The Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand: The History and Legacy of the Event That Triggered World War I by Charles River Editors

Author:Charles River Editors
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Charles River Editors
Published: 2014-12-26T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 4: June 28, 1914

The Archduke and Sophie at Sarajevo Station on June 28

June 28, 1914, the Feast of St Vitus, dawned clear and cloudless. Shortly after sunrise, Franz Ferdinand, Sophie, and their entourage and bodyguard caught a train from the spa resort of Ilidza, where they had been resting after attending the maneuvers of the Bosnian Army. They arrived in Sarajevo after a short journey, where they were met by a motorcade of six open-topped vehicles and Governor Oskar Potiorek, who had unwittingly been spared assassination at Mehmedbasic’s hands. The first vehicle was occupied by the commander of the special security detail assigned to Franz Ferdinand, but due to the confusion that ensued in getting everyone stowed away aboard their respective vehicles, three officers of the Sarajevo Police, rather than the special security detail, got into the car itself, leaving the special officers stranded at the station. The second car was occupied by the Chief of Police and the Mayor, while the third, the most luxurious, was reserved for Franz Ferdinand, Sophie, the Governor, and a senior military official, Lieutenant Colonel Franz von Harrach. The motorcade then took off for the nearby barracks, which Franz Ferdinand was to inspect before proceeding along the river to the Town Hall. Unlike similar visits before and since, there was no army presence and no soldiers or police officers lining the route the motorcade was expected to take, as it was believed that the local citizens of Sarajevo would take their presence as an insult. This was a major security lapse, particularly since the Sarajevo police, which was expected to protect the route, was a skeleton force significantly less than 100 strong.

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