Assassination of Franz Ferdinand & World War I – Half Day Tour in Sarajevo

Meet our team at the office or your preferred pickup location. Your guide is a professional who will make sure no questions remain unanswered, even of personal nature, so don’t refrain from sharing your thoughts and opinions at any moment of time.

Baščaršija, Sarajevo’s main market in the Old Town dating late 15th century is a conducive place to start the comprehensive talk about the historic event that made Sarajevo globally known in 1914. Baščaršija (The Main Market) served as a primary place for commerce and all other social activities for centuries.

After a brief insight into the city’s past and a blend of historic events that shaped the nature of Sarajevo which is locally known as the “European Jerusalem”, we will pass through the most important streets and lanes consisting of the old Sarajevo Bazaar.

On the way towards the architecturally fascinating Sarajevo City Hall building, we will pass through Oprkanj street where the subsequent assassinator Gavrilo Princip lived before he pulled the trigger that sparked the Great War.

Sarajevo Sebilj at Bascarsija square, or famously known as Pigeon Square

Facts and myths related to the City Hall are diverse, which is what adds up to the significance of this probably the most marvellous building in the entire city. Unveiled in 1896, the City Hall built in the specific Pseudo-Moorish style in the architecture, served initially as the home for the city administration and district court. Following the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908, a newly-formed state assembly held the sessions in the City Hall.

Once here, we will discuss the relations in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy itself during the turbulent “long nineteenth century”. We will hear how the national identity and the nation-states in the Balkans were formed, as well as imperialistic tendencies a Monarchy had in the Balkan Peninsula. We’ll try to unfold the role of the Black Hand.

A City Hall holds the (in)famous reputation as the last building where Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were before they were shot dead at the street corner 400m far from there.

Sarajevo Vijećnica, City Hall, the last place Franz Ferdinand visited with his wife Sophie

After the City Hall, we will proceed through the former Appel Quay, following the exact route a car carrying Ferdinand and Sophie’s had taken after the protocol reception. Many theories that occurred in the aftermath of the assassination of how and why the driver took a wrong turn will be the subject of our discussion and analysis. What was the reason for insufficient security precautions for the imperial visit?

At this historically important spot, we will try to explain the wider story of Yugoslavism and the idea of unification of the South Slavs that guided members of the “Young Bosnia revolutionary movement”.

Learn about the twist of fate and history that turned Gavrilo Princip from a despicable assassinator and the enemy of the state into a national hero in just a couple of years. Conceive the narrative under which the neighbouring bridge, dating the 16th century, was named after the Princip himself during the existence of Yugoslavia.

Entrance included: Sarajevo Museum 1878-1918 (Former Museum of Young Bosnia revolutionary movement)

Latin Bridge and museum of Sarajevo dedicated to the events of Franz Ferdinand Assassination in 1914 and period of the Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The corner which triggered the WWI

Following the unrealized route of the royals, we will make a short stop at the site of the first, less-known, attempt of assassination. That will provide a clue to a wider story of the plot and lead us towards the events that preceded the fateful June 28th, 1914.

We will turn into a former Franz Joseph street, passing the Serbian Orthodox Cathedral, which will lead us to the oldest public state High School institution, the Sarajevo First Gymnasium. Try to put yourself in the shoes of the revolutionary generation from the beginning of the 20th century.

Learn what was the connection between Gavrilo Princip and Ivo Andrić, the future Nobel Laureate. What sort of ideologies and tools of political struggle they adhered to and who represented a true inspiration to them.

From this point, we will take a short ride to the site which was the largest military complex built by the Dual Monarchy. Former Ottoman military facilities couldn’t meet the requirements of the new regime, hence the construction of modern barracks started immediately in the aftermath of the occupation. The building was finished in 1897, outside of the Sarajevo downtown at that time.

It accommodated 25 indictees charged with different levels of participation in the assassination plot. In October 1914, the local Garrison Court was a seat of historic trial.

Learn about the role of the trial chamber, both efforts and non-commitment of the defense attorneys, and how Gavrilo Princip and the other 24 indictees justified their actions.

The largest Orthodox cemetery in Sarajevo of Holy Archangels George and Gabriel became a resting place for numerous distinguished Serbs over the 19th and 20th century. The Chapel erected in 1939 within this cemetery, in relative vicinity to the city’s downtown, became the resting place for the 11 people related to the act of Assassination. 

Get insight into the final days of Princip’s life in prison, his thoughts, feelings, place of detention, and the fate of his fellows too.

What was the relation to the Princip and the “Shot That Shook the World” of a newly-formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in the aftermath of World War I? Was Princip’s act justified in a political and national context? What is the relation towards the Sarajevo 1914 Assassination nowadays amongst the people in the former Yugoslavia? Should we leave Assassination in 1914, or it affects us even today to a certain extent?