Transcription
Archduke Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was sitting in his [music] car. With him was his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Württemberg, who had gone to see a part of their own empire [music]. Suddenly, an assassin rushed forward. Standing on the running board of the car, he fired several shots at point-blank range. Sophie slumped into her husband's lap. The Archduke lost consciousness simultaneously, with two bullets in his body. We are talking about a time that changed the history of the entire world. The First World War began as a consequence of this brutal assassination. Subsequently, that great war ended at the cost of the blood of 8.5 million soldiers and 13 million civilians. But how did just three bullets turn the tide of the entire world? To explain that, I, Saifullah Saif, have returned again. To understand how a single assassination led the entire world to a world war, we need to understand the political [music] situation at that time. The root of the problem originated in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Bosnian Serbs lived in the Bosnia and Herzegovina region of Austria-Hungary. Their main goal was to separate from Austria-Hungary and form another Slavic state. And the neighboring country of Serbia was fanning this fire. Therefore, Archduke Ferdinand, the future emperor of Austria-Hungary, announced a visit to Sarajevo, the capital of that region. The rebels then chose this as a golden opportunity. But the plan to assassinate him was actually conceived by Colonel Dragutin Dimitrijević, the head of Serbian military intelligence. June 28th, 11 AM. On that day in 1914, no one could have imagined what was about to happen. But it was bound to happen. Because before Archduke Ferdinand arrived, the newspapers had already published which roads his motorcade would take through the city. Countless people lined the streets, dressed in saris, to welcome the Archduke. And among them were four or five assassins. While the first two did not get a chance to throw a bomb, the third assassin, Čabrinović, got his chance. But his bomb hit the car and bounced off to the back. Some officers in the car behind were injured by the explosion. The Archduke was stunned by this incident. But he should have fled immediately. Instead, he went to the town hall to give a speech. There he said, "I have come here for a visit. And I was greeted with a bomb." After that, the Archduke and his wife went to see the injured officers. On their way back, the Archduke's driver suddenly took a wrong turn. Yes, it was the wrong road. And because of that small mistake, the history of the world changed. When the driver realized he had taken the wrong road and applied the brakes, another assassin was right there. Purely by a twist of fate, he found the Archduke within reach and shot and killed the Duke and his wife at point-blank range. Austria-Hungary was enraged by this incident. Serbs were attacked across the country. Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia and made terrible demands from them. But do you know what's funny? Serbia's own Prime Minister had informed Austria-Hungary about Serbia's involvement in the assassination. Because Prime Minister Nikola Pašić was a bitter enemy of Colonel Dragutin Dimitrijević. However, due to his position, Prime Minister Nikola could not directly inform them. His letter was so convoluted that the Archduke did not understand anything. But after the Archduke's death, the entire blame was placed on Serbia. And when they did not accept Austria-Hungary's impossible demands, they declared war on Serbia. But before Austria-Hungary declared war, they needed some backup. Because if they attacked Serbia, there was a strong possibility of Russia interfering. And if Russia attacked Austria-Hungary, it would be a grave danger. But when German Emperor Wilhelm II assured them of his support, Austria-Hungary attacked Serbia on July 28th. And that's where Russia intervened. Tsar Nicholas II of Russia considered it his moral duty to save a Slavic nation like Serbia. As Russia began to partially mobilize its troops, Germany declared war on Russia. But France had such a treaty with Russia that Germany found itself at war with both Russia and France simultaneously. However, there was a similar treaty between France and Britain. When France first sought Britain's help, Britain was not very interested. But Germany dragged Britain, a superpower, into the war. How? German General Schlieffen's plan was to attack France first. Because Russia was such a large country that it would take a considerable amount of time for them to prepare for war. And within that time, Germany would capture France at lightning speed and then confront Russia with its full might. That was Schlieffen's plan. But as part of this plan, it was crucial to transport German troops through Belgium. Why? Because