#28: 26 July 1914 I - Austria Delays Again

#28: 26 July 1914 I - Austria Delays Again

The ultimatum had expired, and yet somehow, Austria had not declared war on Serbia. What was going on?


Well, despite pushing the crisis forward with reckless abandon, the Austrian chief of staff Conrad von Hotzendorff now seemed awake to the dangers facing the country. The army would not be ready for war until 12 August, he said. This was a shock to the Germans, who continued to expect a lightning Austrian strike at Belgrade. But it did give the diplomats time to do their work.


From Britain, Sir Edward Grey believed a mediation scheme involving four uninvolved powers was the answer. He encouraged Berlin to push this idea, and the Germans did so, but only reluctantly, and out of fear of offending Britain if they did not. But the question of Russia was arguably the most important of all, and the Tsar was apparently now willing to exercise his military muscle by approving the period preparatory to war, and the mobilisation of key military districts.


This should have shown Austria that Russian intervention was highly likely, yet her statesmen continued to forge ahead. They had lost the diplomatic initiative, and they had failed to present Europe with a fait accompli. Instead, the sluggish, conditional Austrian response seemed ideally suited to diplomatic mediation. But would Austria take the easy way out? Incredibly, from Vienna, the answer was still no.


Support the July Crisis series, join the conversation, and find out more through these links:

  1. Do you want ad-free episodes with scripts attached, and bonus content? Support us on Patreon and you can suggest July Crisis episodes!
  2. Join our Facebook group as we make our way through this fascinating series!
  3. Click here to see our July Crisis workspace in Perlego, you'll find every source you need!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(744)

Goodbye For Now

Goodbye For Now

Between working full time and the impending arrival of baby WDF, I would be lying if I pretended as if nothing was going to change. It is, in fact, time to accept that I am only one man. But that's ok...

6 Okt 202514min

#70: July Crisis Q&A

#70: July Crisis Q&A

During this series we have encountered a wide variety of fascinating characters and controversial decisions, but even though the story of why the world went to war in 1914 is finally finished, that do...

30 Jul 202558min

State of the Podcast Address 21 July 2025

State of the Podcast Address 21 July 2025

It's been a while since I last checked in with you, and I've been sitting on some incredible news for a while now. If you'd like to know how things are about to change, then make sure you listen in! H...

21 Jul 202529min

#69: The First World War - Whose Fault Is It Anyway? Part 3

#69: The First World War - Whose Fault Is It Anyway? Part 3

In our final part, we bring this saga of a series to an end by focusing our attention on the most focused on country of all - Germany. We know what Germany did from 1 August, from the declarations of ...

21 Jul 202549min

#68: The First World War - Whose Fault Is It Anyway? Part 2

#68: The First World War - Whose Fault Is It Anyway? Part 2

For generations, examinations of the First World War excluded arguably the most important actor - Russia. In this episode, we will hone in on the Tsar's court and his ministers. We will analyse their ...

14 Jul 202537min

#67: The First World War - Whose Fault Is It Anyway? Part 1

#67: The First World War - Whose Fault Is It Anyway? Part 1

By now we've seen the absolute worst that Europe had to offer in 1914. We've seen naive statesmen, misinformed statesmen, distrustful statesmen, desperate statesmen, and everything in between. But whe...

7 Jul 202545min

The Unreality of Realism w/ Alexander von Sternberg

The Unreality of Realism w/ Alexander von Sternberg

Something special for you here - Alex and I had a great conversation about realism in international relations on his History Impossible podcast, and he was good enough to let me publish it on my feed....

3 Jul 20252h 18min

#66: The July Crisis - Conclusion

#66: The July Crisis - Conclusion

What have we learned after 65 episodes of background, analysis, and day-to-day coverage of the most consequential diplomatic failure in human history? What can we say about those responsible for what ...

30 Jun 202541min

Populært innen Historie

rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
historier-som-endret-norge
rss-katastrofe
rss-benadet
historier-som-endret-verden
henrettelsespodden
aftenposten-historie
rss-nadelose-nordmenn-gestapo
sektledere
med-egne-oyne
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
rss-frontkjemperne
taakeprat
rss-historiske-romanser-svik-drap-og-kjarlighet
rss-gamle-greier
historiepodden
rss-historier-fra-gudbrandsdalen
liberal-halvtime
historiepodden-ww2
rss-bisarr-historie