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- [00:00]
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Historian or Expert Commentator
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Sponsor Voiceover
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
It's 28 June 1914, in Sarajeva, Bosnia Herzegovina. A motorcade moves slowly away from the town hall and back towards the Milyatska river, which flows through the city's heart. This parade is the final leg of a visit by Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria, Hungary, and his wife Sophie. It's a journey intended to display imperial authority in a province annexed just six years earlier. Three open topped cars carry the procession, their occupants exposed to the sun, the breeze and the watching crowd. In the second vehicle, the Archduke and Sophie wave to the onlookers, though their expressions belie the tension they feel. Alongside them rides Oskar Potjarek, the provincial governor, while one of the Archduke's aides stands on the left hand running board of the car. As added protection, Austrian rule here is not welcomed by all and the sight of the heir to the Habsburg throne dressed in full military regalia, complete with his green plumed helmet, has made this procession an obvious target. In fact, it already has been, something the Archduke's driver, Leopold Loiker, is more than aware of. Just an hour ago a grenade thrown at the Archduke's car struck the folded canopy, bounced clear and rolled beneath the vehicle behind, ripping it open in the blast. Officers and civilians were wounded, but the Archduke was unhurt. The attacker was seized immediately and the procession pushed on. The police chief believes the threat has passed with the would be assassin's arrest. Loike is not so certain. The wheel thrums beneath the driver's hands as the road ahead begins to rise towards a pale stone arch bridge over the river. Leuka keeps the car steady as it approaches the junction, waiting to follow their planned route into the narrow Franz Josef Street. As the lead vehicle turns right, Loike follows it automatically. The crowd is thinner here, but some people still cheer and wave. Suddenly a shout erupts behind him. Governor Oskar Potiorik stand standing in the rear of the car is yelling over the engine. They're going the wrong way. Leuke reacts instantly slamming on the handbrake. The car jolts and lurches to a halt, the engine rattling. He tries to change gear, forcing the lever towards reverse, but the mechanism resists. For a moment, the vehicle is stranded in the middle of the street, voices shouting from every direction. Panicked, Loike looks up. On the pavement, barely an arm's length away, a young man stands frozen, his face turned frowning towards the open car. Then he reaches into his jacket and produces a pistol. The engine coughs again as the driver desperately tries to find reverse, but it's too late. A number of sharp cracks split the air, followed instantly by the awful thud of a bullet striking flesh. There are gasps, a scream, and then the street explodes into pandemonium. Loike twists around. Sophie has collapsed sideways, while Franz Ferdinand himself leans forward, his uniform darkening. But as he clutches a wound in his neck, his words break through the chaos. Sophie. Sophie, don't die, he says. Live for our children. But neither Sophie nor her devoted husband will survive the day, and their deaths will set a chain of events in motion which will bring the world to war. In 1914, Europe was dominated by four great empires the British, the French, the Russian, and the vast, uneasy realm of Austria, Hungary, stretching from the Alps to the Balkans. While international treaties bound the continent together under a veneer of peace, beneath the surface the balance was increasingly fragile. Nationalist movements were rising, and rival powers were locked into military alliances that made even a small crisis dangerously unpredictable. As this tension bubbled, the visit of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his beloved wife Sophie to Sarajevo was meant to assert imperial authority. But waiting in the shadows, a group of young conspirators inspired by Serbian nationalism were convinced that killing the archduke could free their people from his empire. What followed took only moments, but the consequences echo throughout history. So who were the handful of young nationalists who sparked war in Europe? How did the deaths of one loving couple come to carry such enormous weight? And why was Europe in 1914 so fragile that a single shooting could tear it apart? I'm John Hopkins from the Noiser Podcast Network. This is a short history of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. In the late 19th century. The Balkan region of southeastern Europe is one of the most unstable places on the continent. The Ottoman Empire, which for centuries has ruled much of what is now modern Turkey, the Balkans, and parts of southeastern Europe, is in visible decline, and nationalist uprisings are breaking out across its European territories. In 1878, the great powers of Europe, including Britain, France, Germany, Russia and Austria Hungary meet in Germany to try to impose order on this growing chaos. What becomes known as the Congress of Berlin redraws the map of the Balkans, recognizing new states and limiting Ottoman control. As part of the settlement, Austria Hungary is given the right to occupy and administer Bosnia Herzegovina, often referred to simply as Bosnia, even though the province remains, for now, Ottoman land. This arrangement suits Austria Hungary's rulers back in Vienna. Bosnia lies directly on their southern border, and keeping it stable is seen as essential to the security of the empire over the next 30 years. The occupiers invest heavily in the region because building railways, roads and government offices, effectively running Bosnia as its own territory. At the same time, the Congress of Berlin also recognizes an independent kingdom of Serbia. Under its early rulers, Serbia maintains relatively friendly relations with Austria Hungary, helping to keep the region in balance. But that balance collapses in in 1903, when in a brutal attack, a group of Serbian army officers murder King Alexander and Queen Draga in their Belgrade palace. The old pro Austrian dynasty is swept away and a new leader, more sympathetic to Russia takes the throne. Under his rule, and with the tacit support of St. Petersburg, Serbia turns sharply towards nationalism. One chief aim is the uniting of all South Slav people, including Serbs, Croats and Bosnians, into a single state. But many of those people already live inside the Habsburg Empire of Austria Hungary, especially in Bosnia Herzegovina. So this new drive for Serbian nationalism is a direct threat to Austria's control of its own territory. When revolution breaks out inside the Ottoman Empire in 1908, Austria Hungary sees an opportunity. With Bosnia sitting on its southern frontier, controlling key routes through the Balkans, Vienna is determined to officially annex the territory, securing it permanently. And while Austria Hungary technically needs international approval for such a bold move, events move faster than diplomacy. Sue Woolmans is a royal historian and writer and co author of the Assassination of the Archduke.
