Archduke Franz Ferdinand Essays

Archduke Franz Ferdinand Essays Archduke Franz Ferdinand Essay Archduke Franz Ferdinand Essay There were many causes leading up to World War l, but it wasn’t until June 28, 1914 the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand triggered World War l. His assassination took place in Sarajevo, leading Austria to declare war against Serbia. Austria declaring war to Serbia caused Serbia’s allies to declare war on each other, for example France, Russia, and United Kingdom. From all this chaos World War I began. Franz Ferdinand, eldest son of Carl Ludwig, the brother of Emperor Franz Josef, was born in 1863. He joined the Austro-Hungarian army in 1883. He was young when he entered the military. He didn’t receive any formal traning but he was considered eligible for command. He was frequently and quickly promoted. His great work in the army led to promotions: lieutenant around age 14, captain around age 22, colonel around age 27, major around age 33. In 1889, the son of Franz Josef committed suicide. Due to his death, throne was passed down to Ferdinand’s father, Carl Ludwig. When Carl Ludwig died in 1896, Ferdinand’s life would completely change. Ferdinand became the new heir to the throne after his father’s death. (Miller, P. Frederic. 58. ) A few years before Ferdinand’s father had passed away, he met a woman named Sophie von Chotkovato at a ball in 1888. They deeply fell in love but Sophie coming from a noble family caused a controversy, on how she shouldn’t be the one for Ferdinand. To be able to marry Ferdinand, she had to come from one of the ruling dynasties of Europe. Franz Ferdinand refused to marry anyone else but Sophie Von Chotkovato. Emperors and Popes spoke if that marriage were to happen it would be a corruption towards the stability of the monarchy. In the year 1889, Emperor Franz Josef made a deal with Ferdinand. Ferdinand was allowed to marry Sophie but her descendants could never have power to the throne, she couldn’t share Ferdinand’s rank, title, or be seen much in public with him. The wedding took place in Bohemia, Chez Republic. Franz Josef did not attend Ferdinand’s wedding. His brothers nor family were nowhere to be seen either. Weeks after the wedding Ferdinand wrote his stepmother Maria Theresia a letter where he said, â€Å"Sophie is a treasure, I am indescribably happy. She looks after me so much, I am doing wonderfully. I am so healthy and much less nervous. I feel as though I had been born again. † He felt nervous that he wouldnt be able to be together with Sophie, since she wasnt in the ruling dynasties in Europe. Years after their marriage they had three children; Sophie, Maximilian, and Ernst. (Shepherd, Gordon. page 154. ) In 1913 he was appointed as Inspector General of the Austro-Hungarian Army. Ferdinand was popular with the armed forces and well experienced. In 1914 General Oskar Potiorek, Governor of the Austrian provinces of Bosnia, invited Ferdinand, to watch his troops on maneuvers. Potiorek let Ferdinand know that his wife would also be welcomed; Franz Ferdinand gave the yes to make the visit. With him still being heir to the throne, Franz Ferdinand knew his visit to Bosnia would be dangerous. Despite it being dangerous to go, he still went. Plenty of people in Bosnia were unhappy with Ferdinand’s rule. Bosnia was in union with Serbia. In 1910 a Serb, Bogdan Zerajic, had attempted to assassinate General Varesanin, the Austrian governor of Bosnia-Herzegovina, when he was opening parliament in Sarajevo. Zerajic was a member of the Black Hand who wanted Bosnia to leave the Austro- Hungarian Empire. The Black Hand went by Unity or Death. The leader of the group was Colonel Dragutin Dimitrijevic, the chief of the Intelligence Department of the Serbian General Staff. Dimitrijevic was worried that Ferdinand would become a threat. Worried that Ferdinand would make an independent Serbia state harder to reach. Gilfond, Henry. Page 240. ) When it became official that Ferdinand was going to visit Bosnia in June 1914, Dimitrijevic started to make plans to assassinate Ferdinand. Dimitrijevic send three people of the Black Hand group to Sarajevo. The prime minister of Sarajevo knew about the Black Hands plan. The prime minister didn’t want the assassination to take place in Sarajevo, as he was afraid of it leading to war w ith Austria-Hungary. The prime minister gave order for those three men to be arrested before they arrived to Bosnia. The arrest never took place. The three men were able to arrive to Bosnia. When the three men arrived they joined forces with the conspirators. They were determined to kill Ferdinand. Just before 10 oclock on Sunday, 28th June, 1914, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie von Chotkovato arrived in Sarajevo by train. General Oskar Potiorek, Governor of the Austrian provinces of Bosnia, was waiting to take the royal party to the City Hall for the official reception. In the front car were the Mayor of Sarajevo and the citys Commissioner of Police. Franz Ferdinand and his wife were in the second car with Oskar Potiorek and Count von Harrach. The cars top was rolled back in order to allow the crowds a good view of its occupants. When the cars passed by the central police station Nedjelko Cabrinovic threw a grenade at the car Ferdinand was in. The driver of the car saw the object flying and accelerated his car. The grenade exploded underneath the wheel of the car that was behind the car Ferdinand was in. The driver of the car drove on fast trying to avoid any other attempts by the Black Hands. Franz Ferdinand made a speech at the official reception at the Sarajevo City Hall. With â€Å"It gives me special pleasure to accept the assurances of your unshakable loyalty and affection for His Majesty, our Most Gracious Emperor and King. I thank you cordially for the resounding ovations with which the population received me and my wife, the more so since in them an expression of pleasure over the failure of the assassination attempt. †(Miller, P. Frederic. page 234. ) After the reception at city hall, Franz Ferdinand asked if any members of the party were hurt from the bomb. He was told they were in bad condition, so he insisted on going to see them. People there told him it would be dangerous if he went. Despite the dangerous he still wanted to go. Oskar Potiorek was sure that Bosnia wasn’t a place full of assassins. Even though he disagreed about it being dangerous he suggested Ferdinand’s wife should stay. Ferdinand’s wife refused to stay declaring; â€Å"As long as the Archduke shows himself in public today I will not leave him. † Sophie would not stay under any circumstance and went with Ferdinand. General Oskar Potiorek suggested they should take a different route to go to the Sarajevo hospital. Ferdinand was fine with taking a different route, but Potiorek forgot to tell the driver about the final decision. On their way to the hospital the driver took a wrong turn. Potiorek realized the driver took a wrong turn, he immediately told the driver to turn around. The driver quickly hit the brake and backed up. No one notice there was a Serbian conspirator, named Gavrilo Princip hiding at the corner. The conspirator didn’t hesitate to watch the car back up any longer and just fired plenty times. After the assassination he attempt to commit suicide but was stopped before he had the chance to take another shot. Due to him being young he only receives twenty five years of prison. He contracts tuberculosis and dies 28 April 1918. He dies at Terizin, where later on under Nazi power they make a concentration camp. (Fabijanic, Toby, page 28) It’s believed that Ferdinand was hit in the neck and that Sophie Von Chotkovato was hit in the abdomen. Ferdinand and Sophie were drove to Konak, the governor’s residence, after arriving there the couple died from the hits.