AF
Archduke Franz Ferdinand
December 18, 1863 – June 28, 1914
Heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne whose assassination triggered World War I.
world war 1royaltyassassination
Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. On June 28, 1914, while visiting Sarajevo, Bosnia, he and his wife Sophie were assassinated by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb nationalist who opposed Austro-Hungarian rule. The assassination set off a chain reaction of alliances and ultimatums that plunged Europe into World War I within weeks. Ironically, Franz Ferdinand had actually favored reforms that would have given more autonomy to the Slavic peoples of the empire.