June 1914 On the 28th, it was Sunday.
Austro-Hungarian Empire Emperor Franz Joseph I is resting in the garden of the palace. Franz Joseph I is now eighty-four years old. He is almost the oldest among Monarch in each country.
Of course, because I am too old, my energy is no longer as abundant as when I was young. This forced Franz Joseph I to leave most of the affairs to Crown Prince Archduke Ferdinand and the government. He only made decisions on certain major matters.
Franz Joseph I was also a tragic figure in his later years. Although he married the young and beautiful Princess Sisi as his wife, in 1889, his Crown Prince Rudolf died in love with his lover, causing him to lose his son, and Austro-Hungarian Empire lost his orthodox Crown Prince. Nine years later, his wife Princess Sisi was stabbed to death with an awl by a Italian anarchist in Lake Geneva. In 1899, Franz Joseph I was forced to allow Franz Archduke Ferdinand to marry Countess Sophie Schottke of Bohemia as his concubine in a concubine marriage. This also makes Archduke Ferdinand's heirs have no right to inherit the throne.
Originally, Franz Joseph I thought that this would be the case in his life. But he never expected that tragedy would still not let him go.
In the Schönbrunn Palace's garden, Franz Joseph I had a blanket on his legs and was sitting on a chair basking in the sun. The summer sunshine made him feel a little warm and drowsy.
Suddenly, Servant's rapid footsteps woke up Franz Joseph I.
"Your Majesty, Crown Prince and his wife were assassinated in Sarajevo!" Servant reported.
"What?" Franz Joseph I was shocked. Those cool and turbid eyes were shining with a frightening fierce light.
"Let the Prime Minister, Archduke Friedrich and Marshal von Hotzendorf come to see me immediately!" Although he was shaking with anger, Franz Joseph I still forced himself to calm down and issued the order. As the emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, although the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand was an extremely heavy blow to him, he still has to cheer up. Especially at this time, Austro-Hungarian Empire must not be messy. Otherwise, the consequences will be disastrous.
Soon, Mario Weber, Prime Minister of the Central Government of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Archduke Friedrich, Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Army, and Marshal Herzendorf, Chief of General Staff, rushed to Schonbrunn Palace. Their faces were also very ugly. Everyone knows that the Austro-Hungarian Empire cannot swallow this sigh of relief when the crown prince is assassinated. War is inevitable.
"Your Majesty, Serbia people actually dare to assassinate Crown Prince. This is a challenge to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. We can't just let it go. We must mobilize immediately and declare war on Serbia!" Marshal von Hotzendorf was the first to express his stance.
In fact, he and Archduke Ferdinand made the plan to invade Serbia. But they never expected that the opportunity they had been waiting for to declare war would actually be bought by Archduke Ferdinand with his own life. Now that things have happened, nothing else has any meaning. The only thing they can do is to avenge Archduke Ferdinand and make his death worthwhile.
"Your Majesty, Britain, French and Russians are all standing behind Serbia. If we declare war on Serbia, the three powers of Britain, France, and Russia will also join in." Prime Minister Mario Weber reminded.
Serbia alone cannot be the opponent of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Although, Austro-Hungarian Empire's military power is not considered strong among big countries. But dealing with a small Serbia, there is no problem at all.
"Germany allies will support us!" Marshal von Hotzendorf said.
"Friedrich, what do you think?" Franz Joseph I asked.
"Your Majesty, unless God appears, no one can stop this war!" Archduke Friedrich said.
Franz Joseph I closed his eyes in pain. He knew that this war would be a terrible war, and if he was not careful, Austro-Hungarian Empire would be destroyed. However, as Archduke Friedrich said, this war is inevitable. Whether it is Austro-Hungarian Empire domestic or international forces, they are all waiting for an opportunity for war to break out. And Austro-Hungarian Empire Crown Prince was assassinated, which was undoubtedly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"Let the troops start mobilizing and prepare for war!" Franz Joseph I ordered.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"Let German Ambassador go to see German Emperor. Now, it's time for Germany to fulfill his obligations." Franz Joseph I then issued the order.
"Germany is an ally of the Empire, and they will fulfill their obligations as allies!" Marshal von Hotzendorf said.
"Everyone, since war is inevitable. Then, try your best to win this war!" Franz Joseph I finally said.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" everyone replied. Naturally, they also hope that Austro-Hungarian Empire can win this battle. But they also know that this is very difficult.
Afterwards, Franz Joseph I closed his eyes and said no more. It was as if what he just said had exhausted his energy.
Mario Weber, Archduke Friedrich, Marshal von Hotzendorf left immediately. Now that they have decided to go to war, they need to be fully prepared. War is not a child's play and cannot be decided with just one sentence. There are still too many things to prepare for.
The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand also caused an uproar around the world.
Originally, the world situation was already very tense, and war was very likely to break out. It's just that there is a lack of a suitable time to trigger a war. The death of Archduke Ferdinand undoubtedly became the fuse that started the war.
Serbian government learned the news of Archduke Ferdinand's assassination in Sarajevo immediately. This immediately shocked Serbian government. Although, Serbia has been fighting against the Austro-Hungarian Empire. But they don't think that their small body can really compete with the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Austro-Hungarian Empire Whether it is population, industry, or military, it is definitely not something Serbia can compete with. If Russia hadn't supported them behind the scenes, they might have been annexed by the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
When Serbian government was panicking, Serbia army commander Putnik stood aside and ordered the army to enter a state of emergency and conduct nationwide mobilization to prepare for war. At the same time, command Ambassador to Russia to visit Tsar Nicholas II and request support from Russia.
War, by this time, is inevitable!