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Historian or Expert Commentator
They really needed the blessing of all the great powers to do this, but they decided basically to go in and get on with it as quickly as possible. The only great power that was consulted with Russia, who said, oh, okay then, and but we'll need to have a little bit of access to the Bosphorus for ourselves, for trade and arms dealing and that sort of thing.
- [10:14]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
With Russia's consent technically in place, Austria Hungary makes the annexation official.
- [10:20]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Russia could at this point have gone, hey, don't do that. We haven't signed on the dotted line yet. But Russia had just come out of the Japanese war. They were too weak. They didn't have a buildup of arms. They couldn't really Argue? Very much so. It was a fait accompli.
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Bosnia Herzegovina is now formally part of Austria Hungary. Serbia is furious, but without the support Russia once promised, they are powerless to act. The balance in the Balkans has been shattered. And the crisis doesn't stop there. In 1912, a group of Balkan states, Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece and Montenegro, form an alliance known as the Balkan League. Their aim is to drive the Ottoman Empire out of its remaining European territories and divide the land between themselves. The First Balkan War is swift and decisive. Ottoman power in the region collapses, and the map of southeastern Europe is redrawn.
- [11:20]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Now, you'd think that would have settled the matter, but no, because the Balkans were always a powder keg. And they kicked off a second war, and that had Serbia, Greece and Romania and against Bulgaria, all basically arguing over the spoils of the First Balkan War and who got what in Macedonia,
- [11:39]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
as old borders collapse and new ones are created, Serbia emerges, transformed. By the time the fighting ends, it has nearly doubled in size. It gains Kosovo and large parts of Macedonia and now sees itself as the natural leader of the South Slavs. To Vienna, this is a nightmare. Serbia is no longer just an angry neighbor. It is a nationalist state powerful enough to challenge Austria, Hungary's control over its own Slavic peoples, especially in Bosnia Herzegovina.
- [12:13]
Historian or Expert Commentator
What the Serbs wanted was a Greater Serbia, a Greater Serbia incorporating all the lands that Austria was also holding onto. Bosnia and Herzegovina was. Was a prime example.
- [12:28]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
And yet Serbia cannot challenge Austria Hungary directly. The empire is too large, and it's also well protected by its alliance with Germany. So Serbian nationalists look for another way to strike. The answer lies in Bosnia Herzegovina, where many Serbs live under Austrian rule and where resentment against Vienna runs deepest. It is here that a shadow network begins to form, as the officers who overthrew Serbia's king in 1903 regroup and organize into something more formal. In 1911, they create a secret society dedicated to one goal destroying Austria, Hungary from within. Known as the Black Hand, they focus on small, violent means of disruption. They're not planning wars or military coups, but they are plotting assassinations.
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Historian or Expert Commentator
The official name for them in Serbian was union or death, which probably tells you all you need to know. They were terrorists, they were violent. They went after Austrian officials and tried to assassinate them.
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
To maintain secrecy, the Black Hand operate in small, isolated groups who know only their own contacts and their own orders.
- [13:51]
Historian or Expert Commentator
They had little cells of people in various different places, four or five, six people in one cell. Then they had a local committee, then they had a national committee. So nobody actually knew each other. So that sort of kept it secret. Definitely. Very secret, but very violent.
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
And although the Black Hand is never officially part of the Serbian government, it is quietly protected by powerful forces inside it.
- [14:17]
Historian or Expert Commentator
They were financed by sometimes the Russian Orthodox Church, sometimes the Russian Embassy, even the Crown Prince of Serbia himself. I mean, none of this was official, but that's where they got all their money from.
