Austria-Hungary's Fateful Decision: World War I

On 28 June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife Sophie were assassinated by a Bosnian Serb nationalist. This set off a series of events that led to the outbreak of World War I. Austria-Hungary sought to inflict a military blow on Serbia, viewing it as a threat to the unity of its multi-national empire. However, wary of the reaction of Russia, a major supporter of Serbia, Austria-Hungary sought a guarantee from its ally, Germany, that it would support them in any conflict. Germany guaranteed its support, urging Austria-Hungary to attack quickly to localise the war and avoid drawing in Russia. On 23 July, Austria-Hungary made its ultimatum to Serbia, and on 28 July, it declared war on Serbia, effectively beginning the First World War.

Austria-Hungary's ultimatum to Serbia

On the evening of July 23, 1914, Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to Serbia, nearly a month after the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife by a young Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo, Bosnia. The ambassador of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to Serbia, Baron Giesl von Gieslingen, delivered the ultimatum to the Serbian foreign ministry.

The ultimatum contained a list of ten demands, which were formulated in six points. These included:

• The Serbian government was required to officially distance itself from the campaign to unite the southern Slav peoples under Serbian leadership, which challenged the territorial integrity of Austria-Hungary.
• The purging of the Serbian army and civil service of anti-Austrian agitators.
• The suppression of anti-Austrian propaganda in the Serbian press and educational institutions.
• The tracking down and legal proceedings against extremist secret organisations operating against Austria.
• Cooperation with the Imperial and Royal Government in the suppression of the subversive movement directed against the Monarchy.
• The arrest of Major Vojislav Tankosić and Milan Ciganović, a Serbian official, who were implicated in the inquiry.

The ultimatum gave Serbia 48 hours to respond. While the world awaited Serbia's response, Germany worked to contain the fallout diplomatically. However, it was clear that if Germany stood with Austria-Hungary against Serbia, then Russia's allies, France and Britain, would likely be drawn into the conflict as well.

On July 25, Serbia accepted most of the demands but rejected the demand for Austrian officials to participate in investigations on Serbian territory, citing it as a violation of its sovereignty. Austria-Hungary was not interested in a diplomatic solution and broke off diplomatic relations with Serbia. On July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, marking the beginning of World War I.

Austria-Hungary's invasion of Serbia

On July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, marking the beginning of World War I. This invasion, dubbed the "punitive expedition" by the Austro-Hungarian leadership, was led by Austrian General Oskar Potiorek and comprised three unsuccessful attempts to invade Serbia. The Serbians, along with their Montenegrin allies, successfully repelled the Austro-Hungarian forces, resulting in the first Allied victory in World War I.

The invasion was precipitated by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb student, on June 28, 1914. This assassination was interpreted as an act of aggression by Serbia and served as a catalyst for the invasion. During this period, Austria-Hungary was facing threats to its dominance in the Balkans, with Serbia posing a significant challenge. Additionally, the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria-Hungary in 1908 had angered Serbia and its patron, the Pan-Slavic and Orthodox Russian Empire.

The Austro-Hungarian invasion force consisted of approximately 500,000 soldiers, including operational troops, garrisons, and support units. However, they faced challenges due to linguistic and cultural links between their soldiers and the empire's various enemies. In contrast, the Serbian army, though experienced, was exhausted from previous conflicts and lacked modern weaponry and equipment. Despite this, they mounted a formidable defense, forcing the Austro-Hungarians to retreat.

The first invasion attempt began in early August 1914, with the Austro-Hungarian forces attacking Serbia's western and northern borders. However, due to the Russian general mobilization, the 2nd Army was redirected to Galicia, reducing the number of troops available for the invasion. Despite this setback, the Austro-Hungarians continued their offensive but were met with strong resistance from the Serbian army.

The second invasion attempt occurred in September 1914, with the Austro-Hungarians launching a northward offensive along the Sava River. However, this was met with a Serbian counterattack, forcing the Austro-Hungarians to retreat.

The third and final invasion attempt of this campaign took place in November 1914, with the Austro-Hungarians attacking Serbia's western front along the Drina River. Initially, they found some success in the Battle of Kolubara and managed to capture Belgrade on November 30. Nonetheless, the Serbians launched a counterattack in mid-December, forcing the Austro-Hungarians to retreat once again.

