When the world changed forever

On the morning of June 28th 1914, the heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was shot on a street in Sarajevo.  His wife was also shot and both died within minutes of one another before they could be helped.  The death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, one hundred years ago today, began a chain of events that would lead - just five weeks later - to the start of what became known as World War One.  What happened in that street, a century ago, changed the world forever.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, on the morning of June 28th 2014 in Sarajevo.  Hours later they were both dead and the world was on the path to war

Archduke Franz Ferdinand was never meant to be heir to an empire and he came close to losing his dynastic rights to marry the woman he loved.  Because of his wife's lower social standing, their children were not allowed to inherit the throne and Franz Ferdinand himself ruffled feathers on a regular basis.  He was an awkward heir, a man whose potential reign was considered problematic before it even began.  And yet his death led to a conflict that engulfed the world.

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Sophie dominated the news

Franz Ferdinand was born in Graz in Austria on December 18th 1863, the eldest son of Archduke Karl Ludwig and his wife, Maria Annunciata.  His father was a younger brother of the Emperor, Franz Joseph, and Franz Ferdinand grew up as a member of the royal family but with little hope of a throne. His glamourous cousin, Crown Prince Rudolf, was heir - in 1881, he married and his wife, Princess Stephanie of Belgium, was soon expecting a baby.  The succession seemed secure as did Franz Ferdinand's role as a royal cousin with a comfortable life but with no call to rule.

Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria

But the baby was a girl - women did not have dynastic rights in the Empire - and soon after her birth, Rudolf and his wife started to live apart.  The Crown Prince took mistresses and is said to have explored the possibility of an annulment of his marriage.  In 1888, he fell in love with Marie Vetsera, who usually used the English version of her name, Mary.  Their relationship continued for months but Rudolf was still married and the Emperor wanted the affair with Mary to end.  On January 30th 1889, Rudolf and Mary were found dead at his hunting lodge in Mayerling, apparently in a suicide pact.  His death caused shockwaves in the Empire and has been the subject of many theories, films and books since.  But as he was laid to rest in the Imperial Crypt, his role as heir needed to be filled.  And suddenly, Franz Ferdinand's life changed forever.

From bit part player to Emperor in waiting - Franz Ferdinand of Austria became heir to the throne of Austria Hungary in 1889

Next in line now was Franz Ferdinand's father, Karl Ludwig, but he quickly renounced his rights and his eldest son became an emperor in waiting at the age of 26.  After years of not being all that important, he was now the focus of an empire.  His daily routine was taken over by courtiers and advisers who began to groom him for the role he would one day inherit.  He had had a military training and now took on an important role in the Armed Forces, with the Emperor Franz Joseph handing more responsibility to him over time.  He was also a supporter of his empire's navy and began to take a prominent role in politics.

The Emperor, Franz Joseph, as a young man (c 1853)

Franz Ferdinand quickly became a controversial heir to the throne.  His relationship with his uncle, Franz Joseph, was difficult and the two clashed over some issues.  The new heir was described as a cold person with set views and little inclination to listen to others' opinions.  But one of the biggest problems the Archduke presented to the court was his choice of wife.  For Franz Ferdinand wasn't going to stick to the rules and marry royalty.

Franz Ferdinand and the woman he loved  - his wife, Sophie

His bride was meant to come from one of the reigning houses of Europe - or at least from a former reigning house.  Instead, Franz Ferdinand fell in love with Countess Sophie Chotek who was lady in waiting to Isabella, Archduchess of Teschen.  From the moment they met, there was no one else that the future emperor would consider marrying but they kept their relationship secret for a while, knowing that Sophie wasn't going to be accepted as a consort.  Once their romance became public, it caused huge controversy at the court but there was also concern that if Franz Ferdinand was forced to give up his rights to the throne, the whole monarchy might wobble precariously.  In 1900, six years after they met, the couple married in a low key ceremony in Reichstadt.  Sophie did not share her husband's titles - the marriage was morganatic - and their three children had no rights to the throne.  In the tightly run world of the Austrian court, Sophie took second billing to all the archduchesses.  The archduke had his bride but she was known as Her Serene Highness Princess Sophie of Hohenberg and even an elevation to the rank of Her Highness, Duchess of Hohenberg in 1909 still left her unequal with most of the royals at the court her husband was one day destined to rule.

Franz Ferdinand and Sophie with their three children - Sophie, Maxilmilian and Ernst

Her lower rank meant that the couple didn't often appear together at official events.  But in June 1914, Franz Ferdinand went to Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina to inspect some Austro Hungarian troops. And because it was a military event, rather than a royal one, Sophie could ride in the same car as him and be seen at his side.  It was a rare moment for the couple to appear together and they seized it.  

One of 19th century Europe's great royal love stories ended with the morganatic marriage of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Countess Sophie Chotek, seen here several years after their wedding

The area was a troubled one.  Although it came under the rule of the Austro Hungarian Empire, Bosnia and Herzegovina along with Serbia was filled with groups and individuals who wanted independence from imperial rule.  On the day the royal couple arrived in Sarajevo, a group of six men also set foot in the city with the aim of assassinating the heir to the imperial throne as part of their campaign to bring about independence.  And very soon, they had nearly succeeded.  As Franz Ferdinand and his great love, Sophie, enjoyed a rare public car ride together a hand grenade was thrown at their vehicle.  It missed but badly injured people in another car in their motorcade.  The party continued to the Town Hall but after a reception there, and some rest, archduke and his wife asked to see those who had been injured rather than continue with their planned programme.  They walked down the steps to their waiting car and set off once again.  It became a defining moment in world history.

The last moments of a world that was about to change forever - Franz Ferdinand and Sophie walk towards the car in which they would be assassinated

Soon after setting off, one of the drivers made a mistake and took a road on their original planned tour. He stopped and began to reverse and at that point, one of the group who had been involved in the original saw his chance, stepped forward and shot the couple. Franz Ferdinand was shot in the neck, his wife in the abdomen.  In the moments of confusion following the attack, it seems that the archduke was most aware of what was happening and leaned over his wife.  Witnesses heard him tell her 'Don't die darling, live for our children'.  But it was too late for either of them.  By the time the car reached the Town Hall and medical help, both Franz Ferdinand and Sophie were dead.

The car in which Franz Ferdinand and Sophie were assassinated is now on display at the Museum of Military History in Vienna

The couple were taken back to Austria and buried at Arstetten Castle, the summer seat of the court which Franz Ferdinand had come so close to ruling.  But by the time their funerals took place, the political consequences of their assassinations had begun.  Soon, Austria-Hungary issued Serbia with ultimatums and within weeks the friction between the areas engulfed Europe, setting off a chain of events which culminated on August 4th 1914 with the beginning of what would become known as World War One.

The beginning of a conflict that would last for four years is announced with a stark headline on August 5th 1914

The man who assassinated the royal couple was by then in prison.  Gavrilo Princip was nineteen years old and tried to commit suicide immediately afterwards but he was arrested and tried for the killings. He was too young to receive the death penalty and instead was sentenced to twenty years imprisonment. He died in 1918, just months before the end of World War One.

Gavrilo Princip, the man who shot Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, on June 28th 1914

A century on, the assassination of Franz Ferdinand and Sophie is one of the most well known events in modern history.  Their deaths will be remembered around the world today as the countdown to the centenary of World War One continues.  What started as a sunny day for a couple taking a rare chance to appear in public together and ended with death and the shadow of war remains, 100 years on, a major milestone in the history of the world.