Question

The 1914 and 1939 Wars that engulfed almost the entire world were known as World Wars due to its unprecedented impact and dimension. In this context, answer the following

Explain the immediate cause of the First World War.

What was the immediate cause of the First World War?

Answer 1

The immediate cause of the First World War was the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand who was the heir to the throne of Austria and Hungary. He was assassinated at the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. The assassination was planned by a secret society named ‘Black Hand’ which aimed at uniting all Serbians into a single Serbian state. After his assassination, Austria served an ultimatum to Serbia making eleven demands. Serbia accepted most demands but refused some. As a result, Austria declared war on Serbia on 28 July 1914. Russia supported Serbia and started making preparations for war. On 1 August 1914, Germany declared war on Russia. On 4 August, Britain declared war on Germany. Soon after many countries joined the war.

Answer 2

The immediate cause of the First World War was the Sarajevo Crisis.
The crisis took place on 28th June 1914, when the crown prince of Austria, Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife were assassinated at Sarajevo (Capital city of Bosnia). It was traced that the assassination was planned by the ‘Black Hand’ – patriotic terrorists of a secret society in Serbia - because they wanted to unite all south Serbians under a single Serbian state. However, Austria sent them an ultimatum. The Serbian government refused to accept some of the demands, resulting in Austria declaring war against Serbia.