Gavrilo Princip

Gavrilo Princip (1894-1918)

Princip had a rough childhood, losing 6 of his 9 siblings during infancy. He was raised in poor conditions and developed tuberculosis at a young age. He was sent away to continue his education. After dropping out for politics, he soon attempted to enlist in the Serbian Army, but was rejected because of his small stature. However, because of his illness, he was too weak to fight in combat and instead, became part of the plot for Franz Ferdinand’s assassination. Princip sought out acceptance due to his illness and small stature.

From our research, we inferred that Princip seeked acceptance from a young because of his small size. After being rejected from the Serbian Army he seeked approval and turned to the Black Hand, which was a secret terrorism group against the Serbian government.  It’s possible that Princip suffered from Borderline Personality Disorder which is instability of emotions, self- image and behavior because he was constantly ridiculed for his size. The assassination of Franz Ferdinand was one the main set offs for World War 1.