You probably haven't heard much about it yet, but you will.
28th June 2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the event which started the Great War.
On that date in 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife was shot by a 20 year old Bosnian Serb called Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo. He used an FN 1910 pistol.
The Austro-Hungarians issued an ultimatum to Serbia which resulted in the first shots being fired one month later.
The Russians mobilised in support of Serbia and Germany invaded Belgium and Luxembourg. Great Britain was forced into the war in defence of Belgium on August 4th.
The war, said to be the war to end all wars, raged for over 4 years and at its end, the death toll was estimated to be as high as 65 million people.
In 2014, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is leading plans to build a commemoration fitting of this significant milestone in world history, working alongside partners including the Imperial War Museum, Heritage Lottery Fund and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission .
UK Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged £5m funding that will help conserve, repair and protect First World War memorials and burial sites across the UK and overseas where British and Commonwealth servicemen and women are buried. He said at a visit to Flanders last month:
"Next year’s centenary of the start of the First World War will be a time for the whole nation to reflect on the events that saw so many young people of that generation make the ultimate sacrifice. Nearly all of us in Britain have some family connection with that conflict, and it is the many millions of small, personal stories that resonate as loudly for us as the big, world-changing battles and campaigns.
As part of that, it is absolutely right that we help communities up and down the country to ensure that their local war memorials are a fitting tribute to the fallen and increase people’s understanding of what happened. We simply should not tolerate damaged war graves in our country. Our memorials and cemeteries must be places of respect and education. This funding will help make it happen, and I am proud to be able to announce it today.
More planned events will unfurl as we move through 2014, but a Facebook page has already been set up:
First World War Centenary on Facebook