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
With money, weapons and safe passage taken care of, Bosnia Herzegovina, ruled by Vienna, but full of Serbs, becomes the Black Hand's most important battlefield. And it's not just the Balkans that are in turmoil. By the early 20th century, the whole continent of Europe is a tinderbox. Russia itself has been ruled by the authoritarian Romanov dynasty for centuries and spans half the continent. But now, under Tsar Nicholas ii, it's unstable. Shaken by its humiliating defeat in the Russo Japanese War of 1904 and struggling to control poverty, strikes and unrest, Britain still rules the seas, but is increasingly distracted by dissent in Ireland and the strains of holding together a vast global empire. At the center of Europe stands the new power of Germany. Unified only in 1871 following success in the Franco Prussian War, it is now heavily armed, economically dynamic, and determined to claim its place as a world power. Meanwhile, across the Rhine, France is still licking its wounds following its defeat by Germany in that war and eyeing its rivals warily for a chance to regain its lost prestige. And binding all of these powers together is a complex network of military alliances. Austria, Hungary is backed by Germany. Serbia is protected by Russia. Russia is tied to France, thanks to a shared desire to contain Germany. France is linked to Britain all across the continent. Nationalism is rising, diplomacy is brittle, and every government is watching its rivals for weakness. In this volatile situation, no one country can move without pulling others with them, which means that a crisis in the Balkans is never destined to stay. In the Balkans, the continent is primed for war. All it needs is a spark. And in 1914, a state visit by the heir to the Austro Hungarian throne provides just that. This episode is sponsored by surfshark vpn. Did you know your digital footprint is just as traceable as your carbon one? So unless you're using a vpn, your data is basically waving at advertisers. This is where surfshark VPN comes in. A VPN is a virtual private network which allows you to mask your real IP address, meaning your online activity can't be tracked. It's like wearing trousers. It keeps all the important things private and secure. When you're out, when you're browsing, every click or search can be tracked. And sold with Surfshark. All that data stays yours and Surfshark's support team is there to help 24. 7. They also offer benefits like alternative ID which creates a brand new online identity for you so you can sign up for stuff without giving away your real information. Try Surfshark today and enjoy their 30 day money back guarantee. Go to surfshark.com shorthistory or use code shorthistory at checkout to get four extra months of Surfshark VPN. Details are also in the show Description
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Sponsor Voiceover
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- [18:23]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Franz Ferdinand has largely been remembered less as a man and more as a moment, as the victim of the assassination that triggered the First World War.
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Historian or Expert Commentator
You don't really know anything more than that because the history books don't expand on Franz Ferdinand. That's just his story. His story is he was shot. World War I started.
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
In reality, there is a lot more to Franz Ferdinand and his beloved wife Sophie than a footnote to catastrophe. The nephew of Emperor Franz Joseph, ruler of Austria, Hungary, Franz Ferdinand had a troubled childhood.
- [19:01]
Historian or Expert Commentator
He wasn't a popular person. Unfortunately, he was very much overshadowed in his youth by his brother, his younger brother Otto, always known as Handsome Otto. Now Franz Ferdinand wasn't handsome. He had sticky out ears and wasn't really desperately attractive, so that didn't help.
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
But it isn't just his looks. Unlike his exuberant, handsome younger brother, Franz is a shy, awkward boy. Then, when he is just 7, any childhood happiness he might have known is cut short when his mother dies of tuberculosis, leaving him devastated. And in 1896, a much greater change occurs when his father, by now heir to the throne, dies. Now in his 30s, Franz Ferdinand suddenly finds himself next in line for the throne of one of the greatest empires in Europe. Much to his uncle's chagrin, the Emperor
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Historian or Expert Commentator
Franz Josef didn't much like him. Perhaps Joseph himself would have preferred Otto.
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Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Around this time he also contracts tuberculosis and is sent away from court for a couple of years to recuperate in warmer climes. When he returns, it quickly becomes clear that he has been replaced in all but title by the popular, handsome Otto. With the odds already stacked against him in terms of public perception, this shy young man also proves himself to be short tempered and passionate. He is prone to sudden rages, and though he is equally quick to calm and apologize, he rubs people up the wrong way. In fact, it's only once he's married that he seems to find a balance. And even that process is problematic for his uncle and for the wider court. In Vienna, when Franz Ferdinand first meets Sophie Hotek, she is not deemed a suitable match. Though she is a countess and a member of the old aristocracy. As a lady in waiting, she's not considered royal enough to marry the heir to the throne. Franz falls in love with her regardless. The Imperial court fights the match bitterly, but he refuses to give her up in the end, because every emperor allows the marriage, but only on humiliating terms. Not only can Sophie never be empress, he insists, but she will not be allowed to stand beside her husband at court, and their children will never inherit the throne or the royal name. Franz Ferdinand accepts every condition without hesitation. If it means they can be together, it is worth the sacrifice. Deeply in love, they marry in June 1900.
