On this day (28 June), in 1914, something insignificant happened. A member of a second-rate European monarchy and his wife were assassinated by a teenage terrorist from a fourth-rate nation. I'd be willing to bet that most Americans haven't heard of the nation Franz Ferdinand was from, though more probably know about where Gavrilo Princip was from.
Its almost funny how something seemingly insignificant now can be so life changing to millions.
I'm talking about the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, at the hands of Serbian terrorists. The results may be best described simply: "well, that escalated quickly."
Escalated might be an understatement.
The archduke was assassinated on 28 June. The Austro-Hungarian empire gave Serbia 30 days to comply with a number of demands. Before going farther, it should be noted where this happened, because it is surprisingly important.
The archduke was Sarajavo, in modern-day Boznia. Boznia, and a number of other modern European nations were part of an empire controlled by a branch of the Habsburg family. I won't get into the "who's who," because European monarchial families are difficult to unravel. The Austro-Hungarian Empire had been very powerful in its day. That day was not 1914. The archduke was the heir-presumptive, and had plans to increase the empire's power. This was a problem for Serbia. Serbia wanted to be the leading nation in the Balkans. For those that do not know, the historic fact is that the Balkan region is the "powder keg of Europe." There are a few dozen different ethnic, linguistic, cultural, and religious groups in an area about the size of Texas. These groups live in relative close proximity. And a few have hated each other for centuries. Some hatred goes back to before the fall of the Roman Empire. Regardless, the majority of people there are Slavic. They are ethnic and linguistic relations to the Russians. These "southern Slavs" have been fought over by a number of nations in the last two millennia. In 1914, it was Serbia's turn. They wanted to rule a unified nation of Slavs, thinking themselves the best of the group and worthy of leadership. But it is difficult to take over nations owned by someone else.
So, terrorist group kills future emperor. Current emperor threatens nation protecting terrorists. Nation protecting terrorists ask for help. Help shows up. Emperor calls his allies. And so on, and so on. Soon almost every nation in Europe is involved. Like dominoes. Serbia calls up Russia, who later calls France. The Austrians get aid from the Germans, and later on from the Turks, too. Britain shows up, helping the French, on the flimsy excuse of "Germany invaded Belgium." Italy started out helping Germany and Austria, but switched sides because it wanted a small piece of Austria's territory. Soon there's a "great war." Men were scrambling to enlist because they were afraid the "adventure" would be over by Christmas. Recent wars up till that point, at least in Europe, had been relatively short. Some barely lasted a month. The "Great War" officially began on 28 July, 1914. It did not end until 11 November, four long, bloody years later.
In the meantime there is the "race to the sea," a two front war, trench warfare, machine guns, unlimited submarine warfare, gas, convoys, tanks, no-man's-land, aircraft, barbed wire, and "shell shock." Technology, especially the technology of killing, advanced almost twenty years. And epic battles that lasted days, even weeks. Battles like Gallipoli, Verdun, Ypres, the Marne, Lodz, and Tannenberg. It was the first truly world war, since it was fought everywhere. Fought in both western and eastern Europe, in Africa, in the Middle East, and on the Atlantic Ocean. There were even a couple of minor battles in the Pacific and Indian oceans. By the time the United States dragged itself to the war, millions had died.
All because one assassination.
During the peace treaty, Serbia got what it wanted: control over the southern Slavic nations. Germany was demonized as the instigator, in the same way a video game designer is to blame for a shooting rampage. And Franz Ferdinand? Not mentioned.
There is a lot that can be learned from World War One. How numerous treaties can cause a domino effect. How minor political issues in one part of the world can have ramifications elsewhere. How easily politicians can be blinded by their ambitions instead of seeking true justice.
On a lighter note, check this link for a simple explanation to the war. World War One "Bar Fight"
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