The assassination of the Archduke : the murder that changed the world /
King, Greg,1964-author.
Woolmans, Sue,author.
This is the tragic story behind 'the shot that rang round the world' - the assassination of Franz Ferdinand and his beloved wife in Sarajevo in June 1914. In The Assassination of the Archduke, Greg King and Sue Woolmans offer readers a vivid account of the lives - and cruel deaths - of Franz Ferdinand and his beloved Sophie. Combining royal biography, romance, and political assassination, the story unfolds against a backdrop of glittering privilege and an Imperial Court consumed with hatred, taking readers from Bohemian castles to the horrors of Nazi concentration camps in a compelling, fascinating human drama. As moving as the fabled romance of Nicholas and Alexandra, as dramatic as Mayerling, Sarajevo resonates with love and loss, triumph and tragedy in a vibrant and powerful narrative. It lays bare the lethal circumstances surrounding that fateful Sunday morning in 1914, examining not only the Serbian conspiracy that killed Franz and Sophie but also insinuations about the hidden powers in Vienna that may well have sent them to their deaths. With a Foreword from the Archduke's great-granddaughter, Princess Sophie von Hohenberg, and drawing on a wide variety of unpublished sources and with unique access to previously restricted Hungarian and Czech archives, including Sophie's diaries and family papers, King and Woolmans have written the most comprehensive account of this momentous event available in English. In doing so, they offer readers an intriguing and startlingly revisionist look at this most famous of Archdukes, his family, and their momentous collision with destiny in 1914.
"First published in 2013 by St. Martin's Press, New York, as The assassination of the Archduke : Sarajevo 1914 and the romance that changed the world"--Title page verso.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 345-365) and index.
Foreword / Sophie von Hohenberg -- Vienna, January 1889 -- In the shadow of the throne -- Adventure and illness -- Romance -- "A triumph of love" -- "Don't let her think she's one of us!" -- The swirl of gossip -- Attitudes soften -- "Konopischt was home" -- "Even death will not part us!" -- An emperor in training -- Diplomacy and roses -- "I consider war to be lunacy!" -- The fatal invitation -- The plot -- "I'm beginning to fall in love with Bosnia" -- St. Vitus's day -- "The anguish was indescribable" -- United in death -- Headlong toward oblivion -- Ripples from Sarajevo.
This is the tragic story behind 'the shot that rang round the world' - the assassination of Franz Ferdinand and his beloved wife in Sarajevo in June 1914. In The Assassination of the Archduke, Greg King and Sue Woolmans offer readers a vivid account of the lives - and cruel deaths - of Franz Ferdinand and his beloved Sophie. Combining royal biography, romance, and political assassination, the story unfolds against a backdrop of glittering privilege and an Imperial Court consumed with hatred, taking readers from Bohemian castles to the horrors of Nazi concentration camps in a compelling, fascinating human drama. As moving as the fabled romance of Nicholas and Alexandra, as dramatic as Mayerling, Sarajevo resonates with love and loss, triumph and tragedy in a vibrant and powerful narrative. It lays bare the lethal circumstances surrounding that fateful Sunday morning in 1914, examining not only the Serbian conspiracy that killed Franz and Sophie but also insinuations about the hidden powers in Vienna that may well have sent them to their deaths. With a Foreword from the Archduke's great-granddaughter, Princess Sophie von Hohenberg, and drawing on a wide variety of unpublished sources and with unique access to previously restricted Hungarian and Czech archives, including Sophie's diaries and family papers, King and Woolmans have written the most comprehensive account of this momentous event available in English. In doing so, they offer readers an intriguing and startlingly revisionist look at this most famous of Archdukes, his family, and their momentous collision with destiny in 1914.
Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria, 1863-1914
Sophie, Archduchess of Austria, 1866-1914
World War, 1914-1918