- [21:47]
Historian or Expert Commentator
They were such a good, happy couple. Both of them on that day said that they had no regrets. Sophie said, I would live each day again if I could. They were absolutely 100% a couple with no regrets at all as to what they had committed themselves to.
- [22:06]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
And being with Sophie changes Franz for the better. She calms him, steadying his passionate temper with her gentle glances and humanizing him in her love.
- [22:17]
Historian or Expert Commentator
It's almost like magic. She just had to smile at him, put a hand on his arm, calm him down. He used to buy her brooches in the shape of a lamb, and she would wear these brooches. And if his temper flared, she would just happily stroke the brooch and that would tell him that he better shut up now.
- [22:39]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Despite Sophie's influence, Franz Ferdinand is still not the kind of ruler the Austrian court wants. Still, the couple build a genuinely happy family life that is almost unheard of among European royalty. At a time when most marriages are based on politics and strategy rather than love. They go on to have three children together, two boys and a girl, all fiercely beloved. Franz Ferdinand often sits in the nursery doing his paperwork, while the little ones play at his feet. Politically, Franz Ferdinand has for some time advocated for reform and the offering of greater self governance for the Slavic people. Though many in Vienna seek to nip Serbia's nationalist ambitions in the bud with a preemptive war. The Archduke has vetoed such plans while than 20 times in the last year. The irony is that it's exactly this sympathy towards Serbia that makes him a target. The hardliners fear that once he takes his uncle's crown, many moderate Serbs will be placated by his compromises. Though he's aware of the unrest brewing against Austria in Bosnia Herzegovina in 1914, Franz Ferdinand is persuaded to visit Sarajevo as a representative of the Emperor's armed forces.
- [24:02]
Historian or Expert Commentator
He was going as a member of the military, not as an Archduke. He was only going to actually observe these manoeuvres in the hills above Sarajevo. He wasn't going to actually visit Sarajevo itself. But then the Governor General of Sarajevo, a man called Potiorek, decided that it would be a brilliant feather in his cap to have Franz Ferdinand do at least a half day visit to Sarajevo. And he talked Franz Ferdinand into this.
- [24:30]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
And because this isn't a state visit with him in the role of Archduke, Sophie is for once allowed to go along with him as a military wife and be by his side throughout. Their three children, Sophie, Maximilian and Ernst, aged 12, 11 and nine, are left behind at their castle home, expecting their parents to return within days. With the trip also coinciding with their 14th wedding anniversary, the couple planned to enjoy their time together, fully aware of the threat from nationalist forces. Though it's likely that Sophie has an ulterior motive for traveling with her husband,
- [25:08]
Historian or Expert Commentator
the family, the descendants believe she went really so that she was sitting next to him when the Archduke went through Centro, Sarajevo in a car. There was a tradition in the 19th century that you didn't shoot women, so her sitting next to him was some sort of security and she would have thought of that, and that's one of the reasons why she went with him.
- [25:30]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
But neither knows exactly what or who awaits them in Sarajevo. By the spring of 1914, the Black Hand has already tried and failed to kill a handful of Austrian officials. It has a network inside Bosnia, but crucial to its arsenal is the generation of young Bosnian Serbs who believe that dying for their cause is a form of victorious martyrdom. When news breaks that the Archduke intends to travel to Sarajevo, wheels are instantly set in motion.
- [26:06]
Historian or Expert Commentator
There were two plots, basically. There was one bunch of students who were hanging around in Belgrade and then back in Sarajevo there was. There was another plot. The Sarajevo plot was much more backed by the Black Hand and were Black Hand members. It was a guy called Illich and another chap called Mehemed Basic and they'd been talking about assassinating Franz Ferdinand. And then in Belgrade, a bunch of students were also talking about assassinating Franz Ferdinand.
- [26:39]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
The core group of students are Gavrilo, principal Nadelko Kabrinevi and Trivko Grabes, all originally from Bosnia but now living in Serbia. They are angry, idealistic and already steeped in nationalist politics, driven by the belief that their homeland should be taken from Austria, Hungary and united with Serbia. When they decide that Franz Ferdinand himself is the right target, the Black Hand in Sarajevo quietly moves to support them. Their contact is a Serbian newspaper editor named Danilo Ilic.
- [27:14]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Grabes was able to introduce his friends to a terrorist called Siganovich. He was fairly high up in the Black Hand, but he needed to get some weapons to help these three students in Belgrade. He went to a man who was able to supply pistols, bombs and cyanide. Cyanide for suicide, once you'd killed people.
