June 28, 1914 in Sarajevo (Bosnia) was killed Austrian Archduke(heir to the throne) Franz Ferdinand. The attempt on his life was carried out by the Serbian youth revolutionary organization "Young Bosnia" ("Mlada Bosna"), which was headed by Gavrila Princip and Danil Ilic. This assassination became the formal reason for the start of a great war between the two coalitions of the great powers.
Why did the war start?
Three shots, which led to the death of the heir to the Austrian throne, along with his wife Sophia, could not lead to such a catastrophic result as the start of a pan-European war. The big war could have started much earlier. There were two Moroccan crises (1905-1906, 1911), two Balkan wars (1912-1913). Germany openly threatened France, the Austro-Hungarian Empire began mobilization several times. However, Russia each time took a restraining position. She was supported by Britain, not yet ready for big war. As a result, the Central Powers hesitated to go to war. Conferences of the great powers were convened, conflicts were resolved by political and diplomatic means. True, from crisis to crisis, Germany and Austria-Hungary became more and more impudent. Petersburg's willingness to make concessions and seek compromises began to be perceived in Berlin as proof of Russia's weakness. In addition, the German Kaiser believed that military establishment empires, especially navies, are not ready for war. Germany adopted a massive naval program in defiance of the British. In Berlin, they now wanted not only to defeat France, but to seize its colonies, and for this a powerful fleet was needed.
Berlin was sure of victory on the land front. The Schlieffen plan, based on the difference in the timing of mobilization in Germany and Russia, made it possible to defeat French troops before the entry into battle of the Russian armies. Considering the highest readiness German army to the war (the command of the fleet asked for more time), the date for the start of the war - the summer of 1914, was scheduled in advance. This date was announced at a meeting of Emperor Wilhelm II with the military leadership on December 8, 1912 (the topic of the meeting: "The best time and method of deploying a war"). The same period - the summer of 1914 - was indicated in 1912-1913. in the reports of Russian agents in Germany and Switzerland, Bazarov and Gurko. The German military programs, originally calculated up to 1916, were revised - with completion by the spring of 1914. The German leadership believed that Germany was the best prepared for war.
Significant attention in the plans of Berlin and Vienna was given to the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkans were to become the main prizes of Austria-Hungary. Back in 1913, the German Kaiser, in the margins of a report on the situation in the Balkan region, noted that a “good provocation” was required. Indeed, the Balkans were a real "powder magazine" of Europe (as they are now). The reason for the war was easiest to find here. Back in 1879, after Russian-Turkish war, all the prerequisites for future armed conflicts. The Balkan states were involved in the conflict, Ottoman Empire, Austria-Hungary, Germany, Russia and England. In 1908, Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina, which formally belonged to Istanbul. However, Belgrade also claimed these lands. In 1912-1913. two Balkan wars broke out. As a result of a series of wars and conflicts, almost all countries and peoples were dissatisfied: Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Montenegro, Austria-Hungary. Behind each side of the conflict stood the great powers. The region has become a real hotbed for the games of special services, terrorists, revolutionaries and outright bandits. One after another, secret organizations were created - "Black Hand", "Mlada Bosna", "Freedom", etc.
Yet Berlin was only thinking about provocation; the real reason for the war for the Germans was created by the terrorist-nationalist organization "Black Hand" ("Unity or Death"). It was headed by the head of the Serbian counterintelligence, Colonel Dragutin Dmitrievich (pseudonym Apis). The members of the organization were patriots of their homeland and enemies of Austria-Hungary and Germany, they dreamed of building a "Great Serbia". The problem was that Dmitrievich, Tankosich and other leaders " black hand"were not only Serbian officers, but also members of Masonic lodges. If Apis carried out direct planning and management of operations, then there were other leaders who remained in the shadows. Among them is the Serbian Minister L. Chupa, a prominent hierarch of the "Freemasons". He was associated with Belgian and French Masonic circles. It was he who stood at the origins of the organization, oversaw its activities. Propaganda was carried out with purely patriotic, Pan-Slavist slogans. And to achieve the main goal - the creation of "Great Serbia", it was possible only through war, with the obligatory participation of Russia. It is clear that the "backstage structures" of that time (they were part of the Masonic lodges) led Europe to a big war, which was supposed to lead to the construction of a New World Order.
The organization had a huge influence in Serbia, created branches in Bosnia, Macedonia, Bulgaria. King of Serbia Peter I Karageorgievich and Prime Minister Nikola Pasic did not share the views of the Black Hand, however, the organization was able to achieve great influence among the officers, it had its own people in the government, assembly and at court.
