July 25, 1914
Austria-Hungary, deeply offended by the assassination of the heir to the throne of the dual monarchy, knows that one possible response is war on Serbia. Chief of Staff of the A-H army Conrad von Holtzendorf is fairly champing at the bit to make that happen. The royal family sees the hazards of that course of action so for the last three and a half weeks has been gauging the feelings of Austria's stronger ally, Germany. There are plenty of dogs of war there, chief among them the high warlord, Kaiser Wilhelm II who is itching to show the world just what he is made of. Austria-Hungary, encouraged by the noises coming from Germany, decides to issue an ultimatum to Serbia, with a deadline of today. Serbia, although conciliatory, cannot accept those demands in full.
Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia all begin to mobilize for war. German war plans call for her to deliver a quick knockout punch to her enemy to the west, France. She must find a way to get this thing started, so as not to allow time for Russia to prepare for the encirclement of Germany.
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