Why was the assassination of Archduke Franz the start of world war 1?

Answer 1

Archduke Franz(Francis) Ferdinand was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. When Franz was assassinated by a Serbian assassin war broke out. Before the war, Austria-Hungary and Germany made an alliance to help each other if war ever broke out. Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and other small nations had just become independent from the Ottoman Empire. Those small nations and Russia were Slavs, so they fought together because of their nationality. France and Russia made an alliance with each other also. There were lots of conflicts before but the assassination lit the match. Austra-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Russia declared war on Austria-Hungary to protect Serbia. Germany declared war on Russia to keep its promise to Austria-Hungary. France went to war and attacked Germany. Germany attacked Belgium to find an easier path to France. Great Britain went to war against Germany to protect Belgium. Shortly after, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria joined Germany and Austria-Hungary. They became known as the Central Powers. Italy joined the other side, which became known as the Allies. Because the small Slavic nations kept causing conflicts; they, the Balkan Peninsula, became known as the "powder keg of Europe". Canada went to war because of its close ties with Great Britain, and the USA went to war because it saw it was also a war between democracy and militarism.