It was no coincidence that the victim of the attack was chosen. Franz Ferdinand in politics was a hard realist. As early as 1906, he drew up a plan for the transformation of the dualistic monarchy. This project, if implemented, could prolong the life of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, reducing the degree of interethnic conflicts. According to him, the monarchy was transformed into the United States of Great Austria - a triune state (or Austria-Hungary-Slavia), 12 national autonomies were established for each large nationality living in the Habsburg empire. From the reformation of the monarchy from a dualistic to a trialistic model, the ruling dynasty and the Slavic peoples benefited. The Czech people received their own autonomous state (on the model of Hungary). The heir to the Austrian throne did not like Russians, and even more Serbs, but Franz Ferdinand was categorically against a preventive war with Serbia and a conflict with Russia. In his opinion, such a conflict was fatal for both Russia and Austria-Hungary. His removal unleashed the hands of the "party of war".
An interesting fact is that before the assassination attempt itself, terrorists are brought to Belgrade, they are trained in shooting in the shooting range of the royal park, they are armed with revolvers and bombs (Serbian production) from the state arsenal. It seems to be specially created evidence that terrorist act hosted by Serbia. July 15, 1914 as a result of an internal political crisis ( palace coup), the military forces King Peter to abdicate in favor of his son, Alexander, who was young, inexperienced and, in part, was under the influence of the conspirators.
Apparently, Belgrade and Vienna were also confronted by certain circles in Austria-Hungary. The Serbian Prime Minister and the Russian Ambassador to Serbia Hartwig, through their agents, learned about the assassination plot. Both tried to prevent it and warned the Austrians. However, the Austrian government did not cancel the visit of Franz Ferdinand to Sarajevo and did not take proper measures to ensure his safety. So, on June 28, 1914, there were two assassination attempts (the first was unsuccessful). A bomb thrown by Nedelko Gabrinovich killed the driver and injured several people. This attempt did not become a reason for strengthening the security or the immediate evacuation of the Archduke from the city. Therefore, the terrorists got a second opportunity, which was successfully implemented.
Berlin took this assassination as an excellent casus belli. The German Kaiser, having received a message about the death of the Archduke, wrote on the margins of the telegram: "Now or never." And he ordered Moltke to begin preparations for an operation against France. England took an interesting position: if Russia and France took diplomatic steps towards a peaceful settlement of the conflict between Serbia and Austria-Hungary, the British kept themselves evasively and apart. London did not siege the Germans, did not promise support to the allies. As a result, the Kaiser had the impression that England had decided to stay out of the fight. This was not surprising, given London's traditional European policy. German Ambassador in England, Lichniewski met with British Foreign Secretary Gray and confirmed this conclusion - Britain would not interfere. However, the British intervened, but with a serious delay. This happened on August 5, when the German corps were already smashing Belgium, and it was impossible to stop the massacre. For Berlin, Britain's entry into the war came as a surprise.
Thus began the World War, which claimed 10 million lives, redrawn political map planet and seriously changed the old value systems. All the benefits from the start of the war received England, France and the United States. The so-called “financial international” made huge profits from the war and destroyed the aristocratic elites of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Russia, who were “obsolete” and stood in the way of building the New World Order.
If Ferdinand and his wife had been immediately taken to the clinic, they could have been saved. But the courtiers close to the royal people behaved extremely absurdly and decided to take the wounded to the residence. Franz Ferdinand and his wife died on the way from blood loss. All the rebels involved in the assassination were detained and convicted (the main organizers were executed, the rest received long prison terms).
After the assassination of the Archduke, anti-Serb pogroms began in the city. The city authorities did nothing to oppose this. Many civilians suffered. Austria-Hungary realized the true meaning of the assassination attempt. This was the "last warning" of Serbia's independence aspirations (although the country's official authorities did not claim responsibility for the Sarajevo assassination).
Austria-Hungary even received warnings about the impending assassination attempt, but chose to ignore them. There is also evidence that not only nationalists from the Black Hand, but also Serbian military intelligence were involved in the assassination attempt. The operation was led by Colonel Rade Malobabich. Moreover, the investigation revealed evidence that the Black Hand was directly subordinate to the Serbian military intelligence.
After the assassination of the Archduke, a scandal erupted in Europe. Austria-Hungary demanded from Serbia a thorough investigation of the crime, but the Serbian government stubbornly brushed aside any suspicion of participating in a conspiracy against the Austro-Hungarian heir. Such actions led to the recall of the Austro-Hungarian ambassador from the embassy in Serbia, after which both countries began to prepare for war.
Sarajevo is called the city of the First World War for a reason. Figuratively speaking, it began in this city in the Balkans with the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Planning the assassination of the heir, members of Mlada Bosna and the Serbian party that supported them
The nationalist Black Hand organization began as early as 1913, when Franz Ferdinand was appointed inspector of maneuvers in Bosnia. They were supposed to pass in Bosnia and Herzegovina in June 1914. After the maneuvers, the Archduke and his wife Sofia planned to open a new building for the National Museum in Sarajevo.
