Assassinations and Assassination Attempts

Prior to the First World War, Serbia was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Because nationalism was a growing force in Europe, this foreign domination was greatly resented. On June 28th, 1914, a nationalist organization called the Black Hand assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand in an attempt to assert demands for Serbian independence. Though it is widely speculated that the Serbian government had no involvement in the assassination, Austria-Hungary responded swiftly. At Germany's insistence, it declared war on Serbia in an effort to crush the nationalist movement. Though the assassination of Ferdinand was a seemingly miniscule event, it escalated into a global conflict because the major European powers established pre-war alliances in an attempt to avoid war. Britain, France and Russia established the Triple Entente while Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary formed the Triple Alliance. Such alliances were necessary because each nation had to defend its interests. Britain, for instance, was the undisputed ruler of the seas and feared the expansion of the German navy. France, meanwhile, wanted revenge on Germany for the outcome of the Franco-Prussian war of 1871; France suffered a humiliating defeat in this conflict and lost the provinces of Alsace-Lorraine. Though these alliances were meant to prevent war, they wound up having the opposite effect. When Austria-Hungary went to war with Serbia, Russia came to defend the Serbs; the Russians and Serbs were naturally aligned because they were both of Slav descent. Because Germany instucted Austria-Hungary to be firm with Serbia following the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, it felt obligated to join the conflict and promptly waged war on Russia. Britain and France had already established an alliance with Russia and had no choice but to wage war on Germany. Within a month of June 28th, 1914, all of the major European powers were at war. It is worth noting that Italy held out until 1915 when it joined the side of the allies.

The origin of World War I and II are similar because both conflicts were preceeded by pacifistic intentions. Prior to the First World War, the nations of Europe chose alliances as a method of avoiding conflict. Prior to the Second World War, the method of choice was appeasement. This was a policy exercised by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain; it enabled Germany to receive political and territorial concessions in exchance for its promise to maintain peace. In short, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was essentially insignificant. It was an incident that simply happened to take place during a tumultuous time characterized by tension and discontent throughout Europe. The eventual involvement of all the European powers in the initial conflict between Serbia and Austria-Hungary can be summed up in two words: domino effect.

As Abe Lincoln was one of the main driving forces behind the rebuilding of the nation, his death placed a huge burden on the American people, but did not halt our reconstruction. His plans for rebuilding were far more moderate than the Radical Republicans wanted to impose on the South. His death cleared the way for them to impose harsh conditions on the South.

"I could stay here forever."

9.John Wilkes Booth, actually killed President Lincoln and others charged in the Lincoln assassination were George Atzerodt, Mary Sarrat, Lewis Powell, David Herold, Samuel Arnold, Michael O'Laughlin, Dr. Samuel Mudd, and Edward Spangler.

McKinley
President Abraham Lincoln.

A group of Serbian terrorists believed that Bosnia should have been part of Serbia and not the Austria-Hungary empire. They plotted to murder the Emperor's nephew (and heir) Archduke Franz Ferdinand when he visited Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia.

It did't work. As the Archduke was driving through the city to the Town Hall, one of the terrorists threw a bomb at the car. It bounced off, his another car and injured several people. The terrorists present tried to commit suicide, first by swallowing cyanide (which didn't work), then jumping into the river (which turned out to be about five inches deep, thanks to the summer weather). They were soon hauled out by an angry mob. The other would-be assassins (including Princip) missed their chance.

The Archduke went to the Town Hall as he had planned, where he was greated with a warm welcome, but decided to leave the city. As he was being driven away, the driver made a wrong turn and ran into Gavrilo Princip outside a food shop.

The assassination of Abraham Lincoln had a big impact on the South. This even removed the buffer that was placed between radical abolitionists that were in the North and the political leaders that were in place in the south.

Mary Surratt was found guiilty by a military tribunal and was hanged.

(in the US) None.

The Warren commission declared that Lee Harvey Oswald shot j.F.Kennedy three times in the back of the head.

WRONG!

The warren commission concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald was indeed acting alone, and that three shots were fired, though only two made there mark. The first, stated the Warren Commission, shot Kennedy in the back and then went on to hit Governor Connally in the chest, then wrist then thigh (this is often referred too as the 'Magic bullet,') and the second successful shot hit Kennedy in the head. All three shots were fired from the sixth floor of the Dallas Texas school book depository. Re-enactments have since taken place to see if it is actually possible to make both of the shots from the book depository (from the backwards left direction of kennedy's head when shot, it suggests a second shooter on the grassy knoll,) and it has been proven that it could have been done. The Warren Commission also stated that Oswald's killer Jack Ruby was also acting alone.

- Abraham Lincoln (1865) -James Garfield (1881) -William McKinley (1901) -John F. Kennedy (1963)

The Archduke was shot to death by a Serbian youth with his wife when they were riding in an open car. This event started WWI.

Abraham Lincoln was shot on April 14, 1865, but he did not die until the following day.

Only one bullet hit John F. Kennedy, meaning only one person actually fired the shot that killed him.

TWO bullets hit the President...the first went through his neck area and continued to

hit the Gov. of Texas, the second bullet to hit the President was the fatal shot. (removing a large portion of his head).

Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. While driving on a bridge during a parade, 8 men from Serbia, armed with crude bombs and weak pistols, set out to kill the Archduke. The first few didn't do anything at all. Then the 4th one threw his bomb but when it hit the back of the car, it didn't blow up. It exploded about 3 seconds later and injured many people. The next 3 didn't do anything either. The driver made a wrong turn; instead of turning left, he turned right and went down the road. While he was making a U-turn, the 8th shooter shot off 2 bullets. The two bullets that were fatal hit both him and his wife. They both died.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand had been assassinated 25 years before World War 2. His assassination sparked World War 1, not World War 2. No archdukes were assassinated during WWII.

yes, technically the Civil War ended on May 10,1865, the day Confederate president Jefferson Davis was captured. On that day Andrew Johnson declared the war officially over. So,yes, he was assassinated before the civil war ended.

Led the nation in mourning for her husband, granted just three interviews with historians and reporters, and moving into a 5th Avenue NYC apartment. She marries Greek billionaire Aristotle Onassis in 1968, and remains married until his death in 1975. She becomes a book editor, and lives until she dies of Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 64 on May 19th, 1994.

He was tried for killing Garfield, convicted and executed by hanging. The defense claimed insanity. The trial lasted two months and the courtroom was packed most days. Seen the related links for more details about the assassination and the trial.

Much of the planning was worked out at the boarding house owned by Mary Surratt on H Street in Washington, D.C.

It put Teddy Roosevelt in office. Research all the great things Roosevelt did during his years of presidency. Initially, McKinley was favored because he cared about the people and was very professional. In contrast, Roosevelt seemed inexperience, but when he took over after McKinley's death, people accepted him and it helped him win the next four years in office.

She gave three accounts of the assassination. One of to the Warren Commission, recalling what she went through during the motorcade and assassination itself, what she saw in regard's to her husband's death. The second was recalling her husband's life and death to Theodore H. White. The most extensive words she had about that day were to William Manchester, who used the account in his book "Death of a President." But Manchester used so much of what Jacqueline said, including details she wanted to keep private, that he was sued by the family, who demanded to seal her interview with him until a century after publication, and to edit certain parts from his account.

They became more active in politics.

Warren Commission Report

Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy