June 29 - Reaction to the assassination

Press reaction to the Archduke's assassination appeared on Monday 29 June. Here is the headline from the Daily Telegraph:

The newspaper began its leading article: "A dark cloud of Fate seems to overhang the fortunes of the House of Habsburg ... The circumstances are so peculiar that it is very difficult to understand the reasons for the crime or the exact motives of the murderer ... His death is, we believe, a serious loss to Europe at large, as well as to Austria-Hungary herself ... At a period when the world suffers from a lack of great personalities, the death of a man so strong and self-reliant as the Archduke Franz Ferdinand is a real disaster, of which it is difficult to overestimate the importance."

(The Daily Telegraph is publishing an archive of its wartime editions at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/ )

A J P Taylor (The First World War: An Illustrated History, Penguin Books, 1966) draws attention to some curious facts regarding the Archduke's visit to Sarajevo:

• As the Countess Sophie was a "mere countess" she did not fall within the permitted social class for an imperial Habsburg marriage. Therefore she did not become an archduchess or an imperial highness, and could not sit by his side on any public occasion
• A loophole to this protocol was that since the Archduke was a field marshal and Inspector General of the Austro-Hungarian Army, his wife could enjoy the recognition of his rank when he was acting in this capacity. Hence the decision to inspect the army in Bosnia.
• Taylor also suggests the visit to Sarajevo coincided with their wedding anniversary ("For his wedding day [28 June 1900] ultimately set the fuse to the First World War"). According to the Wikipedia article on the Countess Sophie, 28 June 1900 was the date when the Archduke signed the document agreeing that it would be a morganatic marriage, with their wedding taking place on 1 July 1900.

June 28 - Sarajevo

Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was shot dead while on a state visit to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo with his wife Sophie.

There is a lot of interesting information posted on the BBC website about this infamous incident. 

Relics from this day are on display in the Museum of Military History at Vienna. These include the car they were assassinated in, and the Archduke's uniform.



 

The Look and Learn website also contains some useful information.

Introduction

This blog is designed as a commentary on the centenary of the Great War. I intend to post comments on events as they happened, 100 years ago, along with stories based on family members who participated in the conflict. I also plan to include references to the area where I grew up (Frimley Green and Mytchett), my old school in Farnham, and other areas I know, since these will give an impression of the impact the war had on local communities.