The main purpose of the murder of the crown prince, who held moderate views, was the exit of the lands inhabited by the southern Slavs, and primarily Bosnia and Herzegovina, from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The plot was planned by the chief of Serbian military intelligence, Colonel Dragutin Dmitrievich. The Serbs not only developed a plan, but also supplied a group of six performers, one of whom was 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip, with the necessary weapons, bombs and money.
On Sunday morning, June 28, 1914, by the way, on the day of the 14th wedding anniversary of Franz Ferdinand and Sofia, on the day of St. Vitus and the day of the defeat of the Serbs in the battle with the Turks on the Kosovo field, six young members of Mlada Bosna took pre-arranged places on the way following a motorcade. Bosnian governor Oskar Potiorek met the heir with his wife in the morning at the Sarajevo railway station.
A cortege of six cars, decorated with the yellow and black flags of the Habsburg Monarchy and the red and yellow national flags of Bosnia, took the distinguished guests to the center of the Bosnian capital. The Archduke with his wife, Potiorek and Lieutenant Colonel von Harrach found themselves in the third car, an open Graf & Stift 28/32 PS convertible.
The program for the visit of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was known in advance. It was to begin with a visit to the barracks near the station. At 10 o'clock the cortege of cars headed for the town hall, where the Archduke was to make a speech.
Despite careful elaboration, the plan failed at the very beginning. The first of the Young Bosnians, passed by the Austrian heir, was Muhammed Mehmedbašić, armed with a grenade, standing in the crowd near the Mostar cafe. He let the cars pass, as did Vaso Čubrilović, who was standing a few dozen meters away and armed with a revolver and a grenade.
Nedeljko Čabrinović, who took up position on the embankment of the Milyacka River, managed to throw a grenade. She hit right on target - the car of the heir, but bounced off the convertible top onto the road. The grenade exploded when a fourth car with guards drove by. Shrapnel killed the driver and injured about 20 people.
Pictured: Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Čabrinović swallowed a potassium cyanide pill and jumped into the river. However, the poison was expired and caused only vomiting. The townspeople dragged the young revolutionary out of the shallow river, beat him badly and handed him over to the police. The cortege stopped, but the rest of the conspirators could not carry out their plan due to the turmoil and the accumulation of townspeople who closed the archduke.
Cars with guests proceeded to the town hall. There, the retinue of Franz Ferdinand held a small council of war. The assistants of the heir insisted on an immediate departure from Sarajevo, but Potiorek assured the guest that there would be no more incidents. Franz Ferdinand and his wife followed his advice, but reduced the program of their further stay in Sarajevo to visiting the wounded in the hospital.
Fatal for the Archduke and his wife, Princip and the entire planet was the absence of the assistant to the governor, Lieutenant Colonel von Merrici. He ended up in the hospital with a wound and therefore did not convey to the driver Loika Potiorek's order to change the route. As a result of the confusion, the car with Franz Ferdinand turned right onto Franz Josef Street, and the rest of the cars drove to the hospital along the Appel embankment.
Gavrilo Princip by that time already knew about the unsuccessful attempt and, on his own initiative, in the hope of meeting the Archduke on the way back, he moved to a new place - at the Moritz Schiller's Delicatessen grocery store next to the Latin Bridge.
Despite the great excitement, Princip was not at a loss when, leaving the cafe where he was buying a sandwich, he suddenly saw a car with Franz Ferdinand leaving a side street. It was difficult to miss, because he fired from a Belgian-made semi-automatic pistol from a distance of no more than 1.5-2 meters. The first bullet hit Sophia in the stomach, although, as Gavrilo testified at the trial, he was aiming at Potiorek. The second bullet hit Franz Ferdinand in the neck.
The wounds were fatal. Franz Ferdinand and Sofia died a few minutes apart: the duchess on the way to the governor's residence, where doctors were waiting for them, and the archduke was already in the Potiorek mansion.
Princip also wanted to commit suicide and gnawed the ampoule, but the poison turned out to be from the same batch and caused only severe nausea. Spectators twisted the Young Bosnian and beat him so badly that he had to amputate his hand in prison.
All conspirators and organizers of the conspiracy, with the exception of Mehmedbašić, were detained and convicted. They were accused of high treason, for which the death penalty was due. Only minors were pardoned, that is, those who on June 28 were not yet 20 years old. None of the five direct participants in the assassination attempt was executed for this reason.
Three of the accused were executed by hanging. two more death penalty was replaced with a life sentence and a 20-year sentence. 11 people, including Princip, who received 20 years, were sentenced to various prison terms. Nine participants in the trial were acquitted.
Many convicts died in Theresienstadt prison from consumption. Vaso Chubrilovich lived the longest, receiving 16 years. He became a prominent Yugoslav historian and lived until 1990.
CRIMINAL
Gavrilo Princip was born in 1894 in the village of Obljaje in western Bosnia. His father Petar worked as a village postman. The family lived in poverty. The only food of the three sons of Petar and Maria was often bread and water.
