Archduke's assassination led to war, changed history

Probably only our older readers would remember the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Most people don't know it, but Austro-Hungary was a big country, larger than Germany or France. Franz had become the heir after the death of his father. 

Austro-Hungary had annexed Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1908, a move that Bosnia was opposed to and it created tensions. There was a movement called the Young Bosnia movement, a secret revolutionary society that planned to assassinate Ferdinand.

Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were traveling in an open carriage on June 28, 1914, near the Latin Bridge in Sarajevo when they were ambushed.

The attack began with a bombing that injured several bystanders, followed by a shooting at close range. Gavrilo Princip, a 19-year-old student, shot and killed Ferdinand and his wife Sophie, along with several others who took part in the plot.

The assassination created the July Crisis of 1914. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia on July 28, 1914, and within weeks, Austria-Hungary, backed by Germany and Italy was drawn into the conflict against Britain, France and Russia. Thus began World War I. 

The war lasted until 1918. After it concluded, about 9 million soldiers had been killed and around 7 million civilians, totaling around 16 million.

My father, Georg Gregori, was born in Austria but had come to the United States in 1907. My wife came from Verdun, France, where many big battles had taken place. I have visited many of the battlefields.

Roger Gregory served as a captain in the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam. He is a Priest River businessman.