The Way into the First World War

© Deutsches Historisches Museum, Berlin The order for the German General Mobilization signed by Emperor Wilhelm II, 1. August 1914

After the assassination of the Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife by a Serbian student in Sarajevo the German Reich has assured its most important ally, Austria-Hungary, of its full support. On July 29th Vienna declares war on Serbia. Russia, Serbia’s protecting power, reacts with the mobilization of its forces against Austria-Hungary. The next day the Russian General Mobilization follows. Berlin’s call for stopping it will be rejected by the government in St Petersburg.