Gavrilo was the middle son. He studied well. At the age of 13, he was sent to study in Sarajevo, where he was imbued with the spirit of freedom. Four years later, the future "arsonist" of the First World War went to study in neighboring Serbia. There he joined the revolutionary organization Mlada Bosna, which fought for the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The murderer of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, of course, wanted to be executed, but he shot the heir a month before his 20th birthday. Under Austrian law, the maximum penalty for juveniles was 20 years in prison.
To increase the punishment, one day a month Gavrilo was not fed. While in prison, Princip contracted tuberculosis. He died in the prison hospital on April 28, 1918.
HISTORY WITH GEOGRAPHY
Bosnia and Herzegovina is an area in the west of the Balkan Peninsula, inhabited by Bosnians, Croats and Serbs. In the middle of the 15th century, it became part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1878, after the Berlin Congress, it came under the control of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, in which Eastern Slavs, despite the common religion, were not treated much better than in Turkey. In 1908, Vienna announced the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Bosnian crisis, which led to the annexation of the region and brought the continent to the brink of war, was caused by a surge of nationalism in Serbia after Peter I Karageorgievich came to power in 1903. AT last years before the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, anti-Austrian sentiments rapidly intensified. The main task of the nationalist Bosnian Serbs was the separation of the region from Austria-Hungary and the creation of Greater Serbia. This purpose was to be served by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo.
EFFECTS
The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand became the pretext for unleashing the First World War, for which Europe was ready and, one might say, desired. Since the "Black Hand" was behind the "Young Bosna", consisting mainly of nationalist Serbian officers, Vienna accused Belgrade of organizing the assassination and presented him with a humiliating ultimatum. The Serbs accepted its terms, except for paragraph 6, which required "an investigation with the participation of the Austrian government against each of the participants Sarajevo murder».
Exactly one month after the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Austria-Hungary, incited by Berlin, declared war on Serbia. July 28, 1914 is considered the actual day of the beginning of the First World War, which involved dozens of countries. The war lasted 1564 days and resulted in the death of 10 million soldiers and officers and 12 million civilians. About 55 million more were injured, many were left crippled.
First World War redrawn the map of the world. She destroyed four largest empires: Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, which survived its "gravedigger" Princip by only half a year, and Turkey, and also caused two revolutions in Russia and one in Germany.
The Sarajevo assassination or the assassination in Sarajevo is one of the most high-profile assassinations of the 20th century, it is almost on par with the assassination of US President John F. Kennedy. The murder took place on June 28, 1914 in the city of Sarajevo (now the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina). The victim of the murder was the heir to the Austrian throne, Franz Ferdinand, and his wife, Countess Sophie Hohenberg, was killed with him.
The murder was committed by a group of six terrorists, but only one person, Gavrilo Princip, fired the shots.
Reasons for the assassination of Franz Ferdinand
Many historians still debate the purpose of assassinating the heir to the Austrian throne, but most agree that the political purpose of the assassination was to liberate the South Slavic lands from the rule of the Austro-Ugric Empire.Franz Ferdinand, according to historians, wanted to forever annex the Slavic lands to the empire, with a series of reforms. As the murderer, Gavrilo Princip, later said, one of the reasons for the murder was precisely the prevention of these reforms.
Murder planning
A certain Serbian nationalist organization called the Black Hand was developing a plan for the assassination. The members of the organization were looking for ways to revive the revolutionary spirit of the Serbs, they also searched for a long time for who among the Austro-Ugric elite should become a victim and by achieving this goal. The list of targets included Franz Ferdinand, as well as the governor of Bosnia, Oskar Potiorek, great commander Austro-Ugric Empire.At first, it was planned that a certain Muhammed Mehmedbasic should commit this murder. The attempt on Potiorek ended in failure and he was ordered to remove another person - Franz Ferdinand.
Almost everything was ready to kill the Archduke, except for the weapons that the terrorists were waiting for. whole month. In order for a young group of students to do everything right, they were given a pistol for training. At the end of May, the terrorists received several pistols, six grenades, maps with escape routes, gendarme movements, and even poison pills.
Weapons were handed out to the terrorist group on June 27. The very next morning, the terrorists were placed along the route of Franz Ferdinand's cortege. The head of the Black Hand, Ilich, told his men to be brave and do what they have to do for the sake of the country before the assassination.
Murder
Franz Ferdinand arrived in Sarajevo by train in the morning and was met at the station by Oskar Pitiorek. Franz Ferdinand, his wife and Pithiorek got into the third car (the cortege consisted of six cars), and it was completely open. First, the Archduke inspected the barracks, and then headed along the embankment, where the murder took place.The first of the terrorists was Muhammed Mehmedbasic, and he was armed with a grenade, but his attack on Franz Ferdinand failed. The second was the terrorist Churbilovich, he was already armed with a grenade and a pistol, but he failed. The third terrorist was Čabrinović, armed with a grenade.
