-Saxon England

1.2The Contest for the English Throne

1.3Conquering the Holy Land, 10-96-1396 AD

1.4King John

1.5The Magna Carta & Parliament

1.6The Black Death

2Worldviews

3The Empire of Mali

4The Renaissance & Reformations, 1500-1598 AD

5The British Empire, 1583-1960 AD

6The Peasants' Revolt

7Religion in the Middle Ages

8Slavery, 1619-1833 AD

9The English Civil War, 1642-1660

10The Industrial Revolution, 1750-1840

11US Independence, 1775-1783

12The French Revolution, 1789-1815

13The British Empire, 1857–1930

14Suffrage

15World War 1, 1914-1918

16The Inter-War Years, 1919-1939

17World War 2, 1939-1945

18The Cold War, 1947-1962

19Civil Rights in the USA, 1954-1975

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