Ancient history

A new place in Europe

Napoleon III, in the Napoleonic tradition, wants an ambitious foreign policy. He directs it himself, sometimes short-circuiting the circuits of French diplomacy. Since 1815, France has been diplomatically relegated to a second-tier country. The first objective of Napoleon III is to give it a role in Europe then in search of a new organization under the pressure of nationalism. The Crimean War gave him the opportunity.