The failure of the Austro-Hungarian invasion of Serbia had significant consequences. It demonstrated the military prowess of the Serbian forces and served as a setback for the Central Powers. Additionally, it highlighted the complexities of the conflict, with multiple nations becoming entangled in the war. The invasion also had a devastating impact on Serbia, with high casualties and significant damage inflicted on the country.

Austria-Hungary's rejection of Serbian concessions

On the 28th of June, 1914, Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb nationalist, assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, in the city of Sarajevo. This assassination was interpreted as an act of aggression on the part of Serbia and thus as a casus belli. Austria-Hungary immediately undertook a criminal investigation, which revealed that Princip had received weapons and training from renegade intelligence officers in Serbia.

Austria-Hungary sought to inflict a military blow on Serbia, to demonstrate its strength and to dampen Serbian support for Yugoslav nationalism, which it viewed as a threat to the unity of its multi-national empire. However, wary of the reaction of Russia, a major supporter of Serbia, Austria-Hungary sought a guarantee from its ally, Germany, that Berlin would support it in any conflict. Germany guaranteed its support through what came to be known as the "blank cheque", but urged Austria-Hungary to attack quickly to localise the war and avoid drawing in Russia.

On the 23rd of July, Austria-Hungary made its ultimatum to Serbia, demanding that the Serbian government formally and publicly condemn the "dangerous propaganda" against Austria-Hungary, the ultimate aim of which, it claimed, was to "detach from the Monarchy territories belonging to it". Moreover, Belgrade should "suppress by every means this criminal and terrorist propaganda". Most European foreign ministries recognised that the ultimatum was formulated in terms so harsh that the Serbs would be unable to accept it. Additionally, Serbia was only given 48 hours to comply.

On the 28th of July, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. This declaration came after Serbia accepted nine out of ten demands but only partially accepted the remaining one. The remaining demand that Serbia did not wholly accept would have resulted in a major infringement of its sovereignty.

Austria-Hungary's alliance with Germany

The Austro-German Alliance, also known as the Dual Alliance, was a pact between Austria-Hungary and the German Empire, formed on October 7, 1879. The two powers promised each other support in the event of an attack by Russia and agreed to remain neutral if either was attacked by another European power (generally assumed to be France).

The alliance was surprising to many, as Germany and Austria-Hungary shared a language and similar culture, but were often driven apart. Despite this, their common distrust of Russia united the two empires. The German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, wanted to portray his nation as a peacemaker and preserve the European status quo. By allying with Austria-Hungary, Bismarck also sought to prevent the isolation of Germany, as Russia would be unlikely to wage war against both empires.

The addition of Italy in 1882 transformed the alliance into the Triple Alliance, the first formal alliance in Europe. During World War I, Italy initially remained neutral, but in 1915, it joined the Entente powers, declaring war on Austria-Hungary, and in 1916, on Germany. The Dual Alliance persisted throughout World War I as part of the Central Powers and ended with their defeat in 1918.

Austria-Hungary's declaration of war on Serbia

On July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, marking the start of World War I. This declaration came a month after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, by Gavrilo Princip, a member of a Serbian-backed paramilitary organisation. The assassination intensified existing ethnic hostilities in Bosnia and led to anti-Serb riots in Sarajevo, during which Catholic Croats and Bosnian Muslims killed two and damaged several Serb-owned buildings.

Austria-Hungary's leaders viewed the assassination as an act of aggression by Serbia and used it as a casus belli to justify their long-desired war with Serbia. They sought to inflict a military blow on Serbia, demonstrating their strength and suppressing Serbian support for Yugoslav nationalism, which they saw as a threat to the unity of their multi-national empire.

Following the assassination, Austria-Hungary communicated a list of demands to Serbia, which were formulated to be unacceptable and create a pretext for war. Serbia agreed to comply with most of the demands but rejected the final one, which would have infringed on its sovereignty. Austria-Hungary then broke diplomatic relations and announced the mobilisation of its army against Serbia. An unverified incident involving Habsburg and Serbian troops was reported, and on July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war.

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