Sarajevo

The city in Bosnia and Herzegovina where the assassination that brought on World War I took place. Archduke Francis Ferdinand, the heir to the throne of the Austrian Empire, had come to Sarajevo on a state visit; Sarajevo was then in one of the South Slavic provinces of the Austrian Empire. A young student who favored South Slavic independence shot and killed the archduke. Austria held the assassin's home country, Serbia, responsible for the incident and declared war; complex European alliances then brought other countries into the fight.

Note: In 1992 the city came under prolonged and bloody siege by Bosnian Serbs seeking to drive Bosnian Muslims from their homes. In 1995 leaders of the rival Balkan states of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia met in the United States and settled on a peace accord to end the fighting.

Republic in southeastern Europe on the west Balkan Peninsula, bordered by Croatia to the west and north, Yugoslavia to the east, with a small outlet to the Adriatic Sea to the west. Sarajevo is the country's capital and largest city.

Note: Sarajevo was the site of the assassination in 1914 of Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand, which sparked World War I.

Note: In the early 1990s, brutal attacks by Serbian militia devastated the region, arousing international condemnation. In 1995, leaders of the rival Balkan states of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia met in the United States and ended the fighting with a peace accord.

Capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Note: The Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand was assassinated there in 1914, which was the immediate cause of World War I. (See under “World History since 1550.”)

Note: Home of the 1982 winter Olympic Games.

Note: Attacked and severely damaged in 1992 by Serbian militia. In 1995, leaders of the rival Balkan states of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia met in the United States and settled on a peace accord to end the fighting.