In 1859, the British occupied Queensland, and all of Australia fell under British colonial rule.
Watching helplessly as the British occupied the Gold Coast, Franz could only sigh at the vast sea. Australia was simply too far away for Austria; it had no ability to compete for it at all.
The only power in the world capable of competing with the British for Australia was France. Clearly, Napoleon III had no interest in that continent of exile.
The French were not idle either. They steadily intensified their infiltration of the Kingdom of Sardinia, and French forces had already taken control of most areas bordering France.
The peacekeeping forces were limited in number, and the troops promised by the various countries had not arrived on schedule. They had only managed to control the Turin region.
Aside from the British, who led a group of little brothers in calling for action against the French infiltration, the faraway Russians merely watched the show, while the Austrians were busy hunting down the culprits and turned a deaf ear to the French army's movements.
The London Government was furious enough to erupt in flames, but it was still busy suppressing the Indian rebellion and had no way to devote more energy to intervening.
The French government was indeed pro-British, but that was premised on there being no conflict of interests. The Kingdom of Sardinia was a juicy piece of meat, and there was not much risk involved.
Opportunities to expand territory on the European Continent were exceedingly rare. Once this opportunity was missed, Napoleon III might never encounter another in his lifetime.
As for offending the British, the century-long Anglo-French feud was no joke. Were they afraid of adding another stroke to it?
For now, they were merely nibbling away at the Kingdom of Sardinia