Archduke Franz Ferdinand (1863-1914) was born in Graz Austria, oldest son of Archduke Karl Ludwig and Princess Maria of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, and nephew of Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Joseph (1867–1916). These Hapsburg men were rulers of three empires: Holy Roman, Austro-Hungarian and Spanish.
1914, Wiki
Franz Ferdinand was educated by private tutors throughout his youth; he began his military career at age 12 and quickly advanced up the ranks becoming a major general at 31. After the emperor's son Crown Prince Rudolf’s suicide in 1889, Franz Ferdinand's father Karl Ludwig became heir to the throne. At Karl Ludwig's death from typhoid fever in 1896, Franz Ferdinand was suddenly the heir to the throne.
The young man had served in Hungary. So later, as heir to the throne, he was appointed as the Inspector General of the Austro-Hungarian army. [Remember this below, re 1914].
In 1894 Ferdinand first met Countess Sophie Maria Chotek, daughter of a Bohemian aristocrat, and they fell in love. However marriage to a Hapsburg required that he/she be a member of a reigning (or ex-) dynasty of Europe, and the Choteks weren’t. But the loved-up Franz Ferdinand refused to marry anyone else, and it took a few years and the intervention of other heads of state, including Pope Leo XIII, before the Emperor agreed to the unacceptable marriage.
But Franz Joseph only agreed with rigorous conditions. This morganatic marriage demanded Sophie and any future children were not allowed her husband's throne, titles, privileges or inherited property. The couple married in July 1900. And they had 3 Hohenberg children: Princess Sophie, Duke Maximilian & Prince Ernst. In 1909 Sophie became the Duchess of Hohenberg.
Austria-Hungary was a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual empire of groups antagonistic over religion and politics. The only thing the different ethnic people hated more than each other was the Hapsburg dynasty. Franz Ferdinand's public persona was cold and short-tempered, and ?insane due to inbreeding.
Still, Franz Ferdinand understood that the empire was disintegrating. And he DID propose changing the Austro-Hungarian rule with a triple monarchy of Slavs, Germans and Magyars, each having an equal voice in government. Naturally this idea was unpopular with the ruling elite.
Royal couple travelling to Sarajevo town hall reception
in their open car, blogpost
The assassination, Traderlife
Franz Ferdinand also considered a federal government of 16 states, the United States of Greater Austria. Naturally this idea was in direct conflict with the Serbian nationalists who wanted to break off with Bosnia and Herzegovina to form an independent state. Though he didn’t care much about their nationalist ambitions, Franz Ferdinand supported greater freedom for self-determination. And he advocated for a careful approach with the Serbs, warning his military leaders that harsh treatment could lead to conflict in the region and with Russia. Correct! Meanwhile he maintained an alliance with Germany.
Gavrilo Princip arrested at the assassination scene, BBC
In 1914, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie accepted an invitation by Gen Oskar Potiorek, governor of Bosnia-Herzegovina province. In the capital of Bosnia, Sarajevo, he inspected the imperial armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina, annexed by Austria-Hungary (in 1908). The annexation angered Serbian nationalists, who believed the territories should be part of Serbia. So the Archduke knew all about the terrorism organised by the Serbian nationalist organisation The Black Hand but ignored the warnings. Meanwhile a group of young nationalists plotted to kill the Archduke!
When the royal train arrived 28th June 1914, a motorcade drove them to the official townhall reception. The royals were in the second car with the top rolled back, to give the crowds a good view. A Black Hand terrorist agent, Nedjelko Cabrinovic, threw a grenade. Thankfully the driver saw an object in the air and sped up, causing the grenade to hit the car behind them, damaging occupants and spectators. However their driver made a wrong turn and drove toward a young Black Hand Bosnian Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip (1894–1918). As the car backed up, Princip fired and shot the royals in their upper bodies. Both died en route to hospital. Ferdinand was buried alongside his wife in Artstetten Castle in Austria. The car in which they were killed is on display at the Museum of Military History in Vienna, along with his bloodied uniform.
When the royal train arrived 28th June 1914, a motorcade drove them to the official townhall reception. The royals were in the second car with the top rolled back, to give the crowds a good view. A Black Hand terrorist agent, Nedjelko Cabrinovic, threw a grenade. Thankfully the driver saw an object in the air and sped up, causing the grenade to hit the car behind them, damaging occupants and spectators. However their driver made a wrong turn and drove toward a young Black Hand Bosnian Serb nationalist Gavrilo Princip (1894–1918). As the car backed up, Princip fired and shot the royals in their upper bodies. Both died en route to hospital. Ferdinand was buried alongside his wife in Artstetten Castle in Austria. The car in which they were killed is on display at the Museum of Military History in Vienna, along with his bloodied uniform.
The assassination set off a rapid chain of events, giving the Austrian hardliners their chance to move against Serbia, ending their independence movement. Of course the situation escalated. When Austro-Hungary retaliated against Serbia, Russia supported its ally Serbia. So Austria needed Germany’s assurance that they would join against Russia and its allies, France & soon Britain. In July Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, and the fragile peace between Europe’s great powers collapsed. Then an entangled web of alliances was activated as Russia declared war on Austria-Hungary, Germany declared war on Russia, and France and Britain declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. By Aug 1914, The War To End All Wars had begun.
Assassin Gavrilo Princip got 20 years in prison because at 19, he was too young for capital punishment in Hapsburg law. He was gaoled in Dec 1914, chained to a wall and died of TB in 1918. Of course Princip didn’t know that the Habsburg Empire ended in 1918, however others knew. In 1920 Princip and other revolutionary heroes were exhumed and brought to Sarajevo, then buried in the Holy Archangels Cemetery.
The Austrian-Hungarian Empire and today’s national boundaries
Pinterest
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6 comments:
This is a compelling summary of Franz Ferdinand’s life and the turbulent political landscape he was navigating.
This is a simple way to get an overall understanding of the long history of the empire. The map rounds it off nicely.
"In 1920 Princip and other revolutionary heroes were exhumed and brought to Sarajevo, then buried in the Holy Archangels Cemetery". How quickly things change. Just a couple of years earlier, Princip shot and killed the royals in their upper bodies and Princip got only 20 years in prison.
It doesn't take much to start a war. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian crown, and his wife, Archduchess Sophie, in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, led to the outbreak of hostilities in August 1914 that lasted for the next four years.
Interesting history of the past.
The Austro-Hungarian Monarchy was a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural empire.The Monarchy as a political structure was established by the Austria-Hungary Compromise in 1867.One half of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy consisted of the Countries of the Hungarian Holy Crown. At that time the area of the Hungarian state was 325 411 km2, and the population here was 20.8 mill in 1910. The area of Austria, the other part of the Empire, was 300 005 km² and its population was 28.5 million in 1910.
36% of Austria’s population was of German ethnicity, followed by the Czechs ( 23%), and the populations belonging to the Polish, Ukrainian and Slovenian nationalities were 16%, 13% and 5%, respectively. The remaining percentage was shared among other nationalities.
The Countries of the Hungarian Holy Crown included the Kingdom of Hungary, Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia and the region of Fiume (mostly Italians). Croatia also had its own Parliament and Fiume was under the control of its own Governor.
Austro-Hungarian Monarchy - Nationalities (1867-1918)
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