the entire French-German border was heavily fortified with numerous military installations. And fighting through that region to enter France would have cost Germany a lot of resources and time. So, Germany demanded passage for its troops through Belgium. When Belgium ignored Germany's demand, Germany attacked Belgium on the night of August 3rd. And this angered Britain. Because Belgium was a neutral country. By disrupting the peace of a neutral country, Britain declared war on Germany on August 4th. Throughout August, powerful countries in Europe and around the world declared war on each other. The timeline was roughly as follows: July 28th: Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia. July 31st: Germany issues an ultimatum to Russia and France to cease war preparations. August 1st: Germany declares war on Russia. August 2nd: German troops at the borders of Luxembourg and Belgium. August 3rd: Germany attacks neutral Belgium. August 4th: Britain declares war on Germany. August 5th: Austria-Hungary declares war on Russia. August 6th: Serbia declares war on Germany. August 7th: Montenegro, Serbia's neighbor, declares war on Austria-Hungary. August 12th: Montenegro declares war on Germany. August 10th and 12th: France and Britain declare war on Austria-Hungary. August 23rd: Japan declares war on Germany. August 25th: Austria-Hungary declares war on Japan. August 28th: Austria-Hungary declares war on Belgium. All in all, the political situation of the entire world became impossibly murky. Before the war began, there were two power blocs in Europe: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance. But when the war started, the entire world was divided into two sides. The Central Powers included Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria. On the other hand, the Allied Powers included Russia, the British Empire, France, Italy, America, Japan, Romania, Serbia, Belgium, Greece, Portugal, and Montenegro. Although many of these countries joined the war in the middle or towards the end. Regardless, Britain's entry into the war was very bad news for Germany. And even worse news was Russia. Yes, Russia quickly prepared for war, disrupting all of Germany's pre-planned calculations. Germany then panicked. Austria-Hungary was asked to hold back the Russians. But Austria-Hungary failed completely. As a result, Germany was forced to send a large number of troops back to the Russian border. Thus, the war was divided into two fronts: the Eastern Front with Russia, and the Western Front with France and Britain. In other words, the Schlieffen Plan had failed by then. But surprisingly, in the Battle of Tannenberg, the German forces stopped the Russians with their disbelief and skill. Not only did they stop them, but between August 23rd and 30th, they almost annihilated the Russian Second Army. The Russians were so unprepared that they didn't even encrypt their radio communications. As a result, 300 Russian soldiers died against 13,000 German soldiers. 92,000 soldiers were captured. While stopping the Russians, the Germans also advanced on the Western Front. Not only that, but by September 6th, they were only 30 kilometers away from Paris. If the Germans had actually captured Paris, the history of the world might have been different. But with their backs against the wall, the Military Governor of Paris, General J.S. Gallieni, managed to persuade the French Commander-in-Chief, Joseph Joffre, to order an attack with great difficulty. A fierce battle took place from September 6th to 12th. That battle is known as the First Battle of the Marne. In this single battle, approximately 250,000 French soldiers and 300,000 German soldiers were wounded. 15,000 British and 80,000 French soldiers died. And a similar number of German soldiers. Finally, under the joint attack of the French and British, Germany was forced to retreat. After that, the war continued all the way to the sea, which was called the Race to the Sea. Then, trench warfare began across the entire 350-mile stretch from the sea to Switzerland. Until now, the war was confined to Europe, but now it began to spread across the entire world. Australia joined the Allied Powers and captured German New Guinea at the first opportunity. Japan did the same. German colonies in Africa were attacked. Meanwhile, on October 31st, 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the war on the side of the Central Powers. As a result, on November 5th, France and Britain declared war in response. Meanwhile, throughout November and December, fierce fighting took place between the Ottoman Empire and Russia in the Caucasus region. But there was no significant gain apart from heavy casualties. However, the British had their eyes on the Ottoman oil fields from the beginning. So, on April 25th, 1915, the Allied forces launched the Gallipoli Campaign. [Music] Their goal was to capture the Ottoman