Austro-Hungarian Ultimatum and War on Serbia
The Austrian note delivered in Belgrade on 23 July 1914 gave Serbia forty-eight hours and ten demands. It required the suppression of anti-Austrian publications and organisations, the removal of named officers and officials, the arrest of two men, an end to the arms traffic across the frontier, and an official condemnation to be published in the army's gazette. The sixth point required Austrian officials to take part in the judicial investigation on Serbian territory. That is the one designed to be refused, and the Austrian foreign minister said in his own council that the terms had been drawn so that acceptance was practically impossible. The delivery was timed for the evening after the French president had sailed from Russia, so that the two allies would be at sea and unable to consult. Serbia's reply was a masterpiece of diplomatic drafting. It accepted almost everything, offered to submit the disputed point to the Hague tribunal, and was couched in language of complete deference while conceding nothing that mattered. The Austrian minister broke off relations within half an hour, having been instructed to treat anything short of unconditional acceptance as a refusal. The Kaiser read the reply on 28 July, wrote in the margin that it was a great moral victory for Vienna and that every reason for war had disappeared, and proposed a halt in Belgrade. Austria declared war the same day. The full text was circulated to the other powers only after delivery, which was itself a departure from practice. Grey in London, reading it, called it the most formidable document ever addressed by one state to another.
- Year: 1914 CE
- Category: Political
