Maybe when you have a few hours to spare you can explain it to to me. I've been trying to figure out how a seemingly insignificant event was responsible for the "War To End All Wars" for years. I watched a doco recently, possibly the one Felix mentioned, but unfortunately missed the part explaining the background. I know the politics of the area was complex & at the time Austria was far more important than it is now..
Remember that Bosnia was within the Austro-Hungarian Empire, whereas Serbia was not. True or not, Austria-Hungary believed that Serbia was promoting that the Bosnian Serbs break away from the Empire (grey area, yes there were Serbs promoting that, but was that "official" Serbian policy?).
When the assassination occurs, Austria finds the "smoking gun" they were looking for when one of the plotters breaks down and spills the beans - the weapons he brought in came from Serbia "The Black Hand" headed by a Serbian colonel. (Note that the other plotters maintained their silence despite "interrogation").
Austria made unreasonable demands upon Serbia, which reluctantly, were granted. Despite that, Austria mobilized and attacked Serbia.
Due to the alliances of the period .....
Serbia had an alliance with Russia, so Russia declares war on Austria
Austria had an alliance with Germany, so Germany declares war on Russia.
Russia had an alliance with Britain and France, so Britan and France mobilize.
Germany attacks through Belgium (with whom Britain has a treaty to protect Belgian neutrality), Britan delivers an ultimatum to Germany - remove your forces from Belgium or else...
and the or else came.
While that's the "chain of events" it appears that there was a powder keg ready to explode.
Prussia (yes I choose Prussia rather than Germany) was flexing its Imperial Wings, while Britain, then the world's naval superpower, couldn't really let Germany get ahead. (At the time, there was a naval arms race, the Dreadnaught being the first of the modern battleships). The European politics from the mid-1800s on was a "fear of Prussia" and containment of the Prussian threat. Britain "basically" wanted to stay apart from the European politics, and did not get into any of the alliances being formed and reformed. For a time, Britain was as concerned about France as it was about Prussia, but (Hagar, correct my facts) once the French agreed to give up their Egyptian claims, that paved the way forthe British and French to form an alliance/cooperation. Note that until then, the British had also been negotiating witht he Prussians.