- [27:37]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Off with weapons covered, the students are trained to shoot the pistol and throw the bombs. At the same time, they prepare themselves for martyrdom should the need and the opportunity for glory arise. The Black Hand then smuggles them into the city of Sarajevo.
- [27:57]
Historian or Expert Commentator
And so they helped the students, Princip, Grabes and Cabrinovic, to travel from Belgrade to Sarajevo, helping them with money, but also helping them with customs officers along the way who would help them to get through and cross borders.
- [28:16]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
The journey is chaotic. Princip and Grabes deliberately lose Cabrinovic along the way, because he can't stop telling everyone where they're going and what they're planning to do. He even stops off to send some postcards, letting people back home know what they're plotting. And yet they all managed to pass through to Sarajevo unseen.
- [28:37]
Historian or Expert Commentator
The authorities were supposed to check anybody who was coming into Sarajevo at this point, which they failed to do. And the police also didn't follow up the fact that they'd seen Cabrinovic, who wasn't allowed to be in Sarajevo, but they happily let him travel back to Sarajevo. So the police were frankly not doing their job at this point.
- [28:57]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Even the agreed meeting for Ilyich to acquire the pistols and grenades for the actual attack doesn't quite go to plan. It's late June at the main train station in Sarajevo, just days before the Archduke and his wife are due to arrive in the city. As the train pulls in, exhaling steam into the warm air, a young man, Danilo Ilyitch, cranes his neck, peering out of the window. He is checking the platform for police and for any sign of the Black Hand comrade he's supposed to be meeting Today. Stepping off the train, Illich pauses. Even being in the station is a risk to their operation, but he needs to get his hands on the weapons the young men will be using in the assassination of the Austrian heir. As the rest of the passengers file away, he strolls casually down the platform, looking for his contact. Though he's never met him, he has a description of the man who'll be handing over the weapons. No one here seems to match it. He walks away from the platform, onto the main concourse, past the ticket office, trying his hardest to look like any other passenger arriving in the city. He scans every face, but none fit the bill. As he passes the waiting room, however, he sees a canvas bag resting below one of the chairs. It's a dark khaki, military style satchel, stuffed full and unattended. Checking through the smudged window in the door, he sees there's no one in the waiting room at all. Surely their contact wouldn't have just left the weapons in there like that, would he? Looking both ways, he slowly pushes the door open. He moves across the room quickly and sits in the seat above the bag. Still, no one approaches and the room remains empty. Outside on the platform, a guard blows his whistle. Carefully, he eases the bag out from under the seat. Lifting the flap with trembling fingers, he sees a collection of pistols, grenades and bullets all shoved in together. They can only be the ones intended for him to collect, surely. He closes the bag quickly, stands and hoists the strap over his shoulder. Leaving the waiting room, he walks purposefully out of the station, doing his best not to look at anyone, lest he draw the attention of any passing policeman. As he crosses the road, narrowly avoiding a horse and cart, he keeps one hand on the top of the bag, fearful that too much jostling may cause a premature explosion. Finally, Illich reaches his mother's front door, swings it open and steps inside. There he waits, listening. There's no one home. Heading into the lounge, he removes the bag from his shoulder and hides it carefully beneath her sofa, making sure the old blanket covering the seat hangs low enough to conceal it. Later, he will distribute the weapons to his comrades, but for now, they will be safe here, and in a few days they will all write their names in history as heroes or martyrs or both.
- [32:29]
Sponsor Voiceover
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- [33:30]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
On the morning of 28 June 1914, Sarajevo is already awake. Long before the Archduke is due to arrive, the streets have been decorated with banners of welcome, crowds have already begun to gather to watch the motorcade pass, and a brass band is busy tuning up for the main event. Franz Ferdinand has spent the early hours looking over the troops at a barracks on the outskirts of the capital, fulfilling his role as inspector General of the Austro Hungarian Army. Now, just after 9:30, he and Sophie climb back into their open topped car for the short journey into the city itself. The motorcade forms along the Appel Key, the wide road that follows the Melytska river through Sarajevo Center. In the lead car are the local officials and the police chief. Behind them sit a team of security officers. The third car, driven by chauffeur Leopold Loiker, carries Franz Ferdinand, Sophie and Oskar Potiorek, the governor. A fourth vehicle carries aides and officials. No extra guards have been added, no further security measures put in place, and the cars are even open topped. The police lining the route are thinly spaced. Unbeknownst to them, mere feet away and in many of the best vantage points, a team of coordinated assassins are already in place. Seven young would be assassins. The three Bosnian students, alongside others recruited by the Black Hand, have mostly spread out far enough away from each other that if one fails, another can act. But the first two stand fairly close together, pistols hidden beneath their jackets. As the vehicles draw closer, however, they are aware they're being observed by a policeman and don't dare make their move. All they can do is watch. The Archduke glides past them, oblivious to their malicious intent. Further down the route, a third conspirator, the famously indiscreet Cabrinovich, waits with a grenade in his pocket with the first would be assassins. Now out of range, he realizes they must have failed in their mission. It's down to him. As the motorcade nears, he steps forward, pulls out the bomb and strikes its detonator against a lamppost, throwing it towards the Archduke's car. He expects it to explode as it lands. What he'd failed to understand, however, is that these bombs are designed with a 10 second delay.
