GCSE Bitesize: Causes of World War One Activity. Top Causes That Led to World War I. What caused World War 1. Causes of WWI online lesson - learning objectives. Feature Articles - The Causes of World War One. June 28 in Sarajevo We'll start with the facts and work back: it may make it all the easier to understand how World War One actually happened.
The events of July and early August 1914 are a classic case of "one thing led to another" - otherwise known as the treaty alliance system. The explosive that was World War One had been long in the stockpiling; the spark was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. (Click here to view film footage of Ferdinand arriving at Sarajevo's Town Hall on 28 June 1914.) Causes of World War One. The first world war began in August 1914. It was directly triggered by the assassination of the Austrian archduke, Franz Ferdinand and his wife, on 28th June 1914 by Bosnian revolutionary, Gavrilo Princip.
This event was, however, simply the trigger that set off declarations of war.