It was on this day in 1914 that HIRH Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were murdered by a Serbian terrorist in Sarajevo, thus lighting the fuse for the horrendous nightmare that was World War I and the final destruction of the last remnants of Old Europe. It is worth remembering that almost every single major world crisis, war, ethnic struggle and so forth that plagues the world today and which has troubled the world since 1918 can be traced back to that conflict which was sparked by that terrorist. Whether it is the trouble with Korea, the problems in the Middle East, the Balkans or looking back at all the problems across Africa and Asia as the colonial empires collapsed, the Iraq Wars, the Vietnam War, the Korean War and on and on can all be traced, directly or indirectly back to the death of an Austrian Archduke named Franz Ferdinand. Conspiracy? It is tempting to think so but whether it was or was not, all monarchists of every nationality should mourn the day that saw the Old Europe of Crowns and Altars fall prey to short-sighted and self-serving ministers and commit mass suicide. No war has ever been so unnecessary nor has any war ever had such far-reaching consequences for all subsequent generations.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Anniversary of a Tragedy
It was on this day in 1914 that HIRH Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were murdered by a Serbian terrorist in Sarajevo, thus lighting the fuse for the horrendous nightmare that was World War I and the final destruction of the last remnants of Old Europe. It is worth remembering that almost every single major world crisis, war, ethnic struggle and so forth that plagues the world today and which has troubled the world since 1918 can be traced back to that conflict which was sparked by that terrorist. Whether it is the trouble with Korea, the problems in the Middle East, the Balkans or looking back at all the problems across Africa and Asia as the colonial empires collapsed, the Iraq Wars, the Vietnam War, the Korean War and on and on can all be traced, directly or indirectly back to the death of an Austrian Archduke named Franz Ferdinand. Conspiracy? It is tempting to think so but whether it was or was not, all monarchists of every nationality should mourn the day that saw the Old Europe of Crowns and Altars fall prey to short-sighted and self-serving ministers and commit mass suicide. No war has ever been so unnecessary nor has any war ever had such far-reaching consequences for all subsequent generations.
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This was certainly tragic. The Habsburgs really had alot of tragedies in rapid succession...Mayerling, the murder of Empress Elisabeth, this assassination, and then World War I, the destruction of the empire, and the misfortunes, exile and premature death of Emperor Charles.
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