Which leader's assassination is commonly attributed to triggering World War I?

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria is widely regarded as the immediate catalyst for the outbreak of World War I. On June 28, 1914, he was killed in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip, a member of a nationalist group seeking the unification of South Slavic peoples. This event set off a chain reaction among the complex web of alliances and tensions in Europe at the time.

Ferdinand's death led Austria-Hungary to issue an ultimatum to Serbia, which, when only partially accepted, resulted in Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia. This declaration activated a series of alliances that had been established among European powers, escalating the conflict into a global war involving numerous nations, including Germany, Russia, France, and Britain. The assassination is thus seen as the spark that ignited already existing tensions and rivalries, leading to the full-scale war that ensued.

In contrast, other figures mentioned in the options had no direct role in instigating World War I. Hermann Göring was a prominent Nazi leader active during World War II, Winston Churchill was involved in World War I but is more famously associated with World War II as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and Woodrow Wilson was the President of