- [36:06]
Historian or Expert Commentator
The driver of Franz Ferdinand's car saw it coming and managed to drive, put his foot down, and the bomb missed Franz Ferdinand's car. It actually bounced off the back of it and then exploded under the car behind.
- [36:23]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
The bomb detonates in a burst of smoke and metal, tearing into the fourth car and the crowd around it. People scream and glass and shrapnel scatter across the road.
- [36:33]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Gabrinovic then threw himself over the wall into the river. It was June, it was hot, there was only about 3 inches of water, didn't drown, threw down the vial of cyanide, which was very old and didn't work, and was beaten up by a crowd of people who chased after him and then got arrested. And so it was all a bit of a joke.
- [36:53]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Fortunately, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie are unharmed. Their car accelerates away as chaos fills the apple key and the would be assassin is carted off, still protesting that he is a Serbian hero. With the farcical attempt at assassination behind them, the Archduke declares the the fellow is insane. Let's get on with our program. Against his security advisor's better judgment, what remains of the motorcade drives on to the town hall, just a few streets away. Once everyone is inside, the mayor nervously begins to deliver his carefully prepared welcome speech. But his royal visitor cuts him off, complaining bitterly that he has come to Sarajevo only to be greeted with bombs. Governor Poturek assures him the assailant has been arrested, and when pressed by Ferdinand's people, he becomes dismissive and defensive.
- [37:49]
Historian or Expert Commentator
He was heard to say, do you think Sarajevo's full of assassins? Which patently it was, because there was, you know, seven of them kicking around at this point.
- [37:57]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Still, Pocharek agrees that a change to the schedule is wise. The visit to the National Museum can be cut, but he still wants the couple to enjoy the luncheon at his official residence. The Archduke, never a fan of such niceties even without bomb attacks, insists on visiting the officers wounded in the explosion first. Governor Poturek agrees and orders a change of routes to take the cars directly to the hospital. Franz Ferdinand tries to dissuade Sophie from traveling with him in the same car. But she insists.
- [38:32]
Historian or Expert Commentator
She said, no, Franzi, I am coming with you. Fatal words, of course.
- [38:38]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Still, the new plan is confirmed. They will take the main routes to the hospital and avoid the smaller, more dangerous city roads to the museum. But in all the confusion, these new instructions are not passed on to the drivers. As a result, the Loiker, the driver of the Archduke's car, has no idea that the route has changed. His job is simply to follow the lead vehicle. So as that turns right into the very narrow Franz Josef street, he starts to follow.
- [39:11]
Historian or Expert Commentator
At this point, Potiorek, the Governor General, shouts to them to stop and go backwards to the route that they had now decided to go, which was along the embankment. If he hadn't shouted, maybe the cars would have whizzed past Princip.
- [39:29]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
As Loike stops the car, he has no idea that another assassin is standing just a few feet away.
- [39:36]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Princip, who had not been able to do anything When Franz Ferdinand was traveling to the Town Hall. He'd been wandering around Sarajevo, wondering what to do next, and he stationed himself on a street corner by Schiller's Delicatessen. He was standing there with his guns and bombs, not expecting anything. Suddenly, the car not only turns in front of him, but then stops. I mean, it's a big old car, and old car's no, you know, huge gear sticks. You can't just go straight into reverse. You have to stop, move the gear stick, go into reverse. Takes a few minutes. That's exactly what the driver was doing. And there was Princip with his gun, and they were sitting ducks, literally sitting ducks. He gets out his gun and he shoots. And he shoots maybe two, three times. Nobody really knows. Definitely two, possibly three shots. One hits Franz Ferdinand in the jugular vein. One shot hits Sophie in the stomach, hitting a major vein.
- [40:36]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
As the shots ring out, the narrow street erupts in screams and chaos. People scatter in every direction. Some reach for the open car, others turn on the assassin, Gavrilo Princip, hitting him until he drops the gun and knocking the cyanide from his grasp. The engine surges back into life, and the driver finally manages to reverse, wrenching the vehicle away from the pavement and back towards the river and Poturek's residence.
