Gun That Started the First World War

jamese · 08-19-2004, 09:37 AM

I ran accross this and thought others might be interested as well:

The Gun That Started the First World War Has Been Discovered

Ninety years ago, on June 28, 1914, Gavrilo Princip shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie as they were riding through Sarajevo. The assassination was the spark that started World War I. But what happened to the infamous gun? After the trial of Princip, the Browning pistol was given to Jesuit priest Anton Puntigam, who had given the couple their last rites. Though Puntigam had planned on opening a museum about the Archduke, his plans were halted by the war. After Puntigam died in 1926, the gun stayed in a Jesuit community house in Austria, pretty much forgotten until recent publicity of the 90th anniversary of the shooting rekindled interest. The gun will be put on display at the Vienna Museum of Military History.

Jim

Stevie · 08-19-2004, 09:54 PM

So what type was the pistol. Ive read it was a FN Browning 1900, and I've read and been told it was an FN Browning 1910. I read in a history book years ago that it was a 1906 model?

Stevie.

montenegrin · 10-08-2004, 06:30 PM

The pistol used by Gavrilo Princip was FN Browning M1910 9mm short (.380 ACP). It was bought in a hardware store in Belgrade not long before the tragic event,together with three other pistols of the same kind (given to other assasins).
Regards,
montenegrin

minigun · 10-11-2004, 02:49 AM

If you look at it through another perspective, it could be said that it sparked TWO world wars. One led to the other so to speak.

08-19-2004, 09:37 AM	#1
jamese User Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: South Florida Posts: 792 Thanks: 0 Thanked 86 Times in 36 Posts	Gun That Started the First World War I ran accross this and thought others might be interested as well: The Gun That Started the First World War Has Been Discovered Ninety years ago, on June 28, 1914, Gavrilo Princip shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie as they were riding through Sarajevo. The assassination was the spark that started World War I. But what happened to the infamous gun? After the trial of Princip, the Browning pistol was given to Jesuit priest Anton Puntigam, who had given the couple their last rites. Though Puntigam had planned on opening a museum about the Archduke, his plans were halted by the war. After Puntigam died in 1926, the gun stayed in a Jesuit community house in Austria, pretty much forgotten until recent publicity of the 90th anniversary of the shooting rekindled interest. The gun will be put on display at the Vienna Museum of Military History. Jim __________________ The "truth" is a matter of Perception

08-19-2004, 09:54 PM	#2
Stevie User Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Ok. Posts: 212 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	So what type was the pistol. Ive read it was a FN Browning 1900, and I've read and been told it was an FN Browning 1910. I read in a history book years ago that it was a 1906 model? Stevie.

10-08-2004, 06:30 PM	#3
montenegrin User Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 18 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	The pistol used by Gavrilo Princip was FN Browning M1910 9mm short (.380 ACP). It was bought in a hardware store in Belgrade not long before the tragic event,together with three other pistols of the same kind (given to other assasins). Regards, montenegrin

10-11-2004, 02:49 AM	#4
minigun User Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Texas Posts: 424 Thanks: 16 Thanked 20 Times in 15 Posts	If you look at it through another perspective, it could be said that it sparked TWO world wars. One led to the other so to speak.