At 10:10 a.m., Čabrinović threw a grenade at the Archduke's car, but it bounced off and exploded on the road. The explosion injured about 20 people. Immediately after that, Chabrinovich swallowed a capsule with poison and bent down into the river. But he began to vomit and the poison did not work, and the river itself turned out to be too shallow, and the police caught him without difficulty, beat him and even then arrested him.
It seemed that the Sarajevo assassination had failed, as the cortege sped high speed past the rest of the terrorists. Then the Archduke went to the City Hall. There they tried to calm him down, but he was too excited, he did not understand and constantly repeated that he had arrived with a friendly visit, and a bomb was thrown at him.
Then the wife reassured Franz Ferdinand and he made a speech. Soon it was decided to interrupt the planned program, and the Archduke decided to visit the wounded in the hospital. Already at 10:45 they were back in the car. The car headed towards the hospital across Franz Josef Street.
Princip learned that the assassination attempt had ended in complete failure and decided to change his place of deployment, settling near the Moritz Schiller's Delicatessen store, through which the Archduke's return route passed.
When the Archduke's car caught up with the killer, he abruptly jumped out and fired two shots at a distance of several steps. One hit the archduke in the neck and pierced the jugular vein, the second shot hit the stomach of the archduke's wife. The killer was arrested at the same moment. As he later said in court, he did not want to kill the wife of Franz Ferdinand, and this bullet was intended for Pitiorek.
The wounded Archduke and his wife did not die immediately, immediately after the assassination attempt they were taken to the hospital to be treated. The duke, being conscious, begged his wife not to die, to which she constantly replied: "It's okay." Meaning about the wound, she consoled him in such a way that everything was fine with her. And right after that, she died. The Archduke himself died ten minutes later. The Sarajevo assassination was thus a success.
Consequences of the murder
After the death of the body of Sophia and Franz Ferdinand were sent to Vienna, where they were buried in a modest ceremony, which greatly angered the new heir to the Austrian throne.A few hours later, pogroms began in Sarajevo, during which everyone who loved the Archduke brutally cracked down on all Serbs, the police did not react to this. A huge number of Serbs were severely beaten and wounded, some were killed, and a huge number of buildings were damaged, they were destroyed and looted.
Very soon, all the Sarajevo killers were arrested, and then the Austro-Hungarian military were also arrested, who handed over the weapons to the killers. The verdict was passed on September 28, 1914, for high treason everyone was sentenced to death.
However, not all participants in the conspiracy were of legal age under Serbian law. Therefore, ten participants, including the murderer Gavrila Princip himself, were sentenced to 20 years in a maximum security prison. Five people were executed by hanging, one was imprisoned for life, and nine more were acquitted. Princip himself died in 1918 in prison from tuberculosis.
The murder of the heir to the Austrian throne shocked almost all of Europe, many countries took the side of Austria. Immediately after the assassination, the government of the Austro-Ugric Empire sent a number of demands to Serbia, among which was the extradition of all those who had a hand in this murder.
Serbia immediately mobilized its army and was supported by Russia. Serbia refused some important demands for Austria, after which, on July 25, Austria severed diplomatic relations with Serbia.
A month later, Austria declared war and began to mobilize its forces. In response to this, Russia, France, England spoke for Serbia, which served as the beginning of the First World War. Soon all the great countries of Europe chose sides.
Germany, the Ottoman Empire sided with Austria, and later Bulgaria joined. Thus, two huge alliances were formed in Europe: the Entente (Serbia, Russia, England, France and several dozen other states that made only a small contribution to the course of the First World War) and the Trinity Alliance of Germany, Austria and Belgium (the Ottoman Empire soon joined them). empire).
Thus, the Sarajevo massacre became the pretext for the outbreak of the First World War. There were more than enough reasons for it to start, but the reason turned out to be just that. The fields that Gavrilo Princip fired from his pistol are called "the bullet that started the First World War."
Interestingly, the museum military history in the city of Vienna, everyone can look at the car in which the Archduke rode, at his uniform with traces of the blood of Franz Ferdinand, the gun itself, which started the war. And the bullet is stored in a small Czech castle Konopiste.
"They killed, then, our Ferdinand," - this phrase of Pani Mullerova, the servant of the protagonist, begins "The Adventures of the Good Soldier Schweik during the World War". For most people, a hundred years after his death in Sarajevo, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne remains, as for Pani Müllerova, nothing more than a target.
– By 1914, Bosnia had already been under the rule of Austria-Hungary for 35 years. It is known that in general the population of the province, including the Bosnian Serbs, lived better than their compatriots in Serbia proper. What was the reason for the rise of radical nationalist sentiments, which were carried by Gavrilo Princip and his comrades in the Mlada Bosna group, which organized the assassination of the Archduke? And were the contradictions between Austria-Hungary and Serbia so irreconcilable that they could only be resolved by war?
