A crisis of faith was a problem, but it was also an opportunity. At this moment, the Holy See was too busy saving itself to spare attention elsewhere, creating favorable conditions for the government to intervene in the Church's internal affairs.
Once the government had the power to punish clergymen, the Church would have no choice but to tuck its tail between its legs from then on.
Otherwise, they could investigate violations of Church doctrine. There was no need to exaggerate—even finding seven or eight clergymen out of ten who had violated Church rules would be no problem at all.
The remaining two or three should not feel too pleased with themselves either. Even if they had not violated Church rules, that was only temporary—or simply because nothing had been uncovered yet. So long as the government wished it, sooner or later it could find something wrong with them.
Franz was far from the only one to kick a man when he was down. The crisis of faith greatly diminished the Church's standing in the eyes of the public, and governments across Europe quietly began cutting back Church privileges.
With the end of this turmoil, the millennium-long struggle between royal power and divine authority on the European Continent also drew to a close. This time, royal power won a complete victory, and the Church lost any chance of turning the tables.
That was all still in the future. Napoleon III had no time yet to savor the fruits of victory, as all sorts of chaotic ideas kept reshaping the public's worldview in France.
People opposed to the Church and people supporting it brawled in the streets of Paris, and some even drew guns. In the end, Napoleon III had to order the garrison troops to step in and put down