capital, Constantinople. But after nine months of this campaign, with nearly 200,000 soldiers wounded and killed, the Allied forces retreated in defeat. Meanwhile, on May 7th, an important event occurred. A German U-boat attacked and sank the Lusitania, a passenger ship, with nearly 1200 civilians on board. And among them were 128 American passengers. As a result, public opinion in America turned completely against Germany. On the 23rd of the same month, Italy joined the war. But they were part of the Triple Alliance. That is, Italy was supposed to fight on the side of the Central Powers. But they betrayed them and joined the Allied Powers, attacking the Austro-Hungarian Empire. However, that was of no avail. So, you can understand that even though the war spread across the entire world, the outcome of the war remained the same. Just to entice Bulgaria, Serbia's neighbor, the Central Powers brought them into their fold in October 1915, and finally, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Bulgaria together captured Serbia. The year was 1916, and the World War was at its peak. Meanwhile, Portugal seized a German ship docked in Lisbon harbor. As a result, on March 16th, Germany declared war on Portugal as well. But due to the naval blockade that began in the early stages of the war, Germany's economic situation was dire. So, on June 31st, 1916, for the first time, the German and British navies clashed with full force. The result was devastating. In that naval battle, known as the Battle of Jutland, nearly 250 ships participated. In just two days of battle, 14 British ships were destroyed, along with 6,000 sailors. On the other hand, the German navy lost 11 ships, with 2,500 men. But the empires' thirst for blood was not yet quenched. From February 21st to December 18th, 1916, the longest battle of World War I took place in Verdun, France. During this time, 400,000 French and 750,000 German soldiers were wounded. A total of approximately 300,000 people died on both sides. Meanwhile, the British tried their best to suppress the Germans. On July 1st, 1916, in the Battle of the Somme, 57,000 British soldiers were casualties in a single day, and tanks were used for the first time in this battle. While such bloody battles were taking place on the Western Front, Russia was only retreating on the Eastern Front. But seeing the British attack in the Battle of the Somme, the Russians also launched a counter-offensive, which is still known as the Brusilov Offensive. But due to supply shortages, they could not do much to Germany. Seeing the Russians advance like this, the Romanians also joined the war. But after the Russians stopped, the Romanians faced a brutal defeat. Meanwhile, Greece was undergoing internal turmoil. The King of Greece wished to join the Central Powers. But unable to agree with the Prime Minister, the King withdrew, and Greece joined the Allied Powers. However, while the Allied Powers were not making much headway in Europe, the situation of the Ottoman Empire was deteriorating day by day. Under Russian attacks, the Ottomans were constantly retreating. At the same time, the British were advancing through the Mesopotamian region. But the biggest game here was played by a British officer known as Lawrence of Arabia. It was mainly at his instigation that the Arab tribes declared war on the Ottoman Empire. However, the war in Europe was still at a deadlock. Meanwhile, in 1917, the Russian Revolution took place. The Bolshevik Party came to power. And their first task was to sign a treaty with Germany and withdraw Russia from the war. And this was great news for the Germans. But bad news was looming from the United States of America. To be honest, America was the only beneficiary of this entire war. Because their economy was booming from selling large quantities of supplies to the Allied Powers. Their military preparations were also complete, and here Germany made a fatal mistake. To keep America busy, they sent a secret telegram to the German ambassador in Mexico, known as the Zimmermann Telegram. Germany's goal was to have Mexico attack America. But the British decoded this telegram. And then America entered the war. With the arrival of new American troops, Germany became fearful and panicked. Germany launched a final, all-out offensive. The Allied forces retreated at four locations along the Somme and the line of control. But on the fifth push, Britain and France stopped the Germans. And then America arrived. And the rest is history. The Central Powers began to falter on every front. First, Bulgaria surrendered. Then the Ottoman Empire. Then Austria-Hungary. And finally, on November 11th, 1918, Germany surrendered. And thus, the First World War ended. A new video about World War II will be coming very soon. Share your opinions in the comments. And if you have any suggestions for new topics, let us know. See you in the next video.