– I have just returned from an international conference of historians in Sarajevo, where this issue was just being discussed lively. Versions are different. Some colleagues draw attention to the fact that Austria-Hungary sold a large batch of rifles to Serbia shortly before the assassination. This suggests that she was not going to fight: who supplies weapons to his enemy? As for nationalist sentiments, there were different factors. We must not forget about the contradictions between the three peoples who lived (and still live) in Bosnia - Serbs, Croats and Bosnian Muslims. If the Bosnian Serbs believed that their land should belong to Serbia, then the Croats and Muslims had a different view on this, they were more loyal to the Austro-Hungarian authorities. Although life in Bosnia was better than in Serbia, but nationalism is not directly related to the standard of living. The idea of uniting national territories served as the core of Serbian nationalism.
- And Austria-Hungary could not offer the Serbian population of Bosnia some kind of political model that would suit them?
- Bosnia and Herzegovina was occupied by Austria-Hungary in 1878 by decision of the Berlin Congress, in 1908 - finally annexed. All this must be seen in a broader European context. The Russian factor was also at work here: Russia has traditionally supported Serbia, and therefore, indirectly, Serbian nationalism in Bosnia. As for the Habsburg government, it was a tough and efficient bureaucracy, it left its mark in Bosnia, there are still many beautiful buildings built in the Austrian period. All this was designed for centuries, but the local population was still perceived as someone else's.
“Historians have been debating for decades how closely the Mlada Bosna terrorists were linked to Serbian authorities. In your opinion, who was closer to the truth then - Vienna, which accused the Serbian authorities of patronizing the murderers, or Belgrade, which claimed that it had nothing to do with them?
During the visit of Franz Ferdinand, proper security measures were not taken - and given that the heir had many enemies, some historians believed that this was done on purpose.
- The version about the connection of "Mlada Bosna" with Serbia is very common, but there is a question: with which Serbia? There, on the one hand, there was a secret officer organization "Black Hand" ("Unity or Death"), and on the other, the government of Nikola Pasic and the ruling dynasty Karageorgievich. And the relationship between these two groups was not easy. Pašić sought to distance himself from the conspirators. In some ways, he can be compared with Stolypin, who dreamed of a long period of peace for Russia - so Pashich, apparently, was not going to fight in 1914. There is also a peculiar anti-Austrian version of the Sarajevo murder. It is known that during the visit of Franz Ferdinand, proper security measures were not taken - and, given that the heir had many enemies, some historians believed that this was done on purpose, the Archduke was set up for bullets. But I'm afraid we'll never know the whole truth.
– How do the Balkans evaluate the events of a hundred years ago today? Who for public opinion Are Gavrilo Princip and his friends heroes? Criminals? Confused idealists deserving of regret?
- If we take Serbia, then there, with the possible exception of professional historians and intellectuals, the old idea that these are national heroes remains valid. Of course, in other countries there are other opinions - that it was political terrorism. In general, what is the difference between a historical approach and a political one? In relation to the First World War, looking for its causes is a historical approach, and dealing with the question "who is to blame?" - rather political. At the Sarajevo conference I mentioned, many historians acted as politicians, raising the question of responsibility for the war in the first place, which now, it seems to me, no longer makes sense.
- And who are these people, members of "Mlada Bosna", personally for you?
On the one hand, of course, they sincerely wanted national liberation. On the other hand, they were very young people, not very educated and somewhat confused. They could not imagine what monstrous consequences their step would lead to. They fought for national freedom, but as a result of the First World War, no triumph of freedom came,” notes Russian Balkan historian Sergei Romanenko.
The Unpleasant Man from Konopiste
Franz Ferdinand was an easy target for various reasons. He was not loved and feared by many - not only because of his political views, which promised drastic changes if the heir came to power, but also because of his difficult, difficult character. The Archduke was quick-tempered, hot-tempered, although quick-tempered - having unfairly offended someone, he was able to apologize to him from the bottom of his heart. His other unpleasant feature was his suspiciousness. However, it is largely due to the circumstances of his life.
Franz Ferdinand became heir to the throne by accident. In 1889 he committed suicide, unable to bear the burden of worldly and psychological problems, the only son of Emperor Franz Joseph - Rudolf. By law, the next heir was to be younger brother monarch, Archduke Karl Ludwig, but he was an elderly and completely apolitical man and gave way in the "queue" to the throne to his eldest son, Franz Ferdinand. The emperor did not like his nephew - they were too different people. When, at the age of thirty, Franz Ferdinand fell ill with tuberculosis and left Vienna for a long time for treatment, the old monarch began to give important instructions to his younger nephew, Otto, which caused the fury of the sick Franz Ferdinand. The biographer of the heir Jan Galandauer writes: "The Habsburgs have always been suspicious, and Franz Ferdinand especially. To this must be added the mental changes that accompany tuberculosis. One of the experts involved in the influence of tuberculosis on the psyche of patients calls the suspicion that arises in them "tuberculous psychoneurosis with paranoid elements". It seemed to the Archduke that everyone around him was opposed to him and plotted to prevent him from inheriting the throne. As Stefan Zweig later wrote, "the archduke lacked the quality that in Vienna has long been valued above all else - light charm, charm." Even the recovery from a serious illness did not improve his character, which many then considered a miracle.
