World War I
Lecture #1: The Outbreak
Assassination at Sarajevo
Happened because of nationalistic
tensions in the Balkan region of Europe
The Serbs, an ethnic group, had been
under control of the Ottoman Empire until
1912.
Serbs considered Austria-Hungary an
Imperial Power
Assassination at Sarajevo
The Balkans were considered the
“Powder Keg” of Europe because of the
Nationalistic Tension
When the Serbs learned that Archduke
Francis Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary
was visiting Sarajevo, Bosnia (territory of
A-H) tensions increased even more.
Assassination at Sarajevo
A Serbian Terrorist Group called the “Black
Hand” decided to take action against the
archduke’s visit.
On June 28, 1914, Francis Ferdinand and his
wife Sophie rode through Sarajevo in an open
car. A bomb ignited but missed.
Later that day, the car set out again and a
member of the Black Hand fired two shots
killing both Francis and Sophie.
This is known as the start of World War I.
The Road to War
The next phase was escalated because of the
system of alliances
A-H saw the incident as an excuse to end
Serbian nationalism and independence for
good
A-H sent Serbia a harsh Ultimatuum, Serbia
must end all anti-Austrian aggression and
punish the conspirators who killed the archduke
Serbia agreed to some, but not all.
A-H declared war on Serbia on July 28th,
1914
The Road to War
Word spread across Europe about the Balkan
Crisis
The Kaiser of Germany assured A-H that
Germany would support A-H with a “Blank
Check”
Serbia asked Russia for help, another slavic
ethnicity. Russia began to mobilize its military
Germany responded by declaring war on
Russia
Russia asked France for help against
Germany
The Road to War
France, seeking revenge for the FrancoPrussian War (a war lost to Germany),
decided to back Russia
Germany declared war on France
By August 1914, the battle lines in
Europe had been drawn.
Connecting the Causes
How could one assassination lead to an all out World
War of epic proportions in just a few weeks?
1. Alliance System- each country had a commitment
to the other once war was declared
2. Nationalism- Russia and Serbia saw A-H as
oppressors of Slavic peoples
3. Imperialism- each country had to maintain and
defend their power in the world
4. Militarism- once the guns were fired, it was
impossible to stop