FRANZ FERDINAND OF AUSTRIA, THE END OF THE WORLD

Exceptional destinies

An episode from the series SECRETS OF HISTORY - PORTRAITS

Synopsis

Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was murdered in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914, by the Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip.

He was Sissi's nephew, rebellious like her, and resisted the rigid protocol of the court of Vienna, marrying Sophie Chotek, a countess who was not of royal blood. A collector and avid hunter, he was also one of the first globe-trotting princes.

His cousin Rudolph's death made him the future heir to Emperor Franz Joseph. His assassination marked the death knell for the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which will be dismembered by the end of WWI.