The story of Franz Ferdinand's marriage also did not contribute to his popularity in the eyes of the emperor and the court - although it somewhat improved his image in the eyes of the general public. An affair with the Czech countess Sofia Hotek, whom he decided to marry, put Franz Ferdinand before a cruel choice: to give up the woman he loved or to give up the right to the throne. After all, the law deprived members of the imperial house who entered into an unequal marriage the right to inherit the crown. With his characteristic tenacity, Franz Ferdinand persuaded the emperor to retain his right to inherit - in exchange for the waiver of these rights for his children from marriage with Sophia Chotek. The ill-wishers of the heir took revenge on his wife: Sophia as "unequal by birth" during ceremonies and events, according to strict etiquette Viennese court, did not dare to be near her husband. Franz Ferdinand was angry, but endured, dreaming of how he would take revenge on his enemies when he ascended the throne.
Franz Ferdinand was angry, but endured, dreaming of how he would take revenge on his enemies when he ascended the throne
The marriage with Sophia (the emperor, who treated her well, gave her the title of Princess von Hohenberg) turned out to be very happy. Three children were born in it - Sofia, Max and Ernst. The fate of the sons of Franz Ferdinand, by the way, was not easy: during the Second World War, both of them, who did not hide their hatred of Nazism, were thrown into the Dachau concentration camp. But the children grew up in the Konopiste castle near Prague, bought by the heir to the throne, in an atmosphere of love and joy. In the family circle, the withdrawn and irritable Franz Ferdinand became a different person - cheerful, charming and kind. The family was everything for him - it was not for nothing that the last words of the Archduke were addressed to his wife, who was dying next to him in the car seat: "Sophie, Sophie! Live, for the sake of our children!"
Family life of Franz Ferdinand and Sophia. Konopiste, Czech Republic
True, the Archduke did not have so much time for family joys: he was appointed chief inspector of the armed forces of Austria-Hungary and paid much attention to improving the condition of the army and navy. Actually, the trip to Sarajevo was primarily in the nature of a military inspection. In addition, the heir and his entourage were drawing up plans for large-scale reforms that would renovate the majestic but dilapidated building of the Habsburg Monarchy.
Reforms of last resort
About what kind of politician Archduke Franz Ferdinand was and what plans he had, Radio Liberty told a Czech historian, professor at Charles University (Prague) Milan Glavachka.
- According to the recollections of many contemporaries, after the Sarajevo assassination, the reaction of society in Austria-Hungary to what happened was calm and even indifferent. The heir to the throne was not very popular with his subjects. On the other hand, it is known that Franz Ferdinand had plans for major reforms that would modernize the Habsburg Monarchy. What is the reason for the controversial reputation of the Archduke?
– As is often the case with historical figures, we can talk about two images of Franz Ferdinand: on the one hand, about the image created by the mass media and partly historiography, and on the other, about an image that is closer to reality. The unpopularity of Franz Ferdinand was due to some of his personal qualities. Well, let's say, the severity and sometimes arrogance with which he treated his servants in the Konopiste castle near Prague, or his hunting mania, this extermination of thousands of animals by the Archduke. Towards the end of his life, he was even deaf from the fact that he shot too often.
As for his reformist aspirations, they are also largely surrounded by myths. It is believed that he tried to save the monarchy, developed plans for transformation. All this is true, but these plans were imperfect and often insufficiently thought out. Much of the heir's policy was determined by his dislike for the Hungarians, more precisely, for the dualistic structure of Austria-Hungary, which, as he believed, weakened the monarchy. He sought to weaken the growing positions of the Hungarian ruling elite.
Well, he really wasn't a democrat. On the other hand, the Austro-Hungarian society was quite developed and cultured. Simply eliminate or severely restrict what has already become part of the political tradition, what has worked for decades - parliament, freedom of the press and debate, coalition governments and so on - it was hardly possible. Unless by way of a coup d'etat, but in that case he could not count on any support from society.
Another myth surrounding the figure of Franz Ferdinand is the notion that he was the same Kriegshetzer, "warmonger". This myth arose largely due to the fact that shortly before leaving for Sarajevo, in mid-June 1914, the Archduke received the German Emperor Wilhelm II in Konopiste. They talked face-to-face for a long time, the content of this conversation remained unknown, but after the First World War the following interpretation arose: it was there and then, they say, that the aggressive plans of Germany and Austria-Hungary were discussed. If we look at the documents, in particular Franz Ferdinand's extensive correspondence with Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold, we see that things were exactly the opposite. The heir to the throne knew the internal weaknesses of his state and understood that if Austria-Hungary actively intervened in a military conflict in Europe, this could destroy it.
