Who Triggered Wwi? Austria Vs Serbia

The First World War was sparked by a complex web of political alliances, military ambitions, and rising nationalism. On June 28, 1914, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife by a Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo served as a catalyst for the war. This event escalated tensions between Austria-Hungary and Serbia, leading to Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia on July 28, 1914. The conflict quickly spread beyond these two countries, drawing in Russia, Germany, France, and Britain, each with their own motivations and interests. While the assassination was a pivotal trigger, the underlying causes were multifaceted and rooted in the complex dynamics of early 20th-century European politics and alliances.

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

The assassination was carried out by a group of six Bosnian assassins, all but one of whom were Bosnian Serbs and members of a student revolutionary group that later became known as Young Bosnia. The group was coordinated by Danilo Ilić and received support from the Black Hand, a Serbian secret nationalist group with close ties to the Serbian army. The political objective of the assassination was to free Bosnia and Herzegovina from Austrian-Hungarian rule and establish a common South Slav ("Yugoslav") state.

On the day of the assassination, Ilić positioned the assassins along the motorcade route. As the motorcade passed by, Nedeljko Čabrinović threw a bomb at the car, but it bounced off and rolled underneath the wrong vehicle. The bomb exploded, wounding several people but leaving the Archduke and his wife essentially unharmed. Čabrinović attempted suicide but was apprehended by the police.

The motorcade continued on to city hall, where the Archduke and his wife attended a reception. They then decided to visit the wounded from the bombing at the hospital. On their way, the motorcade took a wrong turn and ended up on a side street where Gavrilo Princip, one of the assassins, was standing. Princip stepped up to the car and shot the Archduke and his wife at point-blank range. The Archduke and his wife died within minutes of each other.

The July Ultimatum

The ultimatum required Serbia to:

• Condemn the "dangerous propaganda" against Austria-Hungary, which aimed to detach territories belonging to the Monarchy.
• Suppress all publications that "incite hatred and contempt" towards Austria-Hungary.
• Dissolve Serbian nationalist organisations, including Narodna Odbrana.
• Eliminate anti-Austrian propaganda from schoolbooks and public documents.
• Remove Austrian-identified officers and functionaries from the Serbian military and civil administration.
• Accept "Austro-Hungarian delegates" to take part in the investigations and prosecutions of the assassins.
• Arrest Major Vojislav Tankosić and civil servant Milan Ciganović, who were named as participants in the assassination plot.
• Cease the cooperation of Serbian authorities in the "traffic of arms and explosives" across the frontier.
• Dismiss and punish officials of the Šabac and Loznica frontier service.
• Provide "explanations" to Austria-Hungary regarding "Serbian officials" who expressed themselves in interviews "in terms of hostility".

Serbia was given 48 hours to comply with the ultimatum, and any response other than unconditional acceptance would give Austria-Hungary its excuse for war.

On 25 July, Serbia responded to the ultimatum, accepting all terms except the sixth point, which would infringe on its sovereignty. Austria-Hungary rejected Serbia's reply, and on 28 July, declared war on Serbia. This marked the beginning of World War I.

The Serbian reply

On 23 July 1914, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia, giving them 48 hours to comply with a list of demands. The ultimatum was formulated in such harsh terms that most European foreign ministries recognised that the Serbs would be unable to accept it. The demands included:

• Condemnation of the "dangerous propaganda" against Austria-Hungary, which aimed to detach territories from the Monarchy.
• Suppression of all publications that "incite hatred and contempt of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy".
• Dissolution of the Serbian nationalist organisation Narodna Odbrana.
• Elimination of anti-Austro-Hungarian propaganda from schoolbooks and public documents.
• Removal of certain officers and functionaries from the Serbian military and civil administration.
• Acceptance of "representatives of the Austro-Hungarian Government" for the "suppression of subversive movements".
• Arrest of Major Vojislav Tankosić and civil servant Milan Ciganović, who were named as participants in the assassination plot.
• Cessation of the cooperation of the Serbian authorities in the "traffic in arms and explosives across the frontier".
• Provision of "explanations" regarding "Serbian officials" who had expressed themselves in interviews "in terms of hostility to the Austro-Hungarian Government".

The Serbian Cabinet worked out a compromise, but historians disagree on the extent to which the Serbs genuinely compromised. Some argue that Serbia accepted all of the terms of the ultimatum except for the demand that Austro-Hungarian police be allowed to operate in Serbia. Others argue that the Serbs drafted their reply to give the impression of making significant concessions, but in reality, it was a "highly perfumed rejection on most points".

The Austro-Hungarian Foreign Office, in a letter later published in the New York Times, stated that:

> "The object of the Serbian note is to create the false impression that the Serbian Government is prepared in great measure to comply with our demands… The Serbian note contains such far-reaching reservations and limitations not only regarding the general principles of our action, but also in regards to the individual claims we have put forward that the concessions actually made by Serbia become insignificant.”

On 25 July, the Serbian government, expecting an Austro-Hungarian declaration of war the next day, mobilised while Austria-Hungary broke off diplomatic relations. The following day, Emperor Franz Joseph signed a mobilisation order for eight army corps to begin operations against Serbia on 28 July.

On 28 July 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.

The declaration of war

In the aftermath of the assassination, Austria-Hungary suspected Serbian involvement and sought to use this opportunity to assert its dominance over Serbia, which it saw as a threat to its empire's stability. Austria-Hungary drafted an ultimatum, or the "July Ultimatum," which was presented to Serbia on July 23, 1914. This ultimatum included a set of demands that were intentionally made to be unacceptable, such as allowing Austro-Hungarian officials to participate in the investigation of the assassination and suppress anti-Austrian organisations in Serbia.

Serbia's response to the ultimatum was delivered on July 25 and agreed to all demands except two, which entailed constitutional changes and were seen as a violation of its sovereignty. On July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary formally declared war on Serbia, initiating a series of events that escalated the conflict into a global war. Austria-Hungary's aggression towards Serbia was encouraged and supported by its ally, Germany, which shared a common interest in preventing Serbian expansion and preserving the balance of power in Europe.

The Serbian Campaign

The First Campaign

The first campaign began after Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914. The campaign, called a "punitive expedition" by the Austro-Hungarian leadership, was led by Austrian General Oskar Potiorek. It ended after three unsuccessful Austro-Hungarian invasion attempts were repelled by the Serbians and their Montenegrin allies. The victory of the Royal Serbian Army at the Battle of Cer is considered the first Allied victory in World War I, and the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Army by Serbia has been called one of the great upsets of modern military history.

The Second Campaign

The second campaign was launched under German command almost a year later, on October 6, 1915. Bulgarian, Austro-Hungarian, and German forces, led by Field Marshal August von Mackensen, successfully invaded Serbia from three sides, pre-empting an Allied advance from Salonica to help Serbia. This resulted in the Great Retreat through Montenegro and Albania, the evacuation to Greece, and the establishment of the Macedonian front. The defeat of Serbia gave the Central Powers temporary mastery over the Balkans, opening up a land route from Berlin to Constantinople, allowing the Germans to re-supply the Ottoman Empire for the rest of the war. Mackensen declared an end to the campaign on November 24, 1915. Serbia was then occupied and divided between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Bulgaria.

The Liberation of Serbia

After the Allies launched the Vardar Offensive in September 1918, which broke through the Macedonian front and defeated the Bulgarians and their German allies, a Franco-Serbian force advanced into the occupied territories and liberated Serbia, Albania, and Montenegro. Serbian forces entered Belgrade on November 1, 1918.

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