- [41:06]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Sophie's first reaction was to look at Franz Ferdinand. He'd got blood coming out of his mouth. At this point, she says, what on earth has happened to you? And then she slumped forward and her head lands in his lap. He says, sophie, Sophie, don't die. Live for our children. And then he slumps forward as well. One of his retinue tries to hold him up and says, how are you feeling? And he says, it is nothing. It is nothing. It is nothing. And those are his last words. It is nothing.
- [41:35]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
By the time they reach the residence, it is too late to do anything for either of them.
- [41:40]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Bran's Ferdinand was laid on a chaise longue. Sophie was laid on a bed. Sophie, at this point, they really thought she just fainted. Women in those days wore several layers of underwear. Nobody had any idea that the bullet had gone through these layers of underwear and into an important vein because the clothes were seeping up the blood. There was no sign of any problems with Sophie. Franz Ferdinand, meanwhile, it was is, you know, there's blood pouring from his, from his mouth. And so they start by trying to help Franz Ferdinand. Various military doctors rush in. They have to slit open his uniform so they can help to staunch the blood. But unfortunately, it's just too late. He dies within minutes of being laid on the chaise longue.
- [42:26]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
As the doctor makes the official pronouncements, the truth settles. The heir to the Habsburg throne and his wife have been murdered on the streets of Sarajevo. The shockwaves of this callous assassination will travel quickly and with devastating force, with Gavrilo Princip's attempts to make a martyr of himself thwarted by the public. And the police is arrested immediately and taken for interrogation.
- [42:56]
Historian or Expert Commentator
He's arrested, they've got Kablovich as well. And then they start trying to hunt down all the rest of them. They got all the terrorists within a couple of days, really. But there were immediate reactions, sort of within the empire, within Bosnia Herzegovina itself, there were anti Serb riots, very violent anti Serb riots. About a thousand properties, churches, homes, shops were wrecked. Three Serbs were killed on the first night.
- [43:26]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Meanwhile, the reaction in Austria is far more muted. The British ambassador claims there are no tears, while the Emperor Franz Josef is reported as saying the death of his nephew is one worry less, I suppose. Naturally, those closest to the couple who knew their true nature mourn their loss keenly. Their children, Sophie, Maximilian and Ernst, are devastated. Now orphaned, and thanks to the Emperor's harsh rules around the parents, marriage without even the Habsburg name to protect them, they are sent away from Vienna to be cared for by an aunt on their mother's side. But the personal ramifications are nothing compared to the diplomatic ones. Despite their antipathy towards the couple, the Austrians are now bent on revenge.
- [44:15]
Historian or Expert Commentator
They found documents that proved that it was the Serbian bombs Serbian bullets. Serbia was unofficially responsible for the death of Franz Ferdinand and Austria wanted Serbia to pay for that. So Austria decided that it would send a list of demands that it wanted Serbia to agree to.
- [44:40]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
After a quick consultation with the German Empire to ensure their support, Austria puts together their conditions. They insist that Serbia must publicly condemn all anti Austrian propaganda in its newspapers, schools and politics. It must shut down all nationalist organizations and dismiss the officials accused of supporting anti Austrian causes. And it must arrest and prosecute those linked to the Sarajevo plot. But there is one demand that goes even further. Austria. Hungary insists that its own police and officials be allowed to operate inside Serbia to suppress subversion on Serbian soil. For any sovereign nation, that is an extraordinary demand. To accept it would be to surrender control of its own justice system. But to reject it would risk war.
- [45:33]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Edward Gray, who was the Foreign Secretary in Britain at the time, he said it was the most formidable document he had ever seen addressed by one state to another. And it took the Austrians about three weeks to actually send this to the Serbians. It didn't get to them till the 23rd of July and there were 10 demands and they had to basically reply by the 25th of July, so that's 36 hours. And the Serbians did reply in three days time. A document that was clever, evasive, but not much in the way of capitulation.
- [46:07]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Though Serbia does manage to meet the tight deadline and agrees to almost all the demands, they can't countenance the final one.
- [46:15]
Historian or Expert Commentator
The Kaiser in Germany read the Serbian answer and thought, that's fine, that's good enough, that'll do. The Austrians didn't like it at all. They broke off diplomatic relations on 25 July.