- Did this also apply to a possible war with Russia?
Undoubtedly. Franz Ferdinand rightly believed that the Habsburg monarchy - like, probably, the Russian one, here he also had no illusions - would not have survived such a war. And that is why he opposed the "party of war" at court and in the government, including the chief of the general staff. Members of this "party" believed that the war would be local, only against Serbia or Italy, and the whole system of mutual allied obligations that bound members of both coalitions of the great European powers will not be put into action. These people also relied on the fact that Russia did not have time to implement the army rearmament program, and therefore would not dare to fight. As for rearmament, it was true, but despite this, in 1914 Russia immediately entered the war on the side of Serbia. And Franz Ferdinand was afraid of exactly this - as it turned out, justifiably.
– Franz Ferdinand also gained a reputation as a “friend” Slavic peoples The Habsburg Monarchy, whose interests he sought to protect, primarily from the ruling circles of Hungary. Is that also a myth?
- The heir sought to play a much larger political role than the one assigned to him by Emperor Franz Joseph. In part, he succeeded in this - for example, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Berchtold consulted with the Archduke about all his political steps. And their correspondence suggests that the main goal of Franz Ferdinand was to weaken the position of the Kingdom of Hungary within the framework of the monarchy. For this purpose, he was ready to use other nations as allies. But it is unlikely that he burned with special love for them - in his letters there are such expressions as "Balkan dogs", for example. As for, say, the Czechs, the most famous case here is the scam of Karel Swiga, a leader of the Czech National Socialist Party, who passed confidential information about Czech politicians to Franz Ferdinand's employees. But it was precisely the collection of information, and not some close contacts of the heir with Czech politicians. Although the archduke also had confidants in political circles - the Slovak Milan Hoxha, for example, who later, in the late 1930s, became the prime minister of Czechoslovakia.
– Known romantic story the love of Franz Ferdinand and the Czech Countess Sofia Chotek and their subsequent very harmonious marriage. They died on the same day, as ideal spouses should. But did Countess Sophia, later Princess von Hohenberg, have any political influence over her husband? For example, did she protect the interests of the Czechs?
- Well, the Czech Countess Hotek can only be called conditionally. Yes, she belonged to an old Czech aristocratic family. But the upbringing of children, especially girls, in such families by that time had long been carried out mainly in the language of their parents - German. In principle, the aristocracy was culturally cosmopolitan. Sophia von Hohenberg, based on what is known about her, gives the impression of a completely apolitical lady, a believing Catholic, a faithful and devoted wife. Sophia was not involved in any political intrigues. Together with her children, she created that atmosphere for Franz Ferdinand in Konopiste home comfort and joy in which he was truly happy.
The heir sought to play a much larger political role than the one assigned to him by Emperor Franz Joseph
- If we return to the state of Austria-Hungary before the war: what was the year 1914 for her? Did the war accelerate the already begun decomposition of this somewhat outdated state, or did the "Danubian monarchy" have a chance of survival?
– This is a question from the "if only" series, this is the so-called "virtual history", which historians do not like very much.
– Unlike journalists.
– Yes, it's like that interesting game. We cannot know what would have happened if the war had not started. But it is known that by 1914 the political and intellectual world of Central Europe had long been "accustomed" to the existence of the Habsburg monarchy. If you read the journalism of that time, even Czech, with all the dissatisfaction of the Czechs with many orders in Austria-Hungary, then with a few exceptions - a circle of intellectuals around the journal Samostatnost - they all talked about the future, starting from the existence of the Habsburg monarchy as a natural state-legal framework. The question was no more than the degree of possible autonomy for different peoples monarchy. That's it - aspired, including the Czechs. There was a question about relations with the German minority within the Czech Kingdom - it was a third of the population, two and a half million people. And so Vienna behaved responsibly in this regard: it initiated negotiations between the Czechs and the Germans, but did not interfere in them - they say, you yourself will agree on the spot on the terms that suit you - will it, for example, be such a model that existed in Galicia, or something else. But before the start of the war, this process did not bring concrete results.
- Is the experience of the Habsburg Monarchy as such something that belongs to the distant past, or can some of it be used now - for example, in the construction and reform of the European Union, which, like Austria-Hungary, is a motley, multinational entity?
– I think every historical experience is unique. But some lessons can be learned. For example, the language policy of the EU is much more liberal than in the Habsburg Monarchy. EU documents are translated into the languages of all 28 member states. However, this is, of course, a very expensive solution. Other common feature- a single market, without customs and financial barriers. But, on the other hand, we now see that free trade alone will not solve all problems. The EU is missing something, a certain unifying idea. And thirdly, what was characteristic of the monarchy and is necessary in today's EU is a trend towards the unity of law, - says Czech historian Milan Hlavachka.