As the British began to act, the covert diplomatic struggle between France and Austria was taken over by the British. It was not that they looked down on the French; the French Government's diplomacy was simply not very good.
Of course, this was also directly related to the Bonaparte Dynasty having accumulated far too much hatred across the European Continent. During Napoleon III's reign, relations with everyone had indeed eased for a time, but unfortunately, once France annexed the Italian region, that relaxed international environment was gone forever.
In a sense, Napoleon III had also dug a pit for his son. Annexing the Italian region had made his own achievements, yet left behind a bottomless pit that could never be filled.
There was no helping it. This was no longer the Middle Ages. European nationalism had risen; they could swallow the territory, but could not digest it, while drawing hatred to the brim.
This was especially true for the many small countries. To safeguard their own security, they had no choice but to unite against the French, using them to deter the other European powers and keep everyone from following suit.
This was the main reason the French Foreign Ministry could not achieve results. It was not that the fence-sitters possessed such firm resolve; rather, their political circumstances had determined that they could not stand with France.
If the small nations could not be won over, there was even less need to mention the great powers. There could only be one hegemon, and everyone else was a competitor. Even alliances were merely temporary.
Especially with Russia and Austria having long banded together, the only room left for the French Foreign Ministry to maneuver was Britain.
Originally, with enemies surrounding them on all sides and an utterly useless teammate added to