- [46:26]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Days later, they send their next message to Serbia. It is 28 July 1914, in the Ballhausplatz, the Austro Hungarian Foreign ministry in Vienna. Summer heat drifts into the high ceilinged room through open windows, carrying the steady murmur of a capital at work. The atmosphere inside the room, though, is tense. At the head of a long table across which papers are laid out stands the Austro Hungarian Foreign Minister, Count Leopold von Berchthold. The document in front of him has been drafted and redrafted, shaped to leave no shadow of doubt and fully approved by Emperor Franz Josef. Count Leopold leans over the paper and carefully inks his name onto the page. The declaration of war against Serbia is signed. A clerk carries it across the room to a waiting telegraph desk where the operator sits ready. The first key drops, sharp and mechanical, followed by a rapid series of clicks and taps as the message leaves Vienna in pulses of electricity. From there, it races along copper wire, leaping from exchange to exchange over mountains and borders until it crosses into Serbia. No one speaks. The tapping continues. Then at last, the telegraph falls silent.
- [48:09]
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Historian or Expert Commentator
New friends gave it the stage Snake
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Historian or Expert Commentator
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- [48:50]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Zootopia has a secret reptile population.
- [48:53]
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- [49:09]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Austria Hungary is now at war with Serbia. And thanks to the various alliances between the other major players in Europe, they won't be alone in this fight for long. Once Austria Hungary declares war, events move with terrifying speed. What should have been a local war becomes a continental one.
- [49:30]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Almost overnight, Europe was divided into two alliances. There was the Triple Entente, France, Britain and Russia.
- [49:38]
Additional Historian or Expert Commentator
And.
- [49:38]
Historian or Expert Commentator
And there was the Triple Alliance, Germany, Austria, Hungary and Italy. That meant that any kind of dispute between two nations could just draw in all the others, which is exactly what it did.
- [49:51]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Within days of the announcement on 28 July 1914, the other nations begin to mobilize.
- [49:58]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Russia mobilized on 30 July. Germany saw this mobilization as an act of aggression and it declared war on Russia and its treaty ally France on the 1st of August. Now, Germany was particularly wanting to fight France because of the Schlieffen plan that it had, which was to invade Europe by going through Belgium into France. And to do this, they would be violating the London Treaty of Neutrality drawn up in 1839. And this is of course exactly what Germany did, leaving Britain no choice. Because Belgium neutrality had been broken. Britain had to join in. And on the 4th of August, they declared war as Well,
- [50:44]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
A little over five weeks after the assassination, the great powers of Europe are locked in a war no one can now stop. It will last more than four years. It will kill over 17 million people, and it will bring down four empires. The Russian, the the German, the Ottoman, and the Austro. Hungarian. Europe will never be the same. The men who carried out the Sarajevo attack don't live to see the full extent of what they unleashed. Gavrilo Princip is tried and imprisoned. Too young to be executed, he is sentenced to hard labor and dies in prison of tuberculosis in 1918. Alone and broken, the others meet similar ends, either suffering illness, execution, or long years behind bars. And far from the battlefields, another tragedy quietly unfolds. Franz Ferdinand and Sophie's three orphaned children are sent from their home and forced into exile. As empires fall and borders shift in the chaos that follows the war, their lives become a long struggle for survival. Their daughter lives out her life quietly. The two sons will later be rounded up by the Nazis and sent to Dachau, a concentration camp in southern Germany, where they're imprisoned for years. The cost of that Sarajevo mourning ripples outwards through generations. And yet, perhaps the greatest irony of all is that the man whose name is most closely linked with the outbreak of World War I saw it coming and was one of the few trying through diplomacy with the Serbs to prevent it.
- [52:35]
Historian or Expert Commentator
Franz Ferdinand could see that a war with Serbia would start off all kinds of terrible things around Europe. He didn't want a world war. He would have been horrified, absolutely horrified at what happened. He could certainly see that if Austria went to war with Serbia, then the Russians would pile in and help Serbia and, you know, Russia. All these alliances would then bring the whole of Europe to flames, to a terrible war. And that would also destroy so many of the royal families of Europe, which is what it did.
- [53:13]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Next time on Short History Orb, we'll bring you part one of a special two part short history of the American Civil War.
- [53:22]
Additional Historian or Expert Commentator
So men are rushing to enlist. Washington, D.C. is absolutely abuzz with people. So many soldiers arrive in Washington, D.C. ready to fight on behalf of the Union that they're sleeping on the floor of the Capitol. They are being put in any room in any building because there aren't tents yet. They simply don't have the material to support armies of this size. People expect that this will be a one and done, one big battle, and the war will be over. And it becomes clear at that point that this certainly is going to be more than one battle, and it could potentially be a longer war. Than anyone had imagined.
- [54:09]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
That's Next Time. You can listen to the next two episodes of Short History of Right now without waiting and without adverts by subscribing to Noizur. Just hit the link in the episode description or head to www.noiza.comsubscriptions to unlock more episodes today.
- [54:28]
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- [54:49]
Narrator (John Hopkins, Noiser Podcast Network)
Get it?
- [54:50]
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