Seite - 21 - in THE FIRST WORLD WAR - and the End of the Habsburg Monarchy, 1914 – 1918

 The Powder Keg 21 Prague found it necessary to announce martial law in order to bring an end to rioting and to reinstate order. At the end of the annexation crisis, it was evident that several patterns for action had evolved in 1908/1909 that would serve as a model time and again in later years. The Habsburg Monarchy had been given rear support by the German Empire. The Chan- cellor of the German Empire, Bernhard von Bülow, had clearly stated to Austria-Hun- gary on 30 October 1908 that the German Empire would share responsibility for any decision taken and would also offer military assistance if necessary.17 However, this was only one experience which was to be gained. France and England had come to terms with the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Their interests lay elsewhere, and as imperial powers, they would hardly have failed to recognise a colonial impulse. The reaction from Italy was no cause for concern. Still, what did make a significant impact was the untold harm done by Austria to its relations with Russia. This matter would never be forgotten. In international relations, certain events do not assume a decisive importance merely because they have an immediate impact. Rather, humiliations or severe damage provoke a rise in hostile attitudes and a desire for revenge in support of the national interest, which while having no place in politics cannot be extrapolated from the background against which political decisions are made. In a similar way, the potential for conflict is also increased. Izvolsky was relieved of his post as minister and was sent to Paris as Russian ambassador. He subsequently played a role in the July Cri- sis of 1914, and was indeed least of all in favour of Russia and Serbia taking a moderate view in their assessment of the impact of the murder in Sarajevo. He did, after all, have an old score to settle. The Powder Keg Ultimately, Aehrenthal’s policy was a success. Emperor Franz Joseph expressed his ap- proval by awarding his Foreign Minister an earldom in 1909. There was nothing ma- licious about Aehrenthal’s strategy, which had already been agreed with the Austrian decision-makers and indeed with other countries. However, this does not mean that his policy was not also controversial. Neither the German parties in the Habsburg Monarchy nor the national Hungarians welcomed the expansion of the Slav territories. In spite of this, both halves of the Empire made efforts to have the new acquisitions allocated to their complex of territories. No agreement could be reached, and as a result, the annexed provinces remained the state no-man’s-land that they had been since the start of the occupation in 1878. The finance ministers of Austria and Hungary, one of the three joint ministries of the Danube Monarchy, were responsible for administering Bosnia and Herzegovina, and not the government of either of the two halves of the