Archduke Francis Ferdinand Essay, Research Paper

Born in 1863 in Graz, Austria, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian empire, son of Archduke Charles Louis, known as “the loneliest man in Vienna” and Archduke of Austria was Francis (Franz) Ferdinand. He became t heir to the throne after the Emperor’s son, Crown Prince Rudolph, killed himself in 1896, and the death of his father in 1896. Franz was a reformist who had new ideas to be put into act when he inherited the throne of the family of Hapsburg. One the ideas he had, known as trialism, was the reorganization of the dual monarchy into a triple monarchy by giving the Slavs and equal voice in the empire. This would equalize the standings of the Germans and the Magyars who were living in the Austria-Hungary borders. This idea was not favored at all with Serbian nationalists. The majority of the population of Vienna did not like Francis Ferdinand. He was often referred to as a miser, a bigot and a spoiled child. He lacked the two key elements for social success; charm and elegance. He was known for being prideful and mistrusting and having a short temper and suspicious nature. All of that changed when he married Sophie Chotek von Chotkova in 1900.

Since he was the Inspector General of the Army he was invited to visit the capital of Bosnia, Sarajevo, to inspect army maneuvers. He accepted the invitation despite the warning of a possible assassination plot against him. The archduke was chosen as a target because the Serb’s feared his plans for trialism once he took over the throne. As Franz and his party drove through the streets of Sarajevo, a member of the terrorist group Black Hand tossed a bomb at the Archduke’s automobile. The driver of the car saw the bomb and accelerated to avoid it. Sophie ducked and Franz deflected the bomb with his arm. To avoid capture and interrogation, Nedjelko Cabrinovic (19 years old), took a cyanide pill and jumped into a river. As they proceeded through the streets, the driver took a wrong turn. Gavrilo Princip stepped forward with two pistols and fired at Sophie and Francis. Sophie was hit and died instantly and the other hit Franz who later died. Francis Ferdinand’s last words were, “Sophie dear, Sophie dear, don’t die! Stay alive for our children.”