The Austrian Empire's treaty renewal with Mexico through 1950 did not draw much attention across Europe. Though Santa Anna had bought publicity, most Europeans had very limited interest in Mexico.
By comparison, the North and South of the United States trading barbs was far more likely to catch Europeans' attention. And these barbs involved real spitting matches—ones that, once things escalated, even turned into flying fists and kicks.
To deal with this unusual situation, both sides selected strong young men to replenish their ranks. Lincoln was unfortunate enough to have his jaw knocked loose by a single punch from Southern boxing champion Tom Hale.
It had to be said that they were using bare fists at the time. The power of bare fists was in no way comparable to boxing gloves. If that champion had stepped forward and thrown two more punches, Lincoln might never have had the chance to become President of the United States.
Fortunately, another young congressman nearby tackled boxing champion Tom Hale just as he was about to press forward. Even so, Lincoln was badly hurt and for a long time afterward had no choice but to live on liquid food and milk.
While the public remained indifferent, Britain and France still launched verbal attacks against the Austrian Empire's actions.
The Austrian Empire's actions directly led Britain and France to increase their investment in colonial ventures. Whether a place could be developed or had any potential did not matter—they would occupy it first and talk later.
Britain and France's actions in turn provoked the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, and other nations. Even William IV declared that he would begin colonial ventures.
Franz, however, was not especially worried. After all, he had already occupied the regions that were easy to seize and unlikely to bring conflict with