As far as Francesco was concerned, Kossuth's actions could be called "spirited"—but that was all.
Hungary's size was nowhere near comparable to that of the Austrian Empire, and the gap in industrial capacity was even greater. It had managed to hold out until now only because Francesco had let it off the hook for ninety-nine percent of the time, while the remaining one percent came from Kossuth burning through the life of the Hungarian nation.
After the Austrian Empire launched its great counteroffensive, Hungary lost 70% of its territory and 80% of its fighting strength in a short time.
At this point, only Britain and France still sympathized with Hungary in public opinion. Every other European country stood firmly behind the Austrian Empire.
Even in Britain, most people were indifferent to the Hungarians. The economic crisis, the war, colonial rebellions in India and Ireland, the renewed turmoil of the Chartist movement at home, the invasion of cheap American grain, and many other factors all played a part.
Not only the British Government but also the British press was overwhelmed. Most ordinary people were too busy making ends meet to pay any attention to what was happening abroad.
Yet even among those who had been following events in Hungary, most had changed their minds by now. From an outsider's perspective, the Hungarians were excessively brutal: they slaughtered civilians, murdered royalty, rejected peace, and committed countless atrocities in the name of freedom.
When the Austrian Empire turned its attention back to them, they had not even the slightest power to resist. They were not even qualified to play the villain; throughout 1848, they had amounted to little more than clowns.
How much sympathy and support could a country like that possibly win?
The British Government had once been a master of the