June 28 this week marks the 110th anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The assassination was one of history's greatest turning points, putting into play the diplomatic crisis that led to the First World War. However, it happened by accident, as a result of a whole series of mistakes and missed opportunities.
Alan Bardos, author of a related novel (Amazon US | Amazon UK) explains.
A depiction of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo. From Domenica del Corriere, by Achille Beltrame.
Oskar Potiorek
Bosnia and Herzegovina was a hotly disputed territory in 1914. It had been annexed by the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy in 1910 from the crumbling Ottoman Empire, but was also claimed by neighboring Serbia and had a growing nationalist movement amongst its youth who wanted it to be part of a South Slav state. The decision to send the crown prince of Austro-Hungary into such an unstable region, to attend army maneuvers, was largely made in an attempt to strengthen the monarchy’s rule; charming the local population and demonstrating its military might.
The security for Franz Ferdinand’s visit fell to the military governor of Bosnia and Herzegovina, General Oskar Potiorek. Potiorek wanted to become the Chief of the General Staff and saw the visit as an opportunity to stake his claim. Franz Ferdinand was a fastidious man, prone to fits of rage and was known as ‘The Ogre’ in court circles. A single error could have finished the governor’s career. The Archduke had already blocked Potiorek’s promotion, twice.
Potiorek paid close attention to every aspect of the Archduke’s needs during the visit. He had an extraordinary eye for detail. He over saw all arrangements, from ensuring that the Archduke’s wine would be served at the correct temperature, to building him a private chapel.
Nothing was left to chance, that is except the security of Franz Ferdinand’s visit to Sarajevo. Austro-Hungarian intelligence was aware of plots against Archduke Ferdinand and the danger posed by Serbia who were attempting to resist Austro-Hungarian expansion in the region. There was however no definite evidence of a plot against Archduke Franz Ferdinand, threats of this kind were not unusual in the increasingly volatile Austro-Hungarian monarchy.
A schoolboy conspiracy
Unlike other areas of the Monarchy there had not been any violence attributed to nationalism in Bosnia. Potiorek did not recognize the growing nationalism among the youth that had inspired a Young Bosnia Movement and the assassins.
This reflects the Austro-Hungarian Government’s attitude to the threat placed by the nationalist movements in their Balkan provinces. No attempt was made to counter them because the security services did not believe they existed. The idea that half-starved schoolboys could be any kind of a threat was too ridiculous to contemplate.
There were officials in Sarajevo who did understand the growing danger from these “schoolboys” and that they were working with Serbia. The police commissioner for Sarajevo, Dr Edmund Gerde, advised Potirok that there was a conspiracy, two weeks before Franz Ferdinand’s visit. Dr Sunaric the vice president of the Bosnian Parliament urged Potiorek to cancel the archducal visit because of possible Young Bosnia activity. Potiorek dismissed these warnings.
Archduke Ferdinand himself was warned about the possibility of an assassination attempt, but travelled to Bosnia nonetheless, albeit reluctantly. Franz Ferdinand’s wife Sophie insisted on accompanying her husband when she heard of the threats, as she did not believe anyone would shoot at him if a woman was by his side.
The night before the Royal couple were due to visit Sarajevo, Sophie met Doctor Sunaric at a state dinner and told him that he was wrong. Wherever they had been, ‘everyone had greeted them with great friendliness’. Doctor Sunaric responded ‘Your Highness, I pray to God that when I have the honor of meeting you again tomorrow night, you can repeat those words to me.’
One of the most tragic aspects of the whole affair is that Archduke Franz Ferdinand decided to cancel the visit to Sarajevo following the state dinner, possibly having been warned by the local police, but he was persuaded to complete the planned itinerary by Colonel von Merizzi, Governor Potiorek’s aide-de-camp.
Sarajevo, Sunday morning, June 28, 1914
Potiorek left the protection of Franz Ferdinand largely to the officers of the Archduke’s entourage. There were only 120 gendarmes lining the streets, to provide security in a city of over 50,000 people. Bringing in additional policemen was deemed to be too expensive, as all of the budget had gone on building the chapel for Franz Ferdinand. Potiorek also refused to use the troops from the maneuvers as extra security. He felt a strong military presence would offend the local inhabitants and the soldiers did not have their dress uniforms.
Consequently one of the conspirators in the assassination plot, Nedeljko Cabrinovic, was able to throw a bomb at the Archduke’s car as it drove to the official reception. The bomb missed, but when the motorcade reached the reception Potiorek took full responsibility and assured Franz Ferdinand that the danger had passed.
Potiorek spurred the suggestion that troops be used to clear the streets stating, ‘do you think that Sarajevo is full of assassins?’ Potiorek did suggest cutting the Archduke’s itinerary short and proceeding to his residence for lunch. To avoid any further danger in the narrow backstreets that the Archduke was scheduled to drive through.
The Archduke however wanted to visit the wounded from the earlier bombing. In the ensuing confusion the change of route was not communicated to the driver of the first car in the Archduke’s motorcade. When the motorcade left the reception the lead driver stuck to the original route and turned into a backstreet.
As the Archduke’s car began to follow, Potiorek realized the mistake and ordered the driver to stop. In front of 19 year old Gavrilo Princip, who fired twice with a Browning model semi-automatic pistol, killing the Archduke and Sophie, and sparking the First World War.
The fact that Potiorek was in the car and that Princip claimed to be shooting at him when he shot Franz Ferdinand’s wife, has meant that Potiorek was never held to account for his actions. The blame was placed on Serbia. The assassins were aided by elements in Serbian intelligence, but if Potiorek had followed the advice of his police chief; or acted decisively following the first assassination attempt, Gavrilo Princip and the ensuing war could have been stopped.
The events depicted in this article inspired Alan Bardos’ novel ‘The Assassins’, which can be purchased here: Amazon US | Amazon UK
Sources
'One Morning in Sarajevo', David James Smith
'The Archduke and the Assassin', Lavender Cassels
'The Road To Sarajevo', Vadmire Dedijer
'The Desperate Act', Roberta Strauss Feuerlicht.
'Archduke of Sarajevo: The Romance & Tragedy of Franz Ferdinand of Austria', Gordon Brook-Shepherd
'The Assassination of the Archduke', Greg King & Sue Woolmans
