Shot heard round the world The phrase "shot heard round the world" (alternatively "shots heard round the world" or "shot heard around the world") has also become associated with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914, an event considered to be one of the immediate causes of World War I. Serbian Gavrilo Princip fired two shots, the first hitting Franz Ferdinand's wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, and the second hitting the Archduke himself. The death of Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, propelled Austria-Hungary and the rest of Europe into World War I. The phrase "Shot heard
Russian entry into World War I was in agreement with President minister Raymond Poincaré who trusted him. He promised unconditional French support to Russia in the unfolding crisis with Germany and Austria. Historians debate whether he exceeded his instructions but they agree he failed to inform Paris of exactly what was happening, and did not warn that Russian mobilization might launch a world war. When on 28 June 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in Sarajevo Tsar Nicholas vacillated as to Russia's course of action. A relatively new factor influencing Russian policy was the growth of the Pan-Slavism spirit that identified Russia's duty to