The Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria on June 28, 1914, was a pivotal event that helped trigger World War I. Ferdinand was shot by Gavrilo Princip, a member of a nationalist group seeking independence for Slavic peoples from Austro-Hungarian rule. This act intensified existing tensions between major European powers and led Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia, where the assassin was connected. The complex web of alliances and rivalries that followed ultimately escalated into a global conflict, marking the beginning of one of history's deadliest wars.