Austria-Hungary used its river force to express its interests in areas contested with the Ottoman and Russian empires. Control of those areas meant influence over goods moving along the Danube. A territory's strategic value could therefore rest heavily on the traffic passing through it. The flotilla took part in Austria-Hungary's opening operations of the First World War and remained important during the conflict. Its division after the war supplied river assets to other navies.
Notable Point · 30:38-32:18
Danube trade, Balkan rivalry and the opening of the First World War
Control of trade flowing through the Balkans helps explain the value of Austria-Hungary's Danube